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Tuesday, April 12, 2005
Malilong: Hurdling the bar
By Frank Malilong
The Other Side
IT’S a girl, as usual, the public information officer of the Supreme Court was supposed to have remarked when he announced the top placer in last year’s bar examinations. I‘m not sure if the reference to a “girl,” instead of “woman” or “lady” was meant to rub salt on wounded male egos. Indeed, what used to be an almost exclusive male enclave has become a monument to the decline in the level of intelligence of men lawyer-aspirants.
As if that is not ironic enough, here comes Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago calling for the abolition of the bar examinations, saying they are not an accurate test of an applicant’s competence and fitness to practice law. My objection is almost automatic – call it knee-jerk, if you will – because the lady senator’s proposal violates one of the core values in competition which calls upon the winner to give the loser a shot at vindication.
It is the spirit that guarantees “rebansin,” the street lingo for rematch, the same thing that we are asking Eric Morales to please give to our “national hero,” Manny Pacquiao. Ma`am Miriam is, of course, noted for her trait of not holding her punches but she really overdid herself on this one. Nine out of 10 her gender beat us and now she’s telling us, let’s put an end to this game, we have gotten bored beating you.
On second thought, the proposal does make sense. Indeed, what is the point in continuing competition if one already knows who’s going to win even before the action has begun? Over at the Baseline tennis court, you talk of “rebansin” only if the score was close. At love-set, forget it.
Or maybe, we should change the rules, instead. For example, there should be a separate examination for men and women. That will address the issue of unfairness of competing with people who study religiously and who do not go out on late-night drinking and other sprees.
Or maybe, we can adopt a system of handicapping such as the one being practiced in amateur golf. After all, it is undeniable that vice is essentially a male handicap. The Supreme Court should recognize this immutable truth and grant male examinees a plus five or whatever to even the odds. How’s that for competing in equal terms, huh?
Seriously now, I do not think that Santiago’s proposal is wise or appropriate.
The bar examinations may not be the perfect test to determine one’s fitness to practice law but I would rather have an imperfect test than not have any test at all. Note that I said test, not contest, for in truth and in fact, the bar examination is not a race or a competition.
I agree that some of those who flunked the test possess qualities that would have made them good lawyers. They know what their remedy is and it is not in removing the bar but in hurdling it. As for the incompetents who managed to squeeze in, again the remedy is not in removing the bar but in raising it.
(April 12, 2005 issue)
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