

Location : University of Bohol, Tagbilaran (city), Bohol (province), Philippines
The Invite
I received an unexpected email from Dean Kins from the University of Bohol, 'Do you want to be judge in a university debate?' Hmmm, I've judged a body building contest, beauty pageant / street dance before, but a university debate? Sure!
3 Judges
I was one of three judges - the lone outsider. Atty. Kins was also a judge together with Atty. Jun Amora who was once faculty of the university. The organizer was Atty. Mehul, another faculty. I was in the company of lawyers! In person, they seem much nicer than the lawyer jokes I hear about :) I had a great rapport with all of them.
Debate Issues
I sat on 3 debates - use of tablets vs. books in schools, death penalty and mandatory drug testing of students in schools. These are hotly contested items and the teams presented compelling arguments.
Conceptual Merits vs Reality vs Tear Jerkers
In some cases, I felt the arguments were about oranges vs apples - idealized concepts vs historical track record vs the grim reality. e.g. - one team might present the logical merits of the death penalty as a crime deterrent and even back it up with statistical data. But the other team could argue that introducing the death penalty is a slippery slope given the 13,000 deaths (and counting) of the current war against drugs. If the death count is still climbing, then the death penalty isn't working as a crime deterrent! But then again, you can also resort to pulling-out the tear-jerking stuff for emotional persuasion and maybe win the day.
Ending Thoughts
How difficult would it be for a debater to have a personal conviction about an issue he/she now has to debate against? You could be a staunch defender of right to life but tasked to defend the death penalty! It could be a crisis of conscience defending a position you are vehemently against.
As a judge, it is difficult to judge a debate about touchy issues specially if you already have your own personal bias about it. How do you empty your vessel to judge the arguments through their lenses and without your bias getting in the way?
Judging a student debate at the University of Bohol gave me a glimpse of a past life in the academe when I was still a teacher in UP Diliman. I enjoy being at the fringes of such learning institutions - but not at ground zero where I have to deal with its bureaucracy and politics.
Feeling the verve and passion of the students give me optimism that the future remains bright for this country despite being in dire straits given the political Zeitgeist.
--- Gigit (TheLoneRider)
YOGA by Gigit
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