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MESSAGE
COL BENITO T DE LEON INF (GSC) PA, Comdr, 104th Inf Bde, 1ID, PA
Guest Speaker, 11th General Assembly of SERVIAMUS Foundation Inc ‐ Branch 3
Project: Small Enterprise Development Program
“Gugma, Kalinaw, Panaghiusa ug Pagpaningkamot uban sa Pagpasalamat
maoy dalan sa Kalambuan”
MSU‐IIT Gym, Iligan City/30 November 2008
May I first congratulate all of you for the success of this activity which I understand is
already the 11th General Assembly of Branch 3 of the Serviamus Foundation. The many
activities lined‐up in the program and the large turnout of attendees only indicates your
team spirit and your capacity to pursue your aspirations with determination. I also thank
your foundation in giving me the distinct honor and opportunity to address you today.
It is unlikely for a military officer to be invited as the main speaker in a forum focused on
socio‐economic matters: for would there have been a more appropriate speaker than
myself. But, your Executive Director had been quite persistent, and along with my thrust to
reach out to the different sectors of society so as to identify areas of cooperation to achieve
common goals, I obliged. And, my acceptance was made easier after noting that your theme
in this occasion had a thread of similarity to our ultimate objectives in the AFP.
“Gugma, kalinaw, panaghiusa ug pagpaningkamot uban sa pagpasalamat maoy dalan sa
kalambuan.” Your theme translated as “love, peace, unity and industry along with gratitude
is the road to progress.”
Indeed and truly, with love we show and act with concern or sympathy not only for
ourselves, but also for others and eventually for our country. With an inclination towards
peace, we think and act to achieve and nurture harmony amongst us. With unity, we can do
greater things rather than if we simply act alone. With industry, we are able to productively
contribute to the betterment of the society where we live in. And, with gratitude, we
acknowledge The Blessings of The Almighty, who after all had willed all these things to
become possible; and, in gratitude also, we celebrate as we do today, so we and others can
draw more inspiration to carry on. And, all of these—love, peace, unity, and industry along
with gratitude—do contribute significantly in developing the road towards progress and
prosperity.
In the same way, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, your military, have also the identical
objective in contributing to attain progress. It is only that it takes the path of providing
security as you, the people, had mandated it and so enshrined in our constitution. Of the
many missions given to the military, the endstate is always “assisting in the establishment of
a physically and psychologically secure environment conducive to economic growth and
national development.” The military can only assist in establishing a secure condition
because we are just a component to attain it, and there are many others that have to
contribute collectively to attain social stability. The others are not only the rest of the
government agencies, but as well as all the other members which have a stake to our
society, including you and Serviamus.
So here in Lanao del Norte and the Chartered City of Iligan, I report to you that the military
forces in the area alongside the other government agencies and the people have now
established an improved security arrangement for the communities so the people can go on
with their normal lives: personally, socially, and economically. The lawless armed groups are
already confined and being hunted down. While they are still at large, many had deserted
the group and their movements are now continually being restricted such that they no
longer pose an immediate threat to the communities in the area. Even as we continue to
pursue these outlaws, much of our task now is in rebuilding the affected communities. Your
soldiers, who are here in your area, are very much involved in the return, resettlement, and
reintegration of the Internally Displaced Persons or IDPs as called for by the International
Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and the implementing instructions of our
leadership.
It is in this regard that I also solicit your support in anyway, particularly the Serviamus
Foundation, to pitch‐in and help us so we can hasten the resettlement and reintegration of
the IDPs. Many of them have lost the drive and the capacity to recover economically as a
result of their displacement. Perhaps, a creative Small Enterprise Development Program can
be designed also to benefit them. This I put as a challenge to Serviamus which has the
mission directed to “uplift and strengthen the socio‐economic condition of the poor
households in Mindanao towards total human transformation through quality innovative
financial and other developmental services.” In being able to extend your service to the
IDPs, especially to the Muslims, this Foundation would have firmly demonstrated its full
transformation from being church‐based into a true NGO.
In closing, I would like you to recall again the theme of this event: “Gugma, kalinaw,
panaghiusa ug pagpaningkamot uban sa pagpasalamat maoy dalan sa kalambuan.” I also
enjoin you to internalize the lyrics of the song—“If We Hold On Together”—which you sang
just awhile ago. Finally, I urge you then to pursue with more vigor your vision, your mission,
and your core values at Serviamus Foundation beside your individual aspirations as we in
the military and the rest of the country have to do the same. Certainly, we should all do this
for the betterment of the future; we truly can do this if we hold on together; and, we must
really do this if we have to survive individually and as a nation.
Mabuhay ang Serviamus Foundation. Mabuhay ang Pilipinas. Maayong Iligan sa atong tanan.
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