Voter’s Value Formaton Forum Held in Downtown Campus

Photo by Gifthir Elmido

The Department of Political Science in partnership with Junior Jaycees, the Supreme Student Council, Carolinian Political Science Society, and Leaders for Politics and Service organized KABATAAN, TAYO ANG PAG-ASA: A Voters’ Value Formation Forum July 16 at the Theodore Buttenbruch Hall, USC – Downtown Campus. Kabataan Partylist Executive Vice-President Marjohara Tucay was invited as speaker to provide the history of the struggle of the Filipino people and the role of the youth for the 2016 Philippine General Elections.

“The past six years has been a testament to the thirst of the Filipino people for change or the effect of Daang Matuwid,” declared Rep. Tucay. While there has been immense talk on change for good governance, he pointed out that the anti-dynasty bill has not been passed and pork barrel is still alive, due to a PHP400 billion inclusion in the 2015 budget that still requires discretion of an agency or the Office of the President. Lastly, he cited that the Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) were enabled as a collaboration between public and private entities to hasten projects but seemed more like an avenue to favor the alleged “cronies” of the government.

Later in his talk, he cited the relevance of election as a key role in democracy and should be a collective effort and not an egoistic choice in voting a candidate. He emphasized clearly on the four (4) main roles of the youth in the election: to safeguard the sanctity of the election, to organize Voters’ Education campaigns, to register and exercise the right to vote for nationalistic and progressive candidates, and to push for pro-youth agendas.

Tucay also stated that it should not only be the candidates who will change, but also the voters. He expressed the need for informed and educated voters because he believes that it is the key to electoral reform. He also mentioned how easy it is to fall for just taglines and personality than the platforms of aspiring presidential candidates.

To close the discussion, the youth took an oath that challenged them to vote for candidates with a plan, who would protect the sovereignty of the Philippines, high-quality transportation system, and have an agenda to widen the scope for a better and free education.