KUCHING – SMK Lutong alumni debaters dubbed ‘Friends’ comprising Roderic Thang Wen Bin, Daphne Yeo Lok Yin and Bong Sin Yi have won the 3rd Swinburne Sarawak Debate Open with four wins, zero losses and total speaker scores of 1,064.
Their juniors at SMK Lutong consisting of Form 5 students Ryan Tan Lai En, Anisha Praveen and Tan Wei Shuen were 1st runner-up, while Form 2 students at the same school comprising Ryan Foh Jing Yee, Kalpana A/P Murugayah and Andrea Ong Li Wei were 2nd runner-up.
The best speaker of the tournament was Mohamad Zulfadhli Ahmad Sobri from Universiti Teknologi Petronas.
Best Speaker Mohamad Zulfadhli Ahmad Sobri from Universiti Teknologi Petronas.
The trio of teams from SMK Lutong train together, with the seniors coaching the juniors. This year’s champions, Thang, Yeo and Bong were the champions of the Swinburne Sarawak Inter-School Debating Championship in 2020 while Form 5 students Lai En, Anisha and Wei Shuen made it to the Semi-Finals of this year’s SSIDC. Their teacher and debate mentor Alex Wong said the students had all hoped to gain experience from participating in the tournament and he was pleasantly surprised by the result.
Fourteen teams took part in the online debate tournament including teams from Perak and Kedah, and from Miri, Bintulu and Kuching.
In this Swiss style debate, every team debates in every round, with the team earning the highest team speaker scores winning. In the 3rd Swinburne Debate Open, the debate themes included Education, Health, Society and Environment with motions ranging from This House would make it mandatory to vote to This House would tax companies based on their carbon emissions.
On the highlights of the tournament, Chief Adjudicator Wahaj Qaisar said his favourite moment was when high schoolers took on seasoned university debaters and managed to come out on top. Wahaj said, “It shows that when you are determined, there is nothing you cannot overcome.”
The enthusiasm and determination of the debaters for the spirit of debate made for an exciting tournament with the most memorable quip for Wahaj being: “Side government better check themselves before they wreck themselves!”
The Swinburne Debaters’ Club is one of the oldest student clubs at the university. It was founded in 2005, launching what has become the largest secondary school debating tournament in Borneo and one of the largest in the country. On why the Club wanted to organise a Debate Open for students of all educational institutions, the Swinburne Debate Open Organising Chair and Swinburne Debaters’ Club President Ryan Yap said the it was important to organise debate tournaments to continue growing the local debate scene.
“Debate promotes critical thought, quick thinking on your feet, and the speaking skills required to actually communicate your ideas. We hope to be able to increase exposure to debate and get more people invested in arguing their heart out,” explained Ryan.
Prior to the event, the Swinburne Debaters’ Club ran a half-day workshop to help debaters prepare for the tournament, particularly students attempting to debate in a public competition for the first time. The next event being organised by the Club is the annual Swinburne Public Speaking Competition that is aimed at Swinburne students only, providing an avenue to boost their oral presentation and thinking skills in a safe and fun environment.
For more information about Swinburne Sarawak, visit its website www.swinburne.edu.my, Facebook page (@swinburnesarawak), Instagram (@swinburnesarawak), Twitter page (@Swinburne_Swk) or YouTube channel (Swinburne Sarawak).