After eight fruitful years as Chairman of the Federation of Philippine Industries, RI Chem President Meneleo J. Carlos, Jr. was unanimously elected Chairman Emeritus of FPI, dubbed as “The Voice of Philippine Industry,” during its General Membership Meeting and Election last March 12 at the UCPB Executive Dining Room in Makati City.

Mr. Carlos’ stint as FPI Chairman since 2002 is the longest in the history of the federation. Elected as the new FPI Chairman was Jesus Lim Arranza of the Coconut Oil Refiners Association, while George S. Chua of the Arms Corporation of the Philippines became FPI President.

Among the many accomplishments under Mr. Carlos’ chairmanship, FPI teamed up with the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry Inc. to launch the “Buy Pinoy, Buy Local” movement which aimed to promote the preferential use of Filipino labor and materials, thus creating a prosperous Philippine market that can afford to buy quality goods.

The movement also pushed for the creation of jobs for Filipinos with the supporting tagline, “Save and Create Jobs.” In his Chairman’s Column in FPI’s official publication Tambuli, Mr. Carlos noted the country’s “inadequacy in harnessing our seas, lands and forests to provide job opportunities to our people – not employment, but jobs that give them direct satisfaction from their individual efforts.”

FPI under Mr. Carlos was also a supporter of the Earth Hour, a yearly global event in which countries from all over the world switch off their lights for one hour, thus achieving significant power savings and collectively reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Combining FPI’s pro-Filipino and pro-environment advocacies, Mr. Carlos as chairman of the Philippine Product Safety and Quality Foundation spearheaded the “Green Pinoy Expo,” which showcased the efforts of local manufacturers to provide products that are eco-friendly and environmentally sound.