MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / Feb. 24, 2012) – It is campaign season once again for student council elections in most universities in the Philippines and the National Youth Commission says this is the perfect opportunity for college students to participate in meaningful political exercise.
Given the significance of the EDSA 1 celebrations, the NYC maintains that it was disrespect for the people’s vote that served as the last straw and compelled millions of Filipinos to troop to EDSA back in 1986.
NYC Chairperson Leon Flores III said that Student Council/Government is the ideal training ground for future leaders and policymakers. “The Student Council elections is, for most students, their first exposure to a political exercise. Dito unang namumulat ang kabataan sa prosesong politikal at sa kahalagahan ng kanilang mga boto. Nawa’y lumabas sila, maging mapanuri, mangampanya at bomoto ng maayos at huwag magpadala sa traditional na pamamaraang namamayagpag sa regular local at national elections,” Flores said.
The National Youth Commission, serving as the voice and advocate of the youth, is the government’s policy-making body on youth development. As such, it admonishes the student leaders to take the moral high ground when leading their campaigns.
Flores said: “Ang konseho ay isang kolektibong pagkilos tungo sa pagsusuri at pagtutugon ng mga isyung pangkabataan at pang-edukasyon. Mahalaga ito kasi sa murang edad nila natututo na sila at, in a way, may ideya na sila kung paano ba gumagana ang mga institusyong itinatag ng isang representative democracy. It is also important that student leaders lead by example and focus on clean and principled campaigning instead of being too desperate to win.”
He added that the participation of student voters is equally important.“Kapag kayong mag-aaral ay bomoboto, naipapakita ninyo sa administrasyon ng paaralan na committed kayo sa pagbabago at pagpapaunlad sa kalidad ng inyong edukasyon at ng inyong paaralan bilang komunidad. Kahit sa paraang ito, puede nyo nang ipakita na mahalaga ang boto at isa itong magandang pag-alala sa diwa ng EDSA People Power,” he said.
The NYC was created in 1996 under the RA 8044 otherwise known as the “Youth in Nation-Building Act”, as the policy-making, coordinating body of all youth-related institutions, programs, projects, and activities of the government. It operates under the Office of the President of the Philippines.
20