LINGAYEN, Pangasinan—Vice President Jejomar Binay on Wednesday gave what sounded like a farewell speech to the Boy Scouts of the Philippines (BSP)—which he has led for 20 years—at a big BSP event here.
“Fellow scouts, this will be my last annual council meeting as president of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines. But by God’s will, the next time I’ll be addressing you, I will be your Chief Scout,” Binay said as he opened the 60th BSP Annual National Council Meeting at the Sison Auditorium.
“I say that without hesitation for I sincerely believe the Boy Scouts of the Philippines has the capability to produce a deserving leader from its ranks who can lead our beloved Philippines to progress and prosperity,” said Binay, addressing over 100 BSP council leaders.
Binay was here on the Pangasinan leg of his presidential campaign and made time to attend the BSP event. He said he was glad the number of scouts increased during his term at the helm of the organization.
The BSP currently has 2.4 million members, said acting secretary general Wendel Avisado, which puts the Philippines in fourth place in the world in terms of membership, next to Indonesia, the United States and India.
“Despite all the things that have affected the scouting movement because of the fact that our president is running for the highest position in our country, sa awa ng Diyos, imbes na mabawasan kami, nadagdagan pa kami (with God’s mercy, instead of being depleted, our ranks increased),” Binay said.
Anomalies
In October, Binay and several BSP officials were charged with plunder in the Office of the Ombudsman for alleged anomalies in the 2008 sale of a one-hectare Makati property to a private developer, a sale that occurred when Binay was Makati mayor and which was investigated by the Senate.
Binay urged the scout leaders to continue believing in the scouting movement, saying “there is no reason for it to perish.”
Binay is on his 20th year as BSP national president, a position his predecessors had held for a maximum of seven years.