(Photo by Anne Naig / The Red Chronicles)
Salutation: To our dearest Rector President Fr. Gerardo de Villa, OSB, to our Vice-President for Academic Affairs Dr. Andres Ignacio C. San Mateo Jr., to Dean Marciano G. Delson, Dean of the San Beda University College of Law, representing the Board of Trustees of San Beda College Alabang, to our beloved Papa Dean Ulpiano P. Sarmiento III, to our distinguished commencement speaker Hon. Justice Wilhelmina B. Jorge-Wagan, Vice Dean Atty. Carlo D. Busmente, Vice Dean of the San Beda University College of Law Atty. Francesca Senga, LLM, Prefect of Student Affairs Atty. Ma. Eliza B. Yamamoto-Santos, Administrative Officer Atty. Roben B. Cadugo Jr., our Registrar Dr. Rica Ancheta; to our administrative staff; our esteemed faculty members, beloved guests, parents, relatives, friends, a momentous afternoon, and to my fellow graduates, Congratulations! We have finally reached the culmination of our law school journey.
Speech: I would like to begin by recognizing the people who have helped us throughout this journey. Let me take this opportunity to thank first and foremost, the parents and family members of the graduates. Thank you for your unwavering support, love, and understanding. To my mom, my dad, and my sister, thank you. You have been my rocks, my pillars of strength without whom I would not be here at this very moment.
To our dearest professors, thank you for the knowledge, wisdom, and skills you have imparted to us. For being with us every step of the way, encouraging us, challenging us to become better versions of ourselves – we thank you.
To the Dean’s office and the administrative staff and SLG officers, thank you for all the hard work you do to ensure our school runs smoothly. The huge difference you make in everyone’s lives, and your dedication does not go unnoticed.
To my friends, inside and outside of law school, thank you for making this journey bearable and worthwhile. Your presence, support, and kind words meant the world to me and made the occasion truly unforgettable.
And most importantly to God, for providing me strength through the most difficult times and for making all these possible.
Four years ago, I was in this very same building for my freshmen orientation, wherein the seniors share with us some tips and pieces of advice on how to survive law school and law professors. But nothing really prepared me for what I was getting myself into. Not even 4 years in legal management could have completely apprised me of what a roller coaster of a journey it will be.
Today, we recall what that journey has been and how it made us the persons we are today. We recall the challenges we faced, the late nights of studying, the rigorous exams, the endless number of cases to digest and concepts to understand, and the frustrations of having to have done it all only to get “bokya” recits in the end. But these day-to-day moments have all shaped us into resilient advocates for justice and truth.
I would like to take this opportunity to share with everybody the person who has inspired me to keep going. And that person would be my mom. She is your barangay doctor who has served the community for more than 30 years. I have seen her work tirelessly day and night most especially during the pandemic. She would put herself at risk to serve a community all day and even at night she would answer calls from patients, monitoring their conditions and referring them from one hospital to another. Despite losing both her mother and brother in the same year, she firmly stayed on the frontline determined to help those in need.
This my fellow graduates reminded me of what the true purpose of the legal profession is. Our role as lawyers is more than to serve our own self-interest. We have the privilege and the responsibility to contribute to the community and help make this world a better place to live in. We must strive to build a world without corruption, injustice, and inequality. It sounds impossible – but it is a vision, a start, a dream. As the late Justice Pompeyo Diaz once said, a man of the law is also a man of vision. Without vision, you shall become hollow inside; you become men without souls preying on the innocence and helplessness of your fellowmen. But with vision, you become a boon to society, the mighty and the weak shall draw strength from your knowledge of the law and from your commitment to the truth.
As young, soon-to-be Bedan lawyers, I implore you to not forget about the benedictine hallmarks that we have so acquired throughout our years in this institution. Most especially the sense of community, to answer the call for the common good, the courage to stand up for justice and truth, and humility to think less of yourself and more of others.
My fellow graduates, today is more than just about receiving our diplomas, it is about what those diplomas represent. They represent that we made a brave and courageous choice to stay despite all the failures, frustrations, and difficulties that we had to face in order to be where we are today. They represent your resilience, your grit, or maybe even your stubbornness to achieve the dream of becoming a lawyer. As we leave this institution, we carry with us more than just a wealth of knowledge and experiences but also the ability to adapt, recover, and bounce back from adversity or significant challenges we face in life.
And lastly, the final hurdle to getting that dot in A-T-T-Y, the most terrifying and yet exciting part, the bar examinations. I know most of us, or all of us are feeling nervous, anxious, and afraid that we may not be able to thoroughly finish our readings for the next 3 months or less. Remember that you have religiously devoted the past 4, 5, or 6 years to accumulating the fundamental legal knowledge required to hurdle what seems to be an insurmountable but not impossible task. Have faith in your abilities and trust that your hard work and dedication will yield fruitful results. And believe that you being a lawyer is already a matter of destiny.
We have come a long way, and it is a privilege to share this accomplishment with each and every one of you. Let us take the lessons we have learned, the friendships we have made, and the experiences we have shared with us as we embark on the next phase of our journey. I am confident that each of us will go on to achieve great things in the legal profession and beyond.
To wrap up my speech, I would like us to extend our gratitude to the people who have helped us along the way and remember “no one who achieves success does so without the help of others”. Congratulations once again, and I wish you all the very best in your future endeavors. See you around my future compañeros and compañeras! Thank you and have a blessed afternoon.