Delivered by: Precious Hope Morante
I have power that I never dreamed of and I can do things I never thought I could. I can stand almost all adversities and overcome obstacles. These dimensions inflame my enthusiasm. To the respected judges, to all peace advocates here present, my dear opponents, ladies and gentlemen, good evening. And lend me your ears, consider my claim.
At very young age, I already had this thing in my mind of what I can possibly be and do in the future. Since my mother is a teacher, she always reminds me of how important education is. I can still remember when my grade two teacher asked me, what is education? I just answered; education is how kids learn stuff. This is what I believed and this is how I perceived it.
From that time, I had already this disposition that the knowledge I acquired provides means to learn how to live, to believe, to dream. As years progress, I grow, become mature and it corresponds greater responsibility. In my journey as a youth, standing in front of you now, I have so many realizations that sometimes linger me to fears and doubts. I am amenable that I will take the hard road, several leaps and bounds, stumble over to every stone, encounter storms, buffeted by the winds and falter in darkness. In the numerous facets and avenues of sex-laden media, struggle for the ancestral domain issue, environmental destruction, presence of large scale mining, development aggression, corruption, racial discrimination and even unstable peace and order are just some concerns that affect youth formation and I can painstakingly aware of it. Yes, this is the reality. Wake up my dear! Where are we now? Is this what we want to live today and to the day ahead? If then, how do we respond on this predicament?
Thinking of my dreams, maybe your dreams as well, truly inspires me to be optimistic, to be at my best. I don’t want that this dream will just last as a dream. I will not let my world, my dream of peaceful sleep to be swallowed by these tremendous detractors. I will take these as challenges to conquer, as lessons to learn, downs that will teach me to get up and failures that will shape me to be strong and firm. This will guide me to my vision of building a culture of peace.
In our context nowadays, I can say that the government in response to the call of transformation for harmony and peace takes several actions and best efforts in solving this quandary we are in. other facet of peace initiative and formal peace talk made urgent. How does it work? Or the question is, does it work?
Ladies and gentlemen, sincerity is at stake in this sense and will lead this collaboration a success.
In building this world we most aspire of is not just the task of somebody in authority. It is my task, your task, our task. It is my dream, your dream, our dream and we are responsible to work for it, pursue it, live it, do it. As a simple high school student, I try to involve myself in my own little ways. Being faithful to my studies, giving respect to my classmates and being responsible to my duties are my positive response in shaping my vision and living my dream reaching towards the culture of peace I aspire of.
Consequently, it is a challenge to you, to all of us. Never give up as long as we know we are right. Be courageous and optimistic in the faces of the odds. Never surrender to discouragement. Go! You are born to win. Go! Be a doer. Go! Affirm to the truth. Get up and empower yourself in shaping the vision, living the dream towards building the culture of peace.
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