01/07/2026
Lubos ang aking pasasalamat sa Centro Escolar University sa karangalang makapagbigay ng mensahe sa Class of 2026.
Sa pagtatapos ninyo, dalhin ninyo ang diwa ng kaalaman, kabutihan, at pagmamahal sa bayan. Oras na ng bagong henerasyon na tumindig, makibahagi, at tumulong hubugin ang Pilipinas na dapat sa Pilipino.
Congratulations, CEU Class of 2026. Mabuhay kayo at mabuhay ang Pilipinas.
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COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS FOR CENTRO ESCOLAR
UNIVERSITY GRADUATES
(School of Law and Jurisprudence, School of Medicine, School of Optometry, and Graduate School)
June 29, 2026
Graduation Speech: “Ang Pilipinas na Dapat Sa Pilipino”
Ako po ay "dual citizen" na, so bago ko malimutan ay sasabihin ko na ito: To the graduates, congratulations!
Kadalasan, ang mga graduates, wala talagang naaalala sa speech ng graduation speaker - dahil excited na ang lahat. At normal lang iyan. Kaya kung sakaling wala kayong maalala sa sasabihin ko ngayon, okay lang - basta maalala ninyo na kinongratulate kayo ni Senator Koko Pimentel sa inyong graduation.
Today, you wear robes that symbolize achievement. Your parents wear smiles that symbolize both pride and... relief. Time, effort, worry, and tuition have finally been converted into a diploma.
For the parents, therefore, this is graduation day too. Graduates, please give your parents and family members an appreciative round of applause.
Please excuse me for not wearing my academic robe today. I chose instead to wear a barong - the same one I proudly wore just last month when I received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun from the Emperor of Japan. All the other awardees wore tuxedos. When the Emperor saw me, he said "You are from the Philippines?". It is clear, therefore, that the barong has given us identity as Filipinos. Let us be proud of the barong and support the barong-making industry. Let us take pride in who we are. Let us support what is ours.
Kung ipinagmamalaki natin ang ating pagkakakilanlan bilang Pilipino, dapat ipaglaban din natin ang uri ng bansang karapat-dapat sa Pilipino.
Your school, Centro Escolar University, was founded on the noble ideal of Scientia et Virtus Knowledge and Virtue. The founders understood a timeless truth: knowledge alone is not enough. A brilliant mind without character can be dangerous. A society without virtue will eventually lose its soul. Kaya dapat tayo maging maingat sa Pilipinas nating mahal.
I will assume that many of you have been asking yourselves lately - "What is happening to our country?"
The headline news when you invited me in May were the shooting in the Senate, political noise, and the flood control corruption scandal. The headline news this month of June is the shooting and stabbing in schools, political noise again, and still the corruption issues. If leaders show2 chaos, then society reaps chaos. That is how leadership matters.
I once asked a director of a provincial hospital, "Doc, in your honest opinion, are Filipinos sick, as a people?". And he answered "yes". I am sure he was thinking in medical terms. But we can also interpret that reply to mean that Philippine society suffers from many illnesses.
Unfortunately, the world is also getting more chaotic. Wars left and right, climate change, and strong earthquakes. If we cannot get our acts together here in the Philippines, then what will happen to us? Filipinos cannot afford to live in two chaotic realities: global challenges and domestic instability. This dual burden is unsustainable.
Let us, therefore, solve what we can solve. Gawin nalang natin ang kaya nating gawin. Let us get our acts together here in the Philippines.
Graduates, you enter the world at an interesting time. There is a saying "may you live in interesting times". Do you agree with that? But do you know that that is also a curse. Because this so-called "interesting times" is made interesting by turmoil, wars, political upheavals, economic crises, pandemics, and uncertainty, rather than peace and prosperity. It is a life full of dramatic events rather than tranquil ones.
Our society now is full of political noise and drama. Kaliwat kanan puro ingay politika nalang. Do you know why? Dahil ito sa parating na 2028 presidential elections. Agawan ng kapangyarihang politikal ang agenda. Pero may naririnig ba kayo na plataporma? The framing from the political noise is that we only have two choices: Marcos or Duterte. Agree ba kayo diyan?
Gawin natin ang kaya nating gawin. Gawa tayo ng ating positive contribution to the political scenario. Let us not contribute to the noise. Let us contribute our purposeful voices. We will speak on a platform for governance; we will not engage in acting or drama. It is dangerous to leave our nation's future in the hands of individuals whose possession of "knowledge," "virtue," and "vision" is in doubt, particularly when they prioritize political drama over genuine, substantive discussion. Let us demand leadership grounded not in drama, but in knowledge, virtue, and vision.
Have you and your parents noticed that the problems we are facing today are the same problems we have been aware of decades ago? We have been jogging in place the whole time, wasting resources and losing time. Remember that Time is the most precious resource, because once lost, it cannot be regained.
As a retired politician, let me pass the baton to you, CEU graduates. Oras na ninyo to take the lead. Allow me to suggest an agenda to look for in 2028. Let the 2028 elections not be just about two names. Let us demand for reforms. We need to demand for change, otherwise nothing will happen to us.
We should push for a platform captured by the term "open governance." It represents inclusivity and participation - everything our current system is not - as today, power is concentrated among political elites with deep ties to oligarchic interests.
The word OPEN also stands for specific advocacies.
O is for "Order". We need to re-establish order through respect for the Rule of Law. The widespread corruption and violence that we are witnessing are manifestations of the breakdown of controls and the over- all lack of respect for the law. Wala ng takot sa batas, ang batas ay optional na lamang.
P is for "Productivity". We cannot forever be borrowing. We have to earn our keep as a People and as individuals. Let us stop believing that everything is free. We should promote productivity not dependency. Delikado maging ayuda nation, it is not sustainable.
E is for "Education". Ano ang pinaka-magandang mana na puede natin iwan sa ating mga anak at sa kabataan? An education that will empower them with "critical thinking", so that they can judge for themselves what is right or wrong, and what is good or bad for the country. Education doesn't just prepare us for jobs - it prepares us to take part in shaping our nation.
N is for "Nationalism", which I use in the context of deep and genuine love for country. Kulang na kulang tayo sa pagmamahal sa ating bansa. Our country is in need of heroes. Love for country is what makes heroism possible.
In essence, we must impose order, promote productivity, enrich education, and rekindle nationalism.
In short, let us be open to change. Let us demand radical change.
Uulitin ko. Oras na ninyo. Lalabas na kayo sa eskwelahan patungo sa tunay na mundo, na responsibilidad na ninyong baguhin para sa mas magandang Pilipinas. At the end of the day, after all is said and done, we cannot leave leadership in our country to people who do not have knowledge, virtue, and vision.
I therefore hope to see more CEU graduates running for public office. And I hope to see the Philippines being run by CEU graduates who are possessed with knowledge, virtue, and vision.
The future of the Philippines is not predetermined. It will be shaped gradually and deliberately - by the actions of individuals such as yourselves. You carry with you not only the training of this institution, but also its legacy - a legacy of forming individuals who contribute meaningfully to society. So go forward with confidence.
Go forward with purpose. And go forward with the understanding that what you do each day, in your chosen profession, matters.
Congratulations, Class of 2026. Use your knowledge, live with virtue, lead with vision and build the Philippines our people truly deserve. Mabuhay kayo at mabuhay ang Pilipinas.
📸 Centro Escolar University Official
