As of writing, the Philippines is about seven months away until voter registration officially closes before the elections in 2022. That’s seven months to decide if whether or not one is willing to get up, go out and have a say in the upcoming elections. That’s seven months to decide if all that is really worth it. I pondered this article for a while, originally hoping to accomplish it earlier. There were so many questions popping in and out of my head -- is it even worth discussing the elections anymore, considering the atrocities the current administration has proved capable of doing? Is it even worth convincing people to vote anymore, considering all the questionable, sometimes even ridiculous, politicians? Since the beginning of the country’s lockdown, also considered the world’s longest lockdown, we have been witness to just how incapable of good governance the majority of the people in power are. Nearly a year into the pandemic, and there’s still no free mass testing. Almost a year into the pandemic and nearing the end of President Duterte’s term, and the country is drowning in a much larger debt than we were in 2016. It comes as no surprise that our faith in the Philippine government is diminishing.
I won’t go on and single out all the nasty, unforgivable things that have occurred since the beginning of President Duterte’s presidency (there’s a lot. You should know this.), but after giving it much thought, I will say this -- yes, it is still worth getting up and out to register to vote when the elections come around. Yes, it is still worth believing in something better. We have to. Now, hear us out.
Earlier this week, I was privileged enough to initiate conversations with Political Science major Kara Angan, and environmental advocate Alya Laplana on the whole notion of voter registration, the upcoming elections, and what we can do moving forward. May the perspectives of these young women move you.
So, on registering to vote. What moved you to register? Was there any specific event, reason, or even emotion that moved you?
Alya: I mainly registered because I am finally of age and capable to do so. Getting registered was something that I consciously thought about as I kept seeing posts on social media about Halalan 2022 and the importance of exercising your right to vote, especially during the earlier months of quarantine. I think something else that also pushed me to register was my advocacy for the environment, and hopefully voting for candidates and leaders that can represent and advocate for issues surrounding the environment and the climate crisis. I actually went to register with my brother, and I could say he gave me that last push that I needed by talking to me about it and sending me several posts about the procedure for registering here in Cebu.
Kara: I grew up in an environment that was very passionate about social justice and good governance. These were advocacies and passions that my parents and other family members were passionate about. Choosing to register to vote was really a no-brainer, I knew how important it was to make an active choice and really have this active say on who I wanted or who I believed shared the same values I did.
I remember this feeling I got of relief, even determination when I finally registered to vote. Do you recall any feeling you had when you did, too?
Kara: ...I remember spending 3 or 4 hours in line, filling up the forms and taking biometrics and all that, then coming home, and feeling like it was something I was really waiting for. Growing up in a space and a society that was getting more and more progressive and more willing to talk about politics, you know you feel really helpless growing up not being able to do anything. I remember the 2019 elections and feeling so helpless, like what if me and my friends had been able to go out and vote? After I registered, I remember feeling like I was ready for 2022 and beyond.
There’s been a lot of talk on social media about how there’s “no hope” for next year’s election of being in any way fair or useful, considering vote-buying, corruption, and all that. Do you feel that the 2022 Elections have any possibility of being free and fair? If they weren’t, do you think it is still important to go out and exercise our right to vote? Why or why not?
Alya: I can’t guarantee and I don’t believe that it will be a hundred percent “fair”. However, I think we should try to look beyond the thought that “It’s not going to be fair anyway so my vote will probably be useless” or “I’m just one person, my vote won’t matter much” and not allow it to hinder us from voting. In fact, knowing this and being aware of this possibility (of elections not being fair) should rather make us more ambitious in changing this reality. It should make us want to strive for change and act upon it instead of being complacent about it.
Kara: Yeah, I have a lot of feelings about this topic! ...The conversations surrounding whether or not it’s going to be fair really undermine the power of civil society in the Philippines. I forget the specific statistics, but the Philippines has a very very strong civil society sector -- there’s church organizations, NGOs, even the business sectors that grew up during Edsa, experienced Edsa, who really have a lot of power to check and balance all the technical aspects of elections. There are poll watchers and things like that, so they can still be free and fair with all these people watching. If ever there were any accounts of fraud in the next elections, the pushback would be very strong. The bigger discussion around this topic is understanding... I think a lot of the disenchantment of people does come from corrupt politicians and their ability to buy votes. ...Voters’ education programs both in the past and the present have packaged vote-buying as something that is insulting to those who are subject to vote-buying. There’s a message like “oh, you’re selling your morality!” and all that, without even targeting or looking at the conditions that people are in that makes it easy to opt for vote-buying in the first place. ...Voting and organizing on the ground are the cornerstones of democracy. Opting out just because you don’t believe in the electoral system isn’t just a statement you’re making for yourself because it has actual real-life consequences. You opting out of elections will not stop the elections from happening at all, and it only has negative consequences. There are stakes at play here, so while it doesn’t look or feel like it sometimes, the stakes are so high because these are the people we are choosing to control or affect actual change; to dictate and execute things that dictate our quality of life. If you’re eligible to vote, you should still vote, regardless of whether or not you believe in the electoral system.
What would you tell someone to convince them to register to vote and actually vote when the elections come around?
Alya: This is pretty straightforward. I’d tell them that voting is an actionable step to combat injustices, from issues like climate justice to issues that are embedded in the system, because it can give representation to the issues that we care about. Voting also shows that we care for the future of our country. We vote for these people who hold positions of power; power to influence where we’ll be headed as a nation and how we will progress.
Kara: When we talk about communicating to people why they need to register, it always comes back to meeting them where they are. It always comes back to the need to understand their conditions, their circumstances. We need to understand why they feel like the electoral system doesn’t work. And it’s only when we understand all the context behind a person’s perception of voting and politics can we figure out what to say or how to get them to register. When we look at people and even when we talk about polarized identities in Philippine politics, when it comes to interactions where you want to make a change, you have to meet them where they are and understand why they think that in the first place. And that’s how you’ll be able to make an effective program, an effective campaign, an effective message to make them believe otherwise.
What important policies and/or values do you think a good leader should ideally possess? Why do you think it is important that we elect leaders with these qualities? How important are they in the long run?
Alya: Accountability, transparency, honesty/integrity, and empathy are some qualities and values that I can think of off the top of my head. I want to emphasize accountability and transparency though since I think these supersede the other qualities that I mentioned. Accountability, which I see as being responsible with their role, owning up to their actions so they can improve (not in a sense of blaming people), and sticking to their plans goes hand in hand with transparency, which is simply being honest, up-front, and having no hidden agenda. These two help foster trust and create a better “relationship” between the public and the government. And as I said in the previous question, the government and the public need to work together to be able to result in “good governance”. For empathy, maybe it’s a quality that some may overlook, but in my perspective, it’s imperative that a leader can see past statistics and numbers, and understand the individuals, families, and communities that comprise those numbers. Having empathy will make them more understanding of the circumstances of different people’s lives, and they’ll be more inclined to create projects, plans, and policies addressing [the] social welfare and the well-being of others, especially the marginalized communities. On a side-note, I would also look for leaders or people that are pro-environment and don’t have any plans that threaten the condition of our environment.
Kara: We need a whole new generation of leaders. We need leaders that don’t subscribe to very traditional politics or the “trapo” way of governing that’s very election-centric and short-term thinking. Local mayors like Vico Sotto, Marcy Teodoro are great examples we have now that should be emulated throughout the Philippines especially on the local level. Politicians that meet people where they are, who are always able to consult with people in their community, leaders that engage, address their pain points, and give them options. People who remember that they are just a representative of the communities that they oversee, that put their community’s interest at the forefront and work for the long term rather than the short term.
Alright! Lastly, would you have anything else you might want to add? Please do!
Alya: Voting is essential to strengthen our democracy. This is the time to realize that, collectively, we have this power or this opportunity to create change, since voting is an outcome that we somewhat have control over. Also, as citizens, as people, we need to be engaged and participative so that progress and success don’t solely rely on what these public servants or politicians do, but also how we actively participate and work collaboratively to actualize this change that we seek. The government and its people shouldn’t be treated as separate entities-- I see it as something replicating the nature of a feedback loop, where the government and people work together to grow and progress. So we must do our part, take this as a chance we have to vote for candidates that align with your values and candidates who will represent and be a voice for issues that should be addressed at a local and national level. I also want to add or remind you guys to not wait until the last few months to register since the application still takes time, from weeks and even months, to approve. So it’s best to do it as soon as you can to avoid stress later on. And If you have already registered, please encourage your friends to do so too! You can also continue to stay updated by following social media accounts, such as @wetheyouthvote (on Instagram), and learn what you can about who the are candidates for this election. Lastly, share content or posts relating to the registration and the elections in general, so you can possibly influence those in your social media circle.
Kara: I’d actually like to leave on two main points: first, while elections are important, it’s not the “end all be all” of democracy. I believe in elections because it’s an avenue to create sustainable change because it’s expected, it’s institutionalized. The majority of people in the country have an active stake in it. It’s important because it puts people in power to effect change. But it also should come hand in hand with organizing -- so bringing communities together to effect change, building people power, building awareness, bridging resources and people together. At its core, organizing is empowering communities through resources, networks, capacity building, skills-building, and getting to the point where the sectors get to assert their interests themselves. The ideal system is when those sectors get to represent themselves in the government. We have elections that create sustainable and long term change, and we have organizing that’s important because we want to be able to empower those sectors in society to build them with the skills, connect them to the resources they need, so they may run for government or represent an interest where they will be able to effect change for their own communities. The process of democracy has to come hand in hand with those two things.
Second, what we don’t talk enough about is taking local elections seriously. This is important because our representatives - our House of Representatives - also have a say in whether or not a law is passed. They’re the people who decide on things like the ABS-CBN shutdown. But even on the barangay level, local mayors, these people are also important because the local government is closer to the community. These are the people who will be affecting the change that you will experience in your immediate community. So like what we see with Mayors Vico and Marcy -- these are local people who are utilizing what budgets they are given to affect positive change and long-lasting change in their areas. Take local elections seriously, research who are the local candidates running in your area, organize with your friends, pay attention to who’s running -- what issues they care about, their plans of action, what their history is. Good governance isn’t from the top to bottom, but it really is the whole of society.
KARA ANGAN is a 19-year-old freshman at the Ateneo de Manila University majoring in Political Science. She is passionate about good governance, civil rights, and communication. Like Ashlee, she registered to vote back in 2019.
ALYA LAPLANA is a 19-year-old environmental advocate who values bridging the knowledge-action gap of the climate crisis while also creating collective climate action. She works with Kids For Kids’ Habilin and The Climate Reality Project PH. She registered to vote just last September 2020.
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