SUPERBRANDS, a prestigious international branding and polling outfit, has named Representative Karlo B. Nograles (first district, Davao City) as one of the 20 Most Outstanding Congressmen in the 15th Congress.
He is one of the two elected congressmen from Mindanao who made it to the elite circle. The other lawmaker who made it to the list is Representative Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro City. Nograles and Rodriguez are both lawyers.
Also in the list are House Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Tañada III, House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales and party-list representative Arnel Ty.
Nograles and the other awardees will be formally honored in a luncheon on February 6 at the Mandarin Oriental Manila Hotel in Makati City.
Superbrands, founded by advertising executive Marcel Knobil in London in 1994, will publish a coffee table book that will feature Nograles and the other outstanding congressmen based on an independent polling made.
In each country that Superbrands operates in, it elects a Superbrands Council usually comprised of industry experts and practitioners that selects the top brands and personalities under various categories.
Only in his first term as congressman, Nograles was elected in the 15th Congress as House assistant majority leader. He is the son of former Speaker Prospero Nograles, the first and only Mindanao congressman who became House chief (2008-2010) and House majority leader (2004 to 2007).
In a tribute article, Superbrands has noted that the young Nograles authored several measures approved on Third Reading, such as House Bill (HB) 4512, creating 3 additional branches of the Regional Trial Court in Davao City; HB 5977, creating the Philippine Trade Representative Office; and HB 6052, strengthening the Juvenile Justice System in the Philippines. He is also one of the co-authors of Republic Act 10168 or the Terrorism Financing and Suppression Act of 2012 and HB 4575, encouraging corporate social responsibility.
Superbrands also said that "as a first term congressman, Karlo has focused on five priority areas of development namely Education, Health, Livelihood, Barangay Electrification and Infrastructure."
Superbrands also took note that foremost on this development agenda of Nograles is education.
"His program Oplan Kaalam currently supports full tuition and fees of 4,538 students enrolled at the state-owned University of Southeastern Philippines and 373 students of the University of the Philippines-Mindanao. It also provides tuition fee assistance to 2,200 students enrolled in various private colleges and universities of Davao City," the prestigious group wrote.