Breaking Free: MIDV leaves mark as overall 17th; Arachnid tops Sinag Speakers in PIDC 2024

by Andrea Ross Sedero and Jocel Mae Latris


Stronger than they’ve ever been before, this is the part where they break free.



After six years since their last break in the Open Category of the Philippine Intercollegiate Debate Championship (PIDC), the MSU-IIT Debate Varsity (MIDV) made a remarkable comeback this year, securing the 17th spot in the national tournament—the highest placement for any Visayas-Mindanao team—and finishing as Best Speakers in the Sinag Cup Category.



MSU-IIT was represented by three teams in the two-part tournament held on September 6-8 and 14-15, with MSU-IIT A—comprising Jayvee Bondoc (BS Philosophy Major in Applied Ethics), Leo Herold Laluna (BS Nursing), and Devlin Fritz Villanueva (BS Physics)—advancing as open pre-octofinalists and the last MSU-IIT team standing in the outrounds.



Concluding a fierce turn in the octofinals, MSU-IIT A’s Bondoc and Villanueva earned individual distinctions as part of the top 10 Best Speakers in the Sinag Cup Category, with Bondoc emerging as the overall Best Speaker with 77.55 points and Villanueva taking third best with 77.33 points.



PIDC’s Sinag Cup, a separate category from the main event’s Open Category, was designed to recognize institutions, teams, and speakers who have not reached the final rounds, serving as a meritocratic and diversity-focused competition that acknowledges emerging institutions for their efforts in contributing to the competitiveness of the tournament.



“Despite having numerous accolades, I’ve always questioned whether I was good enough to be held in such high regard by people within the debate community and even by my juniors. When they announced the tournament’s Overall Best Sinag Cup Speaker, for the first time in my entire debate career I felt like all my efforts finally paid off,” Bondoc expressed.



He went on to reflect how the distinction he earned was a culmination of the knowledge and skills he received from his seniors, along with his own dedication and passion for debate. He acknowledged that despite struggling with imposter syndrome, seeing his name announced as the Overall Best Sinag Cup Speaker filled him with immense happiness.



Competing in the preliminary rounds of PIDC 2024 last September 6 and 8 were MSU-IIT B, composed of Kathleen Anne Fumero (BS Philosophy, Applied Ethics), Franzyn Maryel Incon (BS Psychology), and Mark Angelo Gallardi (BS Computer Science); and MSU-IIT C, with Jesciller Villaruz (BA Political Science), Zhea Sanchez (BS Biodiversity), and Tristan Jake Segura (BS Animal Biology). Additionally, competing judges Elritz Lauron (BSEd Mathematics) and Princess Nezrin Tambie (BS Electrical Engineering) also represented MSU-IIT.



“PIDC is the biggest Asian Parliamentary debate competition in the Philippines, so everyone was burning with passion and wanted to bring home the trophy for the institute,” Bondoc emphasized.



Bondoc noted the extensive preparations the debate varsity undertook for the PIDC, both as a team and individually. He shared that their practice sessions frequently ran late into the night, typically until 9 to 9:30 PM. Members would also proactively watch debate lectures and build cases during their free time to ensure they were well-prepared and ready for the competition.



“The goal for MIDV has always been to win, but the competition was fierce and the varsity had to go up against powerhouses from a number of well-established institutions. Although we weren’t able to achieve our goal this year, our run was definitely still successful because we were able to break into the open category for the first time in six years—and we were able to secure speaker awards in such a difficult tournament,” he pointed out.



Unlike the typical four preliminary rounds in debate tournaments, PIDC featured seven preliminary rounds prior to the octofinals, quarterfinals, semifinals, and grandfinals. MSU-IIT A’s Bondoc, Laluna, and Villanueva concluded their PIDC journey in the partial double-octofinals, finishing with a total of four wins throughout the tournament and an overall speaker score of 1891.17 during the seven preliminary rounds.



Meanwhile, MSU-IIT B’s Fumero, Incon, and Gallardi achieved a total speaker score of 1855.67, while MSU-IIT C’s Villaruz, Sanchez, and Segura recorded a score of 1863.25 during those seven rounds.



“The sheer number of rounds made PIDC a difficult tournament because of the amount of mental load that all of our members had to endure. Paired with the fact that we were against a ton of amazing debaters from all around the Philippines, managing our energy and having high mental resilience played a huge part in our performance during the tournament,” Bondoc stressed when asked about the biggest struggle during the tournament proper.



PIDC stands as the premier national Asian Parliamentary debate tournament in the Philippines hosted by the University of the Philippines Debate Society (UPDS), uniting the country’s top debaters in intense arguments across a diverse array of motions.