Privilege Speech
Commending and Congratulating Karen Mae Calam for Being the Bar Topnotcher in the 2016 Philippine Bar Examination

Senator Juan Miguel F. Zubiri

9 May 2017

Mr. President, esteemed colleagues,

Last Wednesday, the Supreme Court announced the awaited results of the 2016 Philippine Bar Exam. The 2016 Bar will go down as one of the most memorable in recent history, having a 59.06 percent passing rate - its highest in sixteen years. Also setting this Bar apart from rest is the fact that all ten topnotchers are from schools outside Metro Manila, three of whom are from Mindanao. This is unprecedented, as Manila-based schools usually dominate the top ten.

Today, I am elated to rise on a matter of personal and collective privilege to congratulate the topnotcher of the 2016 Bar exam, Ms. Karen Mae Kalam who, I am proud to say, is my kababayan from Kalilangan, Bukidnon, and the first bar topnotcher, to my recollection, from Bukidnon; thus I take personal pride in her feat as well. Soon to be Atty. Karen and her mom, Mrs. Merlyn Calam are here with us in the gallery today. I would like to take a short moment to also recognize Ma'am Merlyn. I am sure that you are very proud of your daughter, and clearly, you have done an amazing job raising her to be the exemplary woman that she is today.

Aside from being a fresh bar passer, Karen is also a Certified Public Accountant who hails from the Municipality of Kalilangan, Bukidnon. She is a product of our public basic education system, completing her primary and secondary education at the Kalilangan Elementary School and Kalilangan High School, respectively. Later, she graduated from the oldest university in Cebu, the University of San Carlos, and now holds the distinction of being her alma mater's first ever law graduate to rank first in the Philippine Bar Exam.

Karen now joins the ranks of prominent lawyers who ranked first in the bar, one of whom leads this chamber now, Senate President Koko Pimentel. Many of the bar topnotchers in history have graced this very institution, served in other branches of government, and held some of the highest positions in the land.

Karen is an inspiration to the people of Bukidnon and other provinces, like Sarangani that no matter where you come from, or despite any odds stacked against your favor, there is no dream too big or goal too impossible to achieve. When you work hard, find a way to love what you do, and set a purpose for your work, you may surprise yourself and others with what you can achieve.

In just a few weeks, you (Karen) will take your oath and sign the roll of attorneys. Soon, you can officially affix the A-T-T-Y that you have worked so hard for. It is my hope that you lead this batch of lawyers to be truly just, to have integrity, and to respect and uphold the law that you have studied and toiled over for years. Although I am not a lawyer myself, I have great respect for the legal profession and its proud sons and daughters who contribute to and shape our nation in many ways. May you and the rest of the 2016 bar passers live up to and raise the standards of this distinguished profession. Indeed, may you be guided by the famous credo of former President Ramon Magsaysay, full of meaning in its simplicity, that "he who has less in life should have more in law." I look forward to seeing our new batch of lawyers serve our country and its people. Congratulations once again. Thank you.