Saturday, March 03, 2007 Dossier: Pursuing an ideal By Mikel Francisco Rama
(THIS speech was delivered on behalf of the Rama clan during the 70th Charter Day celebration of Cebu City last Feb. 24, 2007) Good Morning.
It stirs my heart to witness this act of high regard in commemoration of the deeds of my great grandfather Don Vicente Rama. So, I would like to take this opportunity to extend my utmost gratitude to each and every one of you who have graciously attended this beautiful event.
It is a great privilege to be in the company of such superb fellow Cebuanos. I am honored by your presence and honored by the chance I`ve been given to expressly pay tribute to such a renowned Cebuano figure as Don Vicente Rama.
I have spoken before of the legacy that my great grandfather, Don Vicente Rama, had left. I spoke of the honor that comes with being associated with the lineage that was bequeathed upon us as members of the younger generation.
It is a lineage that carries with it a great civic responsibility in parallel with the noble heritage that we have inherited and must sustain.
On this occasion I would like to speak on the importance of recognizing our beginnings or our roots. For after all, everything we have or everything we are started somewhere.
Today we celebrate the 70th anniversary of our City’s charter. It is hard to imagine that Cebu City, as we have always known it to be, wasn’t always that Cebu City. In fact it was not a city at all.
It is difficult to comprehend that we did not always have a city to call our own and that decades ago, people like Don Vicente Rama poured their sweat and blood, risking reputation and honor just for us to realize an ideal that we should have a cultural identity from which a people’s pride shall emanate.
Today we are living a dream, a dream that was made a reality 70 years ago through the relentless efforts of an eager dreamer. A dreamer named Don Vicente Rama.
Cebu City is one of the greatest cities in the country, if not the greatest. It shall always be a source of dignity knowing that one resides or hails from Cebu City.
Don Vicente Rama believed in the potential of this City. He had faith that this place was always destined to be more than what it was. So spurred by the sheer love for Cebu and partnered with effective legislation, Don Vicente Rama fathered the Cebu City charter.
We should always consider ourselves very fortunate for being given the chance to reap the rewards stemming from what our forefathers have sown.
However, we should also be constantly wary of the responsibilities that we bear along with such benefits.
We should always bring in our best efforts to maintain and to carry on Don Vicente Rama’s vision so as to always keep his dream alive. Let us strive to grow, be strong and let all our efforts to make Cebu great bear fruit as a tribute to these, our illustrious roots.
