The chairman of the National Youth Commission (NYC) on Tuesday urged lawmakers to spare the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections from postponement, saying the SK has reformed, and that it is needed to represent the youth sector in local government.
NYC Chairman Cariza Y. Seguerra, who gained popularity in the 1980s as a child actress, said she is dismayed over the government’s insistence to suspend the SK elections. The House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms on Monday approved the proposal to postpone barangay and SK elections in October.
“Sa totoo lang, nalulungkot po ang National Youth Commission sa balitang ’yan dahil may ilang taon na rin po na wala pong tumatayong SK chairman at SK council. Alam naman po natin na kapag walang kabataan na tumitingin, mahirap po ’yun kasi it’s hard if old people will decide for young people [The National Youth Commission is saddened over that news because it has been years since we last had an SK chairman and an SK council. It is difficult to not have youth representatives in the government because you are allowing old people to decide for the young people.] ” Seguerra said.
She said she will understand if barangay elections on October will not push through, but pleaded to lawmakers to allow the SK polls to pursue. She added lawmakers need not worry about institutional errors of the SK in the past, as the Republic Act 10742, or the Sangguniang Kabataan Reform Act, is now in place. “If legislators fear the SK will repeat its old practices, that’s why there is a reform, that’s why the SK is changed,” the NYC chairman said.
Should the government postpone the SK elections, Seguerra said, a number of SK reforms will not see implementation. This includes the establishment of local youth development offices, which, according to Seguerra, is crucial in the rolling out of youth-intended programs and policies.
Nonetheless, Seguerra said NYC officials will continue to attend congressional hearings to oppose the postponement of the SK elections. “The National Youth Commission will make sure that there will be youth representation whatever happens,” she added.
Voting 19 to 2, the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms on Monday green lighted the measure to postpone barangay and SK polls anew. If passed into law, incumbent barangay officials will retain their posts in a holdover capacity, as agreed upon by lawmakers.
Party-list Rep. and Committee Chairman Sherwin N. Tugna of Cibac expressed confidence that the measure be approved by the House before the end of August. “I think if the Lower House will put the bill for second reading in the plenary, it [approval] wouldn’t reach the end of August,” Tugna said.
President Duterte has called for the postponement of the barangay and SK elections, saying candidates backed by drug lords will certainly win the polls if it were to be held in October. Duterte, along with his allies in Congress, alleges narcopolitics have taken over ground-level politics.