A scholar of the Cebu provincial government who was one of four Cebu topnotchers in the May 2012 Certified Public Accountant licensure examination will receive a P30,000 cash incentive from the Capitol.
Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said the Capitol gives incentives to graduates with honors, especially those who topped the board examinations.
In a press conference on Wednesday, Garcia said the scholarship program helps to the poor but deserving students.
“This is really one of the most fulfilling jobs that I have undertaken. We have always tried to give opportunities to the poor but deserving students to get tertiary education through our scholarship program,” she said.
Edmond Emperio, a graduate of the University of San Jose-Recoletos, placed no. 9 after getting 91.71 percent rating in the exams.
The other three topnotchers from Cebu are from the University of San Carlos. They are 4th placer Gianna Tan Chan with 92.57 percent, 7th placer Kenneth Jefferson Un Uy with 92 percent, and 10th placer Shearilynn Lim Go with 91.57 percent.
Emperio, who was a scholar the Capitol’s Cebu Tertiary Educational Assistance Program (CTEAP), said he received P25,000 incentive from the Capitol for graduating magna cum laude last October 2011.
He said he used the money in his seven months of review for the board exams in Manila.
“This is a validation of how our scholarship program has indeed made a difference in his life and in the lives of so many of our scholars,” she added.
Aside from the CTEAP, the Cebu provincial government also gives scholarship grants to valedictorians and salutatorians who are graduates of the high schools in the province.
Garcia said the Capitol will be adding another scholarship, which is the environment scholar program.
The program is for the students who have planted the most number of trees under the eGwen School program, where students are required to plant jackfruit trees, while the Department of Education will monitor the trees planted.
Garcia said students should have a grade average of 85 percent to qualify for the scholarship./Correspondent Carmel Loise Matus