Roy Lawagan, an Igorot from Sagada, Mountain Province, has just become an inspiration for many after successfully completing his education and passing the bar exams - while balancing his law studies at night and his day job as a security guard for the Commission on Audit office in La Trinidad, Benguet, along with being a head of the family at the same time.
The Sagada-born is one of the 1,731 new lawyers who passed the said exam and now he only counts the days until May 15, when he can quit his job and start working full time as a lawyer.
Turning 27 years old on May 11, Lawagan intends to pass the bar as an early gift for himself. Lawagan said things have not been easy for him since his wife was pregnant in his first year as a law student. He really had to work hard so that he could fund his education and also support his family at the same time.
Things did not go easy for Lawagan as he failed his first bar exam in 2014 despite enrolling in a test center. For the 2015 exam, he decided to study on his own.
All the hard work eventually paid off as he was named one of the 1,731 new lawyers who successfully passed the 2015 bar exams. Now also a father of a lovely 4-year-old girl.
"Being a lawyer is my father's dream," Lawagan said. According to the new lawyer, he was the fourth of nine children and while some of his sisters also graduated in political science, they eventually ended up not practicing law in the long run.
The Igorot security guard-turned lawyer completed his criminology at the University of Baguio and later finished his law studies at Saint Louis University in the City of Pines.
After a quiet celebration with his family, he returned to work at the office of the Commission on Audit in La Trinidad, Benguet province, wearing a security guard uniform until May 15.
Soon after, he will accept his cousin's offer to fulfill his dream and finally work for a firm based in Manila. "I'm going there to gain experience," Lawagan said.
