JEDDAH — Division ‘G' of District 79 Toastmasters International conducted its 13th Annual Speech Contest in Jeddah amid much fanfare where contestants impressed the audience with their oratory skills. The theme of the contest was "Challenge to Change." The contest began with the spectacular banner parade from each participating club and followed by Area and Division officials. The Division G Director Ramces Dungog welcomed the audience and thanked the entire Division G team especially the contest committee for their untiring efforts that made this contest a resounding success. The Consul General of Philippines Madame Imelda Panolong was the guest of honor. Panolong praised the efforts of Division G in instilling confidence to its members to face the audience. Complimenting on the different roles being played by a Toastmaster, she said, "It is difficult to be a Toastmaster than be a Consul General." She was amazed when she saw a packed hall of members hailing from different communities and cultures. "This is the testament of Toastmasters leadership role in producing effective communicators and luminous leaders under the spirit of ‘learn by doing practice," she added. District 79 WSA Club Growth Director DTM Ricardo Briones introduced the guest of honor. In the International Speech contest Beniffer Consolacion of Area 7 emotionally energized the audience with his own personal story that clinched the first prize. Consolacion was also adjudged the first place winner in both Speech Evaluation and Table Topics segments thus became the champion of the contest. The District 79 Director Dr. Soliman Almadi delivered a motivational message. "Embrace teamwork and reach out for excellence," he said. "In Toastmasters, we are achievers; we get recognition — a prize, which may be a trophy, certificate or ribbon. However, our aspiration is beyond all of these interim prizes. The real prize that we seek is to make a difference in our own life, in someone else's life, in our communities and in our workplace," he added. The World Champion of Public Speaking Mohammed Al Qahtani's arrival onto the stage stimulated the gathering that generated a standing ovation from the audience. Qahtani, in his keynote address, said: "Make your mark, chase your desire and pursue your passion until you attain your goal." The contest held in four customary categories - International speech, Humorous speech, Table Topics speech and Evaluation speech in both languages namely Arabic and English. Abdul Majeed Azouz of Area 33 won the overwhelming applause and appreciation of the audience throughout his speech for his scintillating performance in both English and Arabic contests. Azouz secured second place in the International Speech (English) while Lais Chalithodi of Area 7 got the third place. Arabic speech contests were assimilated into the main stream in which Abdul Majeed Azouz secured first place in three categories: International speech, Table Topics and Humorous Speech. Azouz also got the second place in Speech Evaluation category. In the Table Topics speech category, Angelito Nacion of Area 24 was declared as the second place winner while Abdullah Bamashmos of Area 33 got third place. Amjad Idrees of Area 33 got second place in Arabic category. Humorous speeches include an array of interesting topics incorporating wits and wisdom to tickle the funny bones of the audience. Abdul Majeed Azouz bagged the first prize in Humorous Speech contest in both categories (Arabic and English). Azouz amused the audience by his spellbinding performance garnering incessant laughter and applause from the attendees. Abdullah Khoja of Area 24 and Khaled Baharetha of Area 7 got second and third place respectively in the Humorous Speech contest held in English. The target speaker Ahmed Abdullah Attar spoke on the significance of ‘reading' paving the way for speech evaluators to assess his speech and present their perceptions before the audience. Ramy Abdel Wahab of Area 33 bagged the first and second place in Arabic and English speech evaluation segments respectively while Asjad Ansari got third place in Speech Evaluation (English). Ahmad El Hasani was the target speaker in Arabic whose speech was entwined with enthusing stories depicting the struggle he faced to learn different languages. Contest Planning Chairman Muhammed Sameer called the contest to order and recited the mission of the Toastmasters District. Ken Kusunoki and Mosleh Elemarani were the masters of ceremony. Aboobacker Abdul Rahman, Basheer Ambalavan, DTMs Roedolf Coetzer and Glen Sibag were the contest masters during the English speech sessions whereas Somayah Algashgari, Omar Fattah and Mohammed Zakir led the Arabic segments. Past District 79 Governor DTM Joey Villanueva conducted the "Pathways" seminar. Top Toastmasters leaders such as District 79 WSA Program Quality Director DTM Marwan Dashash, DTM Rashid Ali, DTM Abdullah Filimban, the immediate past Division G Director TM Muhammed Kunhi, DTM Saifuddeen KM, DTM Tess Villanueva and TM Danny Abenes were also present at the event.
