Introducing the Esteemed Panel of Judges for the STTP Demo Day in Region VI

Engr. Rowen Robero Gelonga
Regional Director, Department of Science and Technology Region 6

Engr. Rowen Robero Gelonga is the Regional Director of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in Western Visayas. He began his career as a Grantee of the DOST Career Incentives Program and rose through key positions to become Regional Director. Gelonga managed national projects like DOST OneExpert and S-PaSS during the COVID-19 pandemic. He chairs and co-chairs various committees under the Western Visayas Regional Development Council and is a member of the Board of Regents for state universities in the region. An award-winning professional chemical engineer, Gelonga holds multiple degrees and fellowships, including the Gawad CES Presidential Award and the 2023 Presidential Lingkod Bayan Award.

Peter Antonio Banzon
Chief Technology Officer, Pueblo De Panay

Peter currently serves as the Chief Technology Officer of Pueblo de Panay, a leading real estate developer within Western Visayas. He is in charge of technology interventions that add value and improve efficiency and productivity within the company and the community.  Born in Manila, he grew up in Bataan province and later pursued his high school and university degree in Quezon City where he graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering. He started his career with teaching and then moved on to the Advanced Science and Technology Institute of the DOST where he worked for the next 35 years on various projects involving Electronics, AI, and ICT in education and governance.

Philip S. Cruz
President, Herbanext Laboratories, Inc.

Interest in science and his considerable scientific knowledge led Philip Cruz to establish Herbanext Laboratories Inc., which has grown to become one of the largest local sources of herbal extracts. Philip grew up having agriculture as part of his life since he spent time on his father's farm and fishpond in Negros Occidental. He first set up an aquaculture venture and eventually shifted to mushroom growing and processing. After mastering the science and process of it, in 2002, Herbanext was born. Through intensive research and innovation, he was able to manufacture and export herbal extracts. Herbanext was very keen on entering the export market for it would generate more jobs for farmers. Philip believes that his determination to benchmark Herbanext against the best in the field has borne fruit as it has been able to establish itself as the pioneer herbal extract manufacturer in the Philippines.

Atty. Amy Irene Ofrin
Partner, The Law Office of Flores & Ofrin

Amy Irene Arceño Ofrin was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 2006. She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Economics, cum laude, in 1999 and a Bachelor’s Degree in Law in 2004, both from the University of the Philippines. Atty. Ofrin is a corporate law practitioner. Her expertise lies in business structuring and registration, project finance, property development, land titling and conversion, taxation and human resources management. She has extensive experience in servicing corporate clients particularly with regard to corporate housekeeping, business and trademark registrations, contract drafting and review, tax audits, business reorganizations, and employee relations. She deals, in behalf of clients, with most government agencies such as the Bureau of Internal Revenue, Securities and Exchange Commission, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Energy, Department of Agrarian Reform, Register of Deeds, Intellectual Property Office, Department of Labor and Employment, and local government units.

Mr. Magaling is a dynamic Certified Public Accountant armed with a Masters in Business Administration from the Lyceum of the Philippines. Over the past 8 years, he's made his mark by beginning his career as a department head and swiftly rose to the position of Assistant General Manager for Administration at Sohbi Kohgei (Phils) Inc (SKPI). SKPI, a company registered under PEZA, is a recognized leader in manufacturing high precision metal stamped parts, assembly units, parts and components Recently, the company has diversified to penetrate the manufacturing of metal parts for motorcycles.

Mr. Toyoshima joined Hitachi, Ltd. in 1980. He was in charge of global strategic alliances such as technical collaborations/ assistance, licenses, joint ventures, capital investments, M&A, etc. Furthermore, he set up common business strategies for Hitachi’s group of companies overseas. Through his career in Hitachi, he was stationed in Thailand and Singapore. From 2019 to 2020, as a JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) volunteer, he taught marketing and strategy at the Republican Graduate School of Business and Management in Uzbekistan. Thereafter, he joined JICA Headquarters being responsible for human resources education. He is currently affiliated with PwC Japan LLC as a Special Advisor.

Dr. Kihoko Tokue has been serving as the Representative Director & Managing Director at Leave a Nest Singapore Pte. Ltd. since December 2016. She is also a co-founder of Leave a Nest Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., which was established in October 2013. Born in Tokyo, Dr. Tokue moved to Singapore at the age of 5 and was raised in Southeast Asia, spending time in both Singapore and Thailand. She pursued her bachelor’s degree in the United States before moving to Australia to complete her Master’s and PhD degrees, during which she conducted extensive field work. Currently, Dr. Tokue is focused on creating a platform in the ASEAN region to nurture the next generation of innovators and startups by collaborating with business development partners from various industries. Her ultimate goal is to bring about change in the world through the advancement of science and technology, while fostering a true understanding and appreciation for nature.

Dr. Marui was born in Osaka and acquired his Bachelor’s in Engineering from Doshisha University, and also acquired his masters and doctorate from the Kyoto Institute of Technology. After working for a while at the Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, he formally joined their family business, Marui Textile Machinery Co.,Ltd. In 1994. Marui Textile Machinery Co.,Ltd. Is a company that applies conventional technology with Knitting, Weaving, Sewing, Braiding. He was appointed as the President and Representative Director in 2006.

Yev was born and raised in Iloilo City, Philippines. He graduated with a degree in BS Chemistry from the University of the Philippines – Visayas, after which he worked as an instructor at the University of the Philippines – Manila. He came to Japan in 2013 to pursue graduate studies where he acquired his Masters in Health Life Sciences and PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences. In 2020, he joined Leave a Nest Co., Ltd. and is currently under the Human Development Division, and is part of the Kansai/Osaka office, as well as the Group Creation Division. He is also a Balik Scientist Awardee for 2020~2021, and is a co-founder and the Managing Director  for Leave a Nest’s Philippine office, their newest subsidiary. 

Kwadra TBI
Iloilo Science and Technology University

CPUGAD
Central Philippine University

BINHI (Business Incubator Nurturing
Homegrown Innovations)
West Visayas State University

Coastline 5023 FTBI
University of the Philippines – Visayas