Kara David serenades UP Cebu 2026 graduates with a wish for a better nation

Acclaimed veteran journalist Kara David-Cancio serenaded the class of UP Cebu 2026 with a few lines of Inang Laya’s 1983 song Sana’y Mayaman, as a message for graduates to help fulfill a wish for a world where no one is left behind.

During the 87th commencement exercises of the University of the Philippines Cebu held last July 14, the speaker, Kara David-Cancio, shared how she once dreamed of becoming rich as a child to buy many toys and clothes.

Wanting to be rich, as she said, was not wrong in itself. However, with wealth comes a great responsibility:
“Ngunit kapag ang isa’y kumuha ng lima.
Anong maiiwan sa siyam na natira?
Paghahati-hatian ang naiwang pera.
Ang siyam ay mahirap, iisa ang may-kaya.”

Many Filipinos, she said, were never afforded the same privilege and rights to quality education, with some forced to work and survive. Graduates were encouraged not only to carry their success with humility and gratitude but also to fight fairly and use their education to uplift those on the margins.

“Masuwerte kayo, kasi nabiyayaan kayo ng magandang edukasyon. Pero sana hindi ninyo makalimutan na maraming mga Pilipino ang hindi kasing suwerte ninyo,” she emphasized.

For David-Cancio, the Philippines is not difficult to love, especially the Filipino people whose lives embody intelligence and excellence beyond the distinctions of “laude” or Latin honors.

From an Agta chieftain who shared even the proceeds of a ₱500 catch with his community, to the farmers of Buguias, Benguet, who continued cultivating the land despite cabbage prices dropping to as low as ₱2 per kilo, to the Embalsador de Motor of T’boli, South Cotabato, who risked travelling the dangerous mountain roads to serve the dead —she exemplified the meaning of UP’s time-honored motto: honor, excellence, and service.

David-Cancio also touched on how Filipinos have become individualistic over centuries of colonization and called on broadening the concept of the nation. A nation rooted in recognizing oneself as a part of a larger Filipino society.

“Kasi yung bayan, mas malaki ‘to kaysa sa inyong sarili. It’s bigger than ourselves, bigger than our families, bigger than our provinces, bigger than our political alliances. Ang bayan ay tayong lahat. Dapat buong bayan ang pinagseserbisyuhan,” she told the graduates.

Through the stories she shared, David-Cancio hoped that they would learn from the same diligence and dignity that allow ordinary Filipinos to persevere through hardship with honor.

As she sang the last verse of Sana’y Mayaman, David-Cancio left graduates with a reminder of the nation and the very people they are meant to serve:
“Dapat sana rito sa ating bayan,
Pantay-pantay ang lahat ng mga mamamayan,
Walang naghahari at walang gahaman,
Walang naghihirap at walang kaapihan.”