The late great Capt. Gregorio Oca, the founding president of the nation’s biggest seafarers union, the Associated Marine Officers and Seamen’s Union of the Philippines, had many notable achievements.
His contributions to championing the rights and welfare of Filipino seafarers are unparalleled. His name is familiar not only to leaders of the global trade union movement in the transport sector but also among foreign principals as he promoted seafarers’ employment overseas.
His achievements, however, transcend the maritime industry. One of Capt. Oca’s legacies is the Bagong Bayani Foundation Inc. which he founded and led as its first president in August 1989. The BBFI honors outstanding overseas Filipino workers through the Bagong Bayani Awards, a worldwide search for exceptional sea-based and land-based Filipino workers.
Before the BBFI, it was the government, through the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration under then Administrator Patricia A. Sto. Tomas, which administered and awarded the BBA to exemplary OFWs starting in 1983.
POEA awarded the first BBA in 1984 with 11 awardees, and in 1985, eight awardees.
The EDSA Revolution, however, temporarily halted the Awards. POEA relaunched it in June 1989 to underscore the emerging heroism of OFWs with their steadily increasing remittances that significantly helped in our economic recovery.
In 1989, POEA turned over the BBA to the private sector, through the BBFI, a non-stock, non-profit organization conceived to promote the new heroes of our time under the leadership of Capt. Oca, who devoted his time and resources to paying tribute to the OFWs.
Capt. Oca headed the BBFI until his demise in November 2010.
Then, the BBFI worked closely with the Department of Labor, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, and the POEA. Today, the BBFI collaborates with the Department of Migrant Workers, POEA and OWWA.
From 1989 to 2021, the BBFI conferred the BBA on 228 land-based and sea-based awardees. In 2011, the perpetual Capt. Gregorio S. Oca Achievement Award for Outstanding Seafarers was created.
Capt. Oca was succeeded by its vice president, Vice Admiral Eduardo Ma. Santos, and at BBFI by Migrant Workers Secretary Susan “Toots” Ople as honorary chairperson of the foundation. The BBFI executive officers are from the land-based sector.
As president of the Filipino Association for Mariners’ Employment, we automatically became a member of the BBFI Board of Trustees, along with Capt. Juanito Salvatierra Jr. of the Joint Manning Group.
Migrant Workers Undersecretary Hans Leo Cacdac and OWWA Administrator Arnel Ignacio are also on the BBFI Board as honorary trustees with DMW Assistant Secretary, Atty. Felicitas Bay, as executive director.
This year, the BBFI is preparing for BBA 2023. The search for the newest OFW heroes is ongoing with the awarding ceremonies slated for 23 August.
Today, the BBFI collaborates with the Department of Migrant Workers, POEA and OWWA.
There are five award categories, an innovation introduced with the 2005 Bagong Bayani Awards to allow for the recognition of specific contributions of OFWs corresponding to the different areas of their involvement.
The five categories are:
- Bagong Bayani Award for Outstanding Employee
- Bagong Bayani Award for Community and Social Service
- Bagong Bayani Award for Culture and the Arts
- Capt. Gregorio S. Oca Achievement Award
- Blas F. Ople Award para sa Natatanging Bagong Bayani
BBFI welcomes as many nominees as possible from all parts of the world. The deadline for the submission of nominees is 30 April.
The highest honor is the Blas F. Ople Award para sa Natatanging Bagong Bayani, which is presented to the most outstanding and exemplary OFW who satisfies all the requirements and criteria of the other awards.
Next issue we will share the requirements and criteria for each category or you may visit https://www.bbfi.com.ph/ for details.