Emanuel V. Soriano (December 30, 1936 – April 22, 2023) was a Filipino engineer and academic administrator who was the 14th president of the University of the Philippines. He was one of the pioneer faculty members of the College of Business Administration, and among the first Filipinos to be sent to the United States for advanced studies in business like former College of Business Administration deans Jaime C. Laya (who was the 5th Governor of the Central Bank of the Philippines from 1981 to 1984), Magdaleno B. Albarracin, Jr. (now member of the Board of Regents), and Rafael A. Rodriguez (now Professor Emeritus).

Formerly a longtime supporter of President Ferdinand Marcos, Soriano wrote an "open letter" published in Manila's Business Day newspaper on September 5, 1983. He called for Marcos to resign in the wake of the assassination of opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. while in military custody and questioned the impartiality of the commission investigating the slaying.^[1]

Soriano served as the National Security Adviser to President Corazon Aquino from 1987 to 1989. He was one of the opposition leaders from 1983 to 1986 and was a prime mover of the Convenors Group that was instrumental in paving the way for the selection of Cory Aquino as the opposition candidate against Marcos in the 1985–1986 Snap Elections.^[2] He also served as a faculty member of the Asian Institute of Management until 1996.

Soriano earned his B.S. in mechanical engineering and Master in Industrial Management degrees from the University of the Philippines, and his Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree from Harvard Business School.^[3]

Personal life and death

One of his first cousins was Bro. Eli Soriano, who was the overall servant (presiding minister) of the Members Church of God International until his death in February 2021.^[4]

Soriano died on April 22, 2023, at the age of 86.^[5]