MSU enters ANC Debate

DILIMAN, QUEZON CITY – For the first time since the college’s foundation some fifty years ago, the Mindanao State University joins the highly-anticipated national televised debates of the ABS-CBN News Channel last October 7. The MSU debaters that fought against the joint force of DLSU-FEU team using the Oxford-Oregon format were JR Lopez Gonzales and Abdul Raffy Tomawis.

Taking the Affirmative Side with the motion: “Amendment of the Constitution through both houses of Congress voting separately and through a bilateral committee is unconstitutional”, the MSU debaters fiercely stood their ground in upholding and keeping the statusquo.

First Speaker Abdul Raffy Tomawis started the debate presenting the overall stand of the Government Side. The DLSU-FEU team countered saying that the law is silent and does not prohibit Drilon’s interpretation. JR Lopez Gonzales, the 2nd Speaker from MSU raised the issue that the bilateral committee’s composition is “statistically improbable” in meeting the required “¾ of all the members of the Congress”. To hit the final blows, the Rebuttal Speaker refuted the arguments of the opposition banking on the framer’s real intent on the provision’s construction. The debate was further heated up due to the 2-minute interpellations done between teams.

COL professorial lecturers believe that arguments-wise, the win should’ve been awarded to the MSU team. Some even questioned the judge line-up saying that it should have been lawmakers and practicing lawyers that should adjudicate as what is called for by the motion.

Despite the team falling short of the win against the DLSU-FEU team, the MSU studentry and faculty congratulated the debaters for their great performance.