Doctor of Humanities: UV confers honorary degree on Ricardo Cardinal Vidal

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal yesterday was conferred the degree of Doctor of Humanities Honoris Causa by the University of the Visayas during the school’s commencement exercises.

Rep. Eduardo R. Gullas, president of UV, said that the honorary degree was conferred upon the Cardinal for being the epitome of goodness and being an inspiration to the Cebuanos.

Gullas, in his short speech, before the conferment of the degree said that Vidal has been very close to their mother the late Josefina ‘Inday Pining’ Rivera Gullas, who was the president of the Parish Pastoral Council of the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral when Vidal was first assigned to Cebu as the parish priest.

The Cardinal said that he too had been an educator for 16 years as he taught Latin, English, Spanish and Filipino in the seminary.

Vidal jokingly said during an interview with reporters yesterday that he is proud to have received the said award because he gets the said degree without having to study.

The Cardinal also shared many fond memories of the school, not necessarily on the academic part, but because of his closeness to the matriarch of the Gullas family.

Vidal on his acceptance speech pondered on his memories with the late Inday Pining who served as model and inspiration of the University of the Visayas. He also admired the humanitarian services of the school. 

“If the University of the Visayas continues to uphold the values of compassion, of sensitivity to the needs of the poor, I believe it is because the spirit of Inday Pining continues to live on in these halls. Even before I asked the catholic schools not to raise their tuition fees on the account of economic crisis, UV has already reduced its tuition, and UV is not even technically a Catholic Institution,” he said.

“It is this sensitivity to the needs of the poor that makes UV a cut above other schools. UV does not cut corners to be sensitive, this University does not compromise excellence for the sake of making education affordable. It is for this reason that I gratefully and humbly accept this conferment of the degree of Doctor of Humanities. I am proud to be an alumnus of UV, even only in an honorary sense,” he added.

UV President Eduardo Gullas said, “His eminence is the epitome of Pagkaayo, Pagkabuotan ug Pagkaaghop, an epitome of goodness and inspiration to all Cebuanos and Filipinos.” – Jasmin R. Uy/NLQ (THE FREEMAN)