Mong Kok college wins school debating contest
After eight rounds of hard-fought debates, HKMA David Li Kwok Po College is the champion in the 10th NESTA-SCMP Debating Competition among secondary schools.
The final round of the contest, held at the Hong Kong Baptist University Shek Mun Campus in Sha Tin yesterday, drew a crowd of over 500.
The contest, jointly organised by the Native English Speaking Teachers' Association and the South China Morning Post, is sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club.
Finalists HKMA and Stewards Pooi Kei College debated on the topic 'Outsourcing is good for both developed and developing countries', with HKMA on the affirmative side and Pooi Kei on the negative.
The win came as a pleasant surprise for HKMA, as it set up its debating team only last year and this was its first entry in an open contest.
'I am very, very happy with the performance of our team. They did very well and we will definitely join the ... competition next year,' HKMA coach Petunia Kingsley said.
Vivek Manglani, the second speaker for HKMA, said the win was a team effort. 'We spent the entire week before the debate practising our speeches. The ideas were very fresh in our heads, making us feel confident about ourselves. We delivered our points very clearly and did a fine job rebutting our opponents.'
Dennis Ng from Pooi Kei was named the competition's best speaker despite his team's loss. 'I was really surprised to win the award. I felt that our team had tried our best and it was a great experience for us,' Ng said.
Cherry Tung, the third HKMA speaker, said she was not at all surprised the award went to Ng. 'He was exceptionally good in his delivery. He definitely deserves the award.'
Kingsley said HKMA, a college in Mong Kok, had no idea how to use the HK$4,000 winner's prize yet.
Pooi Kei, a Sha Tin college, received HK$3,000 for its second placing.
