We cannot, as a country, improve economically, socially, and

Hear, O children of nations, the solemn words of Lucio Tan, a man who rose from humble beginnings to become a builder of industry and an advocate of learning: “We cannot, as a country, improve economically, socially, and culturally without quality education.” In this truth, he binds together the three great pillars of a people’s destiny—wealth, harmony, and identity—and shows us that all of them stand upon the same foundation: the teaching of the young, the shaping of minds, the cultivation of wisdom. Without education, the edifice of progress cannot rise; without it, a nation drifts like a ship without sail.

What is economic improvement without knowledge? It is but the gathering of coins that soon scatter. A people may strike oil, mine gold, or harvest vast fields, but without the trained mind, without innovation, such riches are wasted or stolen. True wealth springs from knowledge applied—farmers who learn new methods, workers trained in new crafts, inventors who transform resources into marvels. Thus, the economy of a nation does not grow from soil alone, but from the minds that till it.

And what of social improvement? Without education, society is fractured. Ignorance breeds prejudice, fear, and division. But when people learn to read not only words but also one another’s humanity, bridges are built across differences. Informed citizens can demand justice, uphold law, and extend compassion. Lucio Tan knew that a society without schools is a society at war with itself, for the uneducated are vulnerable to manipulation, and the educated too few to guide the whole. It is education that binds citizens together, making neighbors into a community and strangers into a nation.

Nor must we forget cultural growth, the flowering of art, music, philosophy, and tradition. Without education, the beauty of a people is diminished, their heritage forgotten, their voice drowned in the clamor of others. But with schools and learning, the young are taught not only arithmetic and trade, but also the stories of their ancestors, the songs of their land, the wisdom of their elders. In this way, culture does not die but evolves, carried proudly into the future.

History confirms this wisdom. Consider the Renaissance, that rebirth of Europe in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. What gave rise to its explosion of art, science, and philosophy? It was the return to education—the rediscovery of ancient texts, the spread of literacy, the teaching of humanistic values. From schools and universities sprang Michelangelo’s paintings, Galileo’s telescopes, Shakespeare’s plays. A continent emerged from darkness into light, proving Tan’s words: that without learning, there is stagnation; with learning, a people shines.

Lucio Tan himself is a witness to this truth. Born into poverty in the Philippines, he worked his way through school, first as a janitor and later as a chemist, before building a vast business empire. But he never forgot the power of education, often funding scholarships and universities, knowing that his own rise was not a miracle of chance but the fruit of knowledge and discipline. His life illustrates that education uplifts not only the individual but the nation, for the success of one learned soul can create opportunities for thousands.

Therefore, O guardians of the future, take heed: invest in quality education as the foundation of every dream. Parents, value the schooling of your children more than fleeting wealth. Leaders, pour resources into schools, for each coin spent there multiplies a hundredfold in prosperity. Citizens, never cease learning, for the mind that grows is a light that never dims. For a nation cannot rise without schools, cannot prosper without knowledge, cannot endure without wisdom.

The final word is this: as Lucio Tan has spoken, so must we remember. Education is the root, and from it springs the fruit of economic strength, social unity, and cultural glory. Without it, nations stumble in darkness; with it, they rise into greatness. Let every people, then, build their schools as they would their temples, for in them lies the future of their children, their country, and their civilization.