They faced three other teams in the final round; another SMK Sri Permata team, Methodist Boys School, and Damansara Jaya.  The final round was held at Limkokwing University Hall of Fame, under the rapt arbitration of a panel of adjudicators, led by Mr Brett James Frazer.

The final round motion proposed ‘Eco terrorism is justified to save the environment,’ and all the teams brought forth strong arguments, each team giving their contenders a tough competition.

Founder and President of Limkokwing University, Tan Sri Limkokwing, who was present at the championship finale, said the purpose of the debate was to ‘identify young people with budding skills in public speaking and sharpen their thinking skills to project their ideas with greater finesse.’ He said debate provides the youth with an opportunity to think critically and develop their communication skills.

“Building the skills to engage in debate is to prepare a young person to think with strategy and courage and use persuasion to gain acceptance of ideas,” he said.

He continued to say debate equips young people with necessary skills to be future leaders and overall successful in life. “The best debaters always do well in life and many move on to leadership positions in society, politics or industry.”

Also speaking in regards to the debate championship, Minister of Education II, YB Dato’ Seri Idris Jusoh, said the country needed a skilled, creative, and innovative human capital capable of responding well to challenges, in order to reach Malaysia’s aspiration of being a high income status economy by the year 2020. He said platforms such as the debate championship were the way forward in achieving the national aspiration and turning the country into a competitive economy in the global market.

“A platform like the Limkokwing International Debating Championship provides the means for Malaysia to build this base of skills. It not only helps us to identify talent but it also provide the avenue for Malaysians to raise their skills to global standards,” he said.

At the end of the championship, the students said they had learnt a lot, especially since it was the first time for some of them to be participating in a debate competition of such magnitude. ‘It was a great experience being here, not only did we learn a lot about debate, but we were exposed to the university’s culture of creativity and innovation,“said one of the debaters, Levinthiran Kuruparam, a third place winner from Methodist Boys School.

The panel of adjudicators were also happy with the tournament, saying it was well organised and perfectly executed, terming it ‘the best they had ever been to.’

“It was an incredible debate that displayed the fluency and depth that all the debaters dealt with when they tackled the motions,” said Mr Frazer.

A lot more prizes were won at the tournament, with another SMK Sri Permata team; Siddharta Adaikalaraj and Roshan Sivabalan, the first runner up will receive RM3,000 and a trophy. The other two schools came in tied as the second runner up which went to Methodist Boys’ School team; Levinthiran Kuruparam and Lim Le Shaun, and SMK Damansara Jaya team, Eliza Chow & Evan Wong, each team receiving RM1,500 and a trophy.

Other award winners were Siddharta Adaikalaraj for Overall Best Speaker, Kishen Sivabalan for Finals Best Speaker, and nine other students for the Top Ten Best Speakers awards, all of whom walked away with a trophy. The award for Best Adjudicator went to Thevesh Theva.

OVERVIEW

The Limkokwing International Debating Championship is a channel for outstanding young speakers to take their talents to a global audience and win international recognition.

The Limkokwing International Debating Championship adds to the initiatives undertaken by the University and seeks to identify young Malaysian talents who show promise through their skills in public debate. The ability to think with clarity, research with purpose and speak with confidence are important attributes for achieving success. For young people it contributes enormously to career success as it helps them to present their ideas effectively and earn the respect and admiration of their colleagues.

The debate will be conducted in English as it is among the most important languages used across the world for commerce, diplomacy and web communications.

The Limkokwing International Debating Championship will follow a format known as the British Parliamentary style. Participants will be briefed on how they should address the audience and their opponents when engaging in this style of debate.

• Each debate will have four teams of 2 people in each team
• There will an opening by the “Prime Minister/Deputy Prime Minister”
• There will be an opening by the “Opposition Leader/Deputy Opposition Leader”
• There will be a closing by the “Member of Government/Government Whip”
• There will be a closing by a “Member of the Opposition/Opposition Whip”
• There will be 7 minutes allocated to speeches
• 15 minutes preparation time is given
• No access to online material is allowed
• No communication with anyone except your own partner is allowed
• Time signals will be given by adjudicators/timekeeper at 1, 6 and 7 minutes
• Points of information will be allowed between 1 minute and 6 minutes

Today’s youths who are tomorrow’s leaders face huge challenges that stem from issues as wide ranging as global warming, terrorism, rising poverty, global financial crises and unemployment, among many others. Building the skills to engage in debate is to prepare a young person to think with strategy and courage and use persuasion to gain acceptance of ideas. The best debaters always do well in life and many move on to leadership positions in society, politics or industry. The purpose of this championship is to identify young people with budding skills in public speaking and sharpen their thinking skills to project their ideas with greater finesse. The University is very excited for this opportunity to sponsor talented youths and provide them with a global platform. Ultimately, these youths will provide the base upon which Malaysia can build a stronger presence in the global marketplace. As we raise the level of our economic performance we will need a strong force to push the national agenda to achieve high income status in the shortest time possible. As a global university we are in the best position to provide the platform for Malaysian youths to achieve the competency they will require.

The power of logic and clarity of expression are best learned when we engage in debate. It is the most civilized way to handle disputes and disagreements. But you must possess citizenry that is well-trained to respond in this way. The learning begins in school and all schools in Malaysia have embraced this, as we are all aware. I am a great believer in the power of moderation to resolve issues. Therefore, I welcome this initiative by Limkokwing University of Creative Technology to unearth the huge amount of talent the country possesses in its youths. The University has taken the debate platform to global levels. It will provide the incentive for young Malaysians to focus on building their skills. All elements associated with debates build character and calibre. Given the prominence and prestige of the Limkokwing International Debating Championship, I Look forward to seeing more Malaysians participating, benefitting and learning from the experience.

Malaysia has set itself the agenda to become a hi-income status economy by the year 2020. The government has put in place the policies to encourage all stakeholders to upgrade their performance. However, at the very crux of the transformation we wish to achieve we will require human capital that is not only skilled but also creative and innovative so it can respond to the challenges that are arising worldwide. Of vital importance is a corps of skilled negotiators and strategic thinkers able to represent the country in the highly aggressive global marketplace. A platform like the Limkokwing International Debating Championship provides the means for Malaysia to build this base of skills. It not only helps us to identify talent but it also provide the avenue for Malaysians raise their skills to global standards. My warmest wishes to all participants. To those who have come from abroad to participate and to manage the debate I hope you will stay on to enjoy the wonderful attractions this country has to offer.

THE TEAMS

The best 48 youth debate teams in Malaysia

TOURNAMENT PROGRESS

WINNERS

RM10,000
Platinum Award Winners

SMK Sri Permata 3

Kishen Sivabalan, Nimalan Gunandran
Members of the winning team get full scholarships to study at Limkokwing University. They also receive a one-month Global Classroom experience in London, UK.

RM3,000
Gold Award Winners

SMK Sri Permata 1

Siddharta Adaikalaraj, Roshan Sivabalan

RM1,500
Silver Award Winners

Methodist Boys’ Secondary School 3

Levinthiran Kuruparam, Lim Le Shaun

RM1,500
Bronze Award Winners

SMK Damansara Jaya 2

Eliza Chow, Evan Wong

RM1,500
Gold Award For Multimedia Presentation

Sek. Men St. Anne

Nur Laili Rozman, Megann April Liok, Dhivyia Sriram, Mariel Gabriel Mornjil

RM1,000
Silver Award For Multimedia Presentation

SMK Kuching High

Zoe Sim Ci En, Yap Ke Le, Wayne Tan Ying Chuan, Kimberly Foo Ming Xia

RM500
Bronze Award For Multimedia Presentation

MCKK

Hayat Bin Abd Rani

RM500
Overall Best Speaker

Siddharta Adaikalaraj

RM500
Best Adjudicator

Thevesh Theva

RM500
Finals Best Speaker

Kishen Sivabalan