Pres. Raffy Alunan’s Speech at Rotary Club of Davao’s 85th Charter Anniversary

May I request everyone to kindly rise on this most auspicious occasion to give yourselves a standing ovation! Happy 85th birthday RC DAVAO!

Thank you President May Divino for your kind invitation for me to speak before you today. And congratulations to your board, officers and members for successfully hosting this event. I guess that deserves another round of applause for a job well done!

I’m glad to be back here before you. I believe I was here sometime in 2017 with Jackie Rodriguez, himself a PP of RCM and now DGE of District 3810. I bring with me the best wishes of your fellow Rotarians from my club, your founding club, the Rotary Club of Manila. We pray that you will have for many more meaningful and fruitful years of service for your stakeholders in Davao. Your medical and dental missions, and advocacies to End Polio and address the problem of HIV/AIDS, are recognized and well-appreciated.

In our regional town hall meeting last Friday with RI President Gordon McInally on the End Polio campaign, I was happy to know that polio has been practically eradicated worldwide. However, vigilance and immunization must continue without letup to PREVENT polio from returning with a vengeance.

We Rotarians belong to a globally recognized and highly trusted humanitarian organization that serves humanity in 7 areas of focus that I presume we all know only too well. At my end, RCM has drawn up and is in the process of conceptualizing projects for each area of focus, some with longer timelines beyond one year given the scale or magnitude of the concern.

For example, I suggested a Peacebuilding and Conflict Resolution idea to the Centennial Circle of Rotary Clubs in Melbourne last May, and followed through earlier this month in Manila with RI PE Stephanie Urchick. It centers on leveraging the global influence of Rotary to host a virtual town hall meeting on the need for restraint and the return of reason to prevent the slide to total war in Europe, the ME and Indo-Pacific. Target audience: leaders of warring nations. The message: pull back and reset relations to save mankind’s future.

My inspiration is drawn from Native Americans of the Onondaga Nation. Whenever they come together to decide on vital matters with long-term implications, they consider the costs and benefits up to the 7th generation.

Another example is the campaign to end malnutrition and stunted development where the Management Association of the Philippines is the lead convenor. Over 80 coalition partners have signed up, including various Rotary Clubs. Are you aware of this?

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, malnutrition as “a state in which a deficiency (or excess) of energy, protein, and other nutrition causes measurable adverse effects on the body and on growth in children.” According to The Hunger Project, 33% of Filipino children below 5 years old is malnourished due to extreme poverty and basic health ignorance of parents. According to UNICEF, 95 children in the Philippines die from malnutrition every day. 3.6 million Filipino children aged five and below are underweight, while about 4 million are stunted, or short for their age. Stunting after 2 years of age can be permanent, irreversible and even fatal. 27 out of 1,000 Filipino children don’t get past their fifth birthday. Those who do make it face an uncertain future. Apart from high rates of stunting and neonatal deaths, low routine immunization coverage and lack of access to clean water and sanitation facilities also threaten our children’s survival and development.

Related to this is iodine deficiency which has a huge impact on the learning abilities and intelligence quotient (IQ) of children. The average IQ in the Philippines is 81.64 and ranks one hundred and sixth in terms of average IQ. An IQ score between 85 and 100 on a standardized IQ test is considered average.

I truly believe in this initiative. We cannot build our nation when our people are getting dumber. These are the people that end up in our work force. We must help to stem our slide to the bottom. As such, I suggested to President Benedicta du-Baladad, herself a Rotary PP, to invite all ten Rotary District Governors in order to mobilize the entire Rotary in the Philippines, and to treat this like the End Polio campaign. Our participation - whether it is in education and awareness building, strategic policy reforms or interventions – is very much needed in 12 regions and in at least 6,600 barangays belonging to 235 municipalities. That’s just the initial survey.

Preventing child stunting is both a national and global concern. If nothing is done about it, chronic malnutrition will leave 130 million children stunted around the world by 2025. That’s just 2 years away. The future of our children and our country should matter to all of us. Each of us is called to action and help save a generation. Being the stewards of our future generation, child stunting is a shared responsibility.

I’m also pursuing projects that will benefit Persons with Disabilities and Special Needs, and those affected by Post-traumatic stress disorders. Both fall under the banner of Mental Health which is being championed by RI President Gordon McInally. These two subjects are close to my heart. First, I have 5 PWDs in my family. 2 have autism spectrum disorders, 2 have muscular dystrophy, 1 has Parkinson’s and mood disorder which are medically related. All are incurable. Second, I know of people who suffer or suffered from PTSD – combatants, hostages, victims of natural disasters, victims of violence against their persons. Both share the same problem. Their numbers are huge and growing, while the numbers of those caring for them are small and constantly being depleted. So, I’ve tasked a committee to look into this matter; obtain actionable evidence; and, propose appropriate courses of action.

I know the humanitarian spirit of the people of Davao, exemplified by your various contributions to disaster response initiatives. Who can forget former President Rody Duterte delivering relief goods to Tacloban in behalf of the kind and generous people of Davao? And Bong Año’s Team Humanity that collaborated with RCM in 4 medical and disaster relief missions for the refugees temporarily scattered in Marawi, Balo-i, Iligan and Cagayan de Oro, during and after the Battle for Marawi. I’m confident that once RC Davao initiates its projects like these under President Divino’s leadership, it will be done successfully and extraordinarily well to create more hope in the world.

On that note, thank you for inviting me to speak before as I look forward to a spirited night of fellowship. May God bless each and every member of the RC of Davao. Mabuhay ang RC Davao! Mabuhay si President May, her directors, officers at committee chairs! Mabuhay tayong lahat!