Contribution
An appeal to traditional politicians: Please stay away from SK elections
With the Sangguniang Kabataan election just around the corner, many youths will be given opportunity to practice their right to vote. The overall goal of this activity is good. But for many, especially the opportunist and dirty politicians it is just another venue to promote their interests. It is a sad reality that these innocent young voters will be used to serve the purpose of these corrupt individuals; their votes used as prized commodity in the Philippines' political business world. Whoever can secure as many of these precious votes is surely going to have a chance to win in the next election.
Politicians, I plead you to take your hands off the Sanguniang Kabataan elections, don't spoil the innocence of the youths. Let them be. Please give them their own freedom to choose and not influenced by your dirty tactics. Let us stick to the idealism that the youths are the future of the country. How can this be if you are already polluting their innocent minds, by training them how to use dirty tactics to win, and sadly train them to lie big time and not deliver what they promised to their constituents.
I was once a young Filipino who once tried to run as an independent candidate in our local Barangay SK Election.I dreamed of genuinely serving my fellow youths and plans on how to deliver the things needed for the improvement of our situation in our barangay. However, such experience opened my eyes to how dirty our political system is. My opponent was backed by a strong politician. The opposing politician offered to help me but I refused. I stood on my principle that no matter what, I will run the race without any help from any politicians. All I had was a few pesos to buy campaign materials like cartolina, pentel pen, and have couple of my friends make simple campaign materials like book markers as my campaign materials. Like a traditional politician, I went house-to-house and explain to my fellow youth my platform and my goals for them. I have openly told them I do not have any money to give them, or promise them of anything material because I have nothing. All I have for them is the willingness to serve and be a good citizen. Many including the parents told me that they would support me. And I held on to their words as a gentleman.
Election Day came and all votes were casted. Very early morning the next day the mother of my opponent (still in her curlers and sleeping dress), who is a school teacher herself and a well known supporter of the politician that backed his son, came knocking in our gate telling me that she heard that I won. I did not believe her, but I was surprised why she was so worried about the result. Shouldn't this be a youth agenda and not for older people. As I expected I lost later that day, only few held their word and voted for me, but to my discontent, the very people/youths I expected to vote for me flipped. With my further investigations, I found out that they, including their idiot parents, were given 20 to 50 pesos. How sad, their vote only cost 50 pesos.
Further down the line, all went back to normal. As I expected my opponent did not do anything but just get his monthly stipend and did not perform his duty as the chair of the Sangguniang Kabataan. All that he served well was the few youths that were his barkadas, and openly neglects those who are not. As I went around all I heared from those who sold their votes is that they wished they voted for me instead. No library or decent projects came their way, which were in my plans if I had won. So, I just told them: well, sorry for them, they exchanged long time friendship and my opportunity to serve them with 50 pesos, well they get what they deserved.
Sangguniang Kabataan is a good venue for our youths to train and practice their rights to vote. But if this is influenced by politicians and parents who encourage their children to sell their votes like what they do in their own ball park, it is useless and because if it is tainted with dirty tricks, it will just train our youths how to be irresponsible citizens who can easily be bought.
Youths should learn to stick to their beliefs. This is their chance to make a difference for their lives and their future. They should be vigilant in safeguarding their votes which is contrary to the overall goal of the activity, another sad fact is that this innocent activity for the youth is filled with violence in some other parts of the country. News about how youths get killed or intimidated is getting around like wild fire. This is just a clear picture of how dirty is the political scene in our country that even the youths are not spared.
And finally I have just one question, why do politicians keep on interfering with the SK election? Well, I guess they interfere because they want to inculcate in the minds of the youth their dirty tricks so that when grow old they will get used to such practices—meaning they will find nothing wrong in buying votes, harassing opponents, cheating, etc. In other words the traditional politicians don't want the youth to vote the right way when it's their turn to vote as adults. Otherwise, it's possible that the old TRAPOS and dirty politicians will be out of business soon and replaced by qualified candidates who will do their jobs properly and those who can make a big difference in the lives of every Filipinos, who are also willing to authentically serve the public and not their own selves and pockets.