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President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's Speech During the Conferment Ceremonies of the Metrobank 2009 Search for Outstanding Teachers of the Philippines
Rizal Hall, Malacañang
September 3, 2009
Thank you.
Thank you, Secretary Lapus for your introduction.
Our government officials have been acknowledged earlier today. Chairman Ty and the other officials of the Metrobank Foundation, and of course, to this year’s Outstanding Teachers, congratulations!
Congratulations also to Chairman Ty and Metrobank Foundation for 25 years of helping preserve the tradition of effective teaching through the annual recognition of the best Filipino teachers.
  You need a good teacher to have a good education. And in turn, you need a good education as the ticket to a better life. Education is a great equalizer that allows every young Filipino a chance to realize their dreams. That is why, as mentioned earlier, our administration invests so much in education including more than a billion pesos for teacher training, especially for Math, Science and English. And every time we have an awarding that comes here, he or she is a teacher in Math or in Science or in English, my heart really becomes stouter because we are seeing the fruits of our efforts private and public sector.
Pardon my partiality for the teaching profession. I was also a teacher. And that’s why I know what it means to be a teacher, why you keep going on, why you keep being committed even if it’s a thankless job and even if it is not a high-paying job. In fact, when I went into economics, and we had the term psychic income, I knew exactly what psychic income meant because that is what a teacher receives -- psychic income.
And so I have been meeting with teachers and other educators and we have formed a Task Force for Education composed of public and private educational agencies and business and professionals headed by Jesuit educator Father Bienvenido Nebres. I asked them to take a first-hand look at the improvements we need to make to address the nagging issues and concerns of our educational system. I have listened to what these fine teachers, public servants and stakeholders have to say.
And they came out with the Main Education Highway Framework towards a Knowledge-Based Economy. It’s an education highway because it envisions seamless education from basic pre-school education all the way up to grade school and high school education, to vocational school or college, to make the Filipino fit not just for whatever jobs happen to be on offer today, but also for whatever challenge life will throw in their way especially in economics but not limited to economic challenges.
And since 2001, we have given scholarships to over 600,000 college students and also post-graduate students, including masteral and doctoral degrees in science and engineering. I believe USC is one of the consortiums of universities where we are giving scholarships, and our fund for scholarships is a whooping three billion pesos because of the great need for masters and doctors in
science and engineering, and I hope that Dr. Del Fierro is one of those beneficiaries or at least your colleagues there.
We also seek other opportunities for professional development through active international engagement. For instance, I have been asked to announce that Berjaya Cares Foundation of Malaysia has opened their tertiary-level scholarships for qualified Filipinos. The scholarships are sponsored by the Berjaya University College of Hospitality in Malaysia . It specializes in tourism-related programs like culinary arts, tourism and travel management, and arts and culture management with course lengths ranging from one to three and a half years.
 And in case any of our honorees or your colleagues or your students or the constituents of Chairman Manny Angeles or the graduating constituents of Jing Lapus would be interested to avail of these scholarships for the January 2010 school opening, please get in touch with Manoling Morato, whom I invited here, a member of the board of PCSO before November 1st of this year.
And when we think of these foundations, we go back again to Metrobank Foundation. Metrobank’s Outstanding Teacher Awards is 25 years old but Metrobank Foundation is 30 years old and Metrobank itself is 47 years old. I remember attending the opening of the Metrobank with my father because he was then President of the Philippines and I’m so glad to see after 47 years or 30 years or 25 years, whatever is the accounting that you would like to consider, Metrobank has become such an important force in the life of Filipino society.
And so once again, on the occasion of the 25th Anniversary of the Outstanding Teachers Awards, to Metrobank for never failing to find the finest examples of the best Filipinos in the teaching profession, thank you so much.
And to all our Outstanding Teachers, the whole nation greets you and for your excellence, sa inyong huwarang paglilingkod, maraming, maraming salamat.
And to paraphrase Dr. Del Fierro, Mabuhay ang ating mga guro!
Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat.
The Metrobank Foundation is the corporate social responsibly arm of the Metrobank Group of Companies. Over the last 28 years, it has promoted a culture of excellence among Filipinos through its various programs notably the Search for Outstanding Teachers, the Metrobank Art and Design Excellence, The Outstanding Philippine Soldier, Country's Outstanding Policemen in Service, the Metrobank Math Challenge, and College Scholarship Program. The Foundation also has a grants program that assists NGOs and government in the fields of education, healthcare, and the arts. Metrobank Foundation celebrates Filipino excellence and presents wellsprings of hope in the future of our nation. |
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