Ombaci wins West Nile national speech and debate championship qualifiers

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ARUA – St. Joseph’s College Ombaci has emerged victorious during the National Speech and Debate Championship (NSDC) regional qualifiers for West Nile.

Ombaci’s victory followed a mouth-watering debate final tournament with St Charles Lwanga College, Koboko.

The National Speech and Debate Championship regional qualifiers that attracted 20 schools across the region, with 26 teams altogether, took place at Mvara Secondary School under the theme: My Environment, My Education, My Ethics.

Meanwhile, St Thomas College Aquinas Moyo dominated in other tournament thematic areas by scooping the top accolades in both public speaking and storytelling.

Debators from St Charles Lwanga College Koboko and St.Joseph's College Ombaci during the finals. (Photo by Robert Adiga)

The National Speech and Debate Championship, now in its 13th edition, has seen sixteen (16) teams from the West Nile region qualify for the national championships that will be held in December in Kampala.

While opening the championship, Hellen Enzama, the deputy headteacher of Mvara Secondary School, emphasised the importance of the theme that focused on environment, education and ethics as the pillars of development.

Cohens Mugisha, the programme manager and head of training and mentorship at NSDC, acknowledged the region’s great improvement in development and engagement in both the number of schools and the quality of arguments by the participants.

He said the championship not only engages the learners in critical thinking but also inspires them to go back to their schools as they change people's thinking about environmental, educational and ethical issues.

Lawrence Fadia, a teacher of English language at bishop Angelo Tarantino Memorial School in Arua city, described the speech and debate championship as impactful in the lives of the learners, shaping them as great leaders in future, while acknowledging the dwindling culture of debates in schools.

Super Gladies, a student of St Thomas College Aquinas Moyo, who emerged victorious in the story, anticipated the win despite participating for the first time.

Equally, Arafa Abdallah from the same school could not hide her excitement after winning the public speaking category, attributing her success to the teamwork and past experience in public speaking.

After receiving the regional debate trophy, the patron of St Joseph’s College Ombaci, Emmanuel Yumak, described the preparations leading to the tournament as intense, assuring of their readiness for the national tournament.

Brian Onenrwoth, the chief adjudicator for the championship, was happy with the level of investment in research by the debaters and understanding the topics backing their arguments with relevant data.

“As judges, we think most of the time we were impressed by the level of competition exhibited by the debaters, it’s not just about bringing information on the table but arguing on how the information can influence policy shifts and drives transformation in the community," Onenrwoth said.

There was a tie in the overall best debater position with Jackline Khemisa of St. Thomas College Aquinas and Given Loku of St. Charles Lwanga College Koboko emerging as the best debaters, while Samuel Destiny of St. Charles Lwanga College Koboko emerged as the first runner-up.