Will Cebu produce another bar topnotcher?
Today is the first day of the Bar exams. Last year, Cebu's USC achieved an unprecedented record by garnering four of the top ten slots, including the first place with Karen Mae Calam, a working student from Kalinangan, Bukidnon, who got 89.05 percent. This year USC, UC, UV, SWU, USJ-R, and USP are sending about 2,000 candidates. Last year's achievements shattered the belief that only Metro Manila-based law schools dominate the Bar. For the first time in history, last year no one from UP, Ateneo de Manila, San Beda, or UST made it to the top ten.
Actually, records show Cebu has produced many topnotchers and Cebuanos who got the top slot. The first Cebuano topnotcher was actually Paulino Gullas who topped the 1916 Bar with a rating of 93. He was the younger brother of Don Vicente Gullas, uncle of Talisay City Mayor Eddie Gullas, and the chairman of this paper, Jose "Sir Dodong" Gullas. In his honor, UV College of Law was named Gullas Law School. UV produced many law graduates who entered the top ten slots in the '50s, '60s and '70s. Today, Dean Portia Hormachuelos is doing her best to regain the glory of the old days, and she has the support of the administration and the alumni.
The other Cebuano bar topnotchers were UP's Roque Desquitado from Bantayan who got 90.9 in 1923, Philippine Law school's Eugeniano Perez from Mandaue who got 88.1 in 1926, UP's Cesar Kintanar from Argao who got 87.7 in 1927, UP's Pedro Yap (who later became a delegate to the 1973 Constitutional Convention, and then chief justice) who got 91.7 in 1946, and UE's Nicanor Padilla from Cebu City who got 86.7 in 1975. It was also in 1975 when UV's Emmanuel "Tommy" Pacquiao, not the boxer, got number 3.
In 1978, UP's Cosme Rosell from Daanbantayan got 92.4. In 1995, the daughter of Dalaguete's Appellate Justice Isaias Dicdican, Leonor, from UP, topped the Bar with 91.2. She also topped the CPA Board exams earlier.
Last year, aside from USC, the other schools that dominated Metro Manila Law schools were Silliman University, Andres Bonifacio College in Dipolog, University of San Agustin in Iloilo, Ateneo de Davao University, Northwestern University in Laoag, and University of Batangas. Based on the cumulative records in 2012 to 2014 exams, gathered by the Legal Education Board, the best performing law schools in the country are UP (73.71 percent), Ateneo de Manila (67.55), San Beda (67.13), Ateneo de Davao (53.02), UST (43.98), UC (41.49), San Beda Alabang (39.10), PLM (35.8) and Xavier University (32.2). I'm sure USC will even do better if the 2015, 2016, and, who knows, the 2017 results are included.
Let us pray for our Bar candidates from Cebu. I hope they shall again bring home the bacon.
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