SENIOR COMMUNICATION major Josh Lao has now taken the throne of the Ateneo Dollhouse after being elected Queen Mother during the group’s Miting de Avance and Elections at the Zen Garden last Friday, July 27. The event coincided with the Dollhouse’s 13th anniversary.
The Dollhouse is a group of individuals that pushes for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) awareness and acceptance in the Ateneo.
Lao said, “Ipinapakita namin na hindi porket bakla kami, hindi na namin kaya ang isang task (We are proving to everyone that being gay doesn’t mean that we cannot do certain tasks).”
“I think it’s really about time that our school is giving the go signal for the LGBT community,” he said, when asked about the Sanggunian’s plans to take a step forward for the LGBT community in the Ateneo.
Electoral candidates
Two LGBT political formations participated in the electoral contests.
Partido Dyosa (Dalagang Yayanig sa Opresyon sa Ateneo) was composed of Gabi Perez as the Queen Mother (president) candidate, JR Rodriguez as the Vice Ganda (vice president) candidate, Enzo Tuason as the F-Buddy (finance officer) candidate, Rence Uson and Gille Apilado as the Sex Gen (secretary-general) candidates, Rica Salomon as the Lady Gaguard (sergeant-at-arms) candidate and Nene Bainto as the King Father candidate.
On the other hand, Partido SuSo (Supportive Society), which is the oldest political party in the Dollhouse, was represented by Lao as the Queen Mother candidate, Gelo Echon as the Vice Ganda candidate, Fons Martinez as the F-Buddy candidate, Nikki Riel as the Sex Gen candidate, Martin Tuanquin as the Lady Gaguard candidate and Toni Potenciano as the King Father candidate. Potenciano, however, was absent during the event due to sickness and had to withdraw from the elections.
All Partido SuSo candidates won the election.
Plans and projects
One of the main projects that Lao emphasized in his speech is that he is going to push for the official transition of the Doghouse as the primary bench of the Dollhouse.
“We’ve leveled up, and it’s bigger, which means bigger space, bigger beauty, bigger kabugan, and bigger kabaklaan this year,” said the Queen Mother.
Lao further stressed that he wanted the Dollhouse to be an institution of beauty and talent.
The new leader of the Dollhouse also said that he would conduct a lifestyle check against illegal drugs among the Dollhousers.
The other projects and policy initiatives that are going to be implemented by the newly elected officers include the Hosting Academy for Dollhouse Amateurs proposed by Vice Ganda Gelo Echon, “Oras nang Respetuhin ang Gay Youth” initiated by Sex Gen Nikki Riel, a Financial Load System for Dollhouse members introduced by F-Buddy Fons Martinez, and private Dollhouse bathrooms proposed by Lady Gaguard Martin Tuanquin.
When asked about what the Dollhouse is going to do in relation to the whole Atenean community, Lao said, “Watch out for the surprises Dollhouse has in store for you. It’s going to be a big year for Dollhouse.”
Updated 9:43 PM, July 29, 2012.
Updated 12:06 AM, July 30, 2012.
