THE PROMISE of radical change that brought the new administration to power extends even to the lowest rungs of government office.

Long-proposed plans for postponement of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections scheduled on October 31 have gained traction with the support of President Rodrigo Duterte and the congressional supermajority, and has made significant progress towards enactment.

And the proposals for electoral change get much more drastic. Plans for the abolition of the office of the barangay kagawad and the entire SK system have been forwarded by no less than House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez.

According to Alvarez, Php 24 billion would be saved annually from the abolition of kagawad and SK posts. He also criticized the SK system as being a launchpad for future politicians, where the youth are taught “how to play dirty politics.”

However, Alvarez’s proposals, particularly the abolition of the SK, have been opposed by other legislators, heads of national government agencies, and even by some of his allies in Congress. Debate over the SK abolition has sprung up, with one side citing irrelevance and the other citing empowerment.

Reform or scrap?

The SK was institutionalized alongside the Local Government Code in 1991. Along with the empowerment of local government units, the code sought to empower the youth and provide an avenue for their participation in governance. According to the code, the SK is responsible “to decide on important issues affecting the youth of the barangay” and “to carry out the objectives of the youth in the barangay.”

Yet since its inception, the SK has been a constant target of criticism. It has been called ineffective, wasteful, and a facilitator for nepotism, corruption and dynastic control. A study commissioned by the United Nations Children’s Fund found the SK to be “generally weak, [because] the potentials of the SK are not being maximized.”

In response, calls to abolish the SK have long been made. Motions for SK abolition have been filed in 2004 and 2007 in the House of Representatives, and in 2010 in the Senate.

Defenders of the SK have called instead for reform. These efforts culminated in the passage of Republic Act 10742, known as the SK Reform Law, in 2016.

In an interview with The GUIDON, Senator Bam Aquino, co-author and co-sponsor of the SK Reform Law, said that the legislation was meant to “take the existing institution of SK… and put the measures in place to make sure that what was good about it remained and what was not would be improved.”

Aquino highlighted three particular reform measures in the law. First was the increase in age brackets for SK officials from 15-17 years old to 18-24 He described as “a matter of legality” since “at 18, you [already] have legal obligation and accountability to the contracts and projects you handle.”

Second was the institutionalization of the Local Youth Development council, which would “[involve] different civil society youth groups as a support system and advisory council for the SK officials” to ensure the relevance of SK efforts.

Finally, and most importantly for Aquino, was the anti-dynasty clause, which was meant “to empower young leaders that don’t necessarily have a popular last name but are capable and eager to serve their community.”

Postponement, not abolition

In spite of the SK Reform Law, the abolition of the SK system still remains a potent possibility. Supporters of the SK have continued to defend its relevance, supporting the postponement but opposing the abolition.
James Gutierrez, Presidential Staff Officer at the National Youth Commission’s Regional Youth Development Division (NYC-RYDD) says that there is “a clamor for the youth to be in governance since they comprise 30% of the population.”

Gutierrez adds that the NYC is “fine with the postponement but we are not for the abolishment [of the SK].”

He says that the youth’s opportunity to learn the ropes of governing the local office should not be taken away from them. “[The youth] are our future leaders… Their voices should be heard and they shouldn’t be ostracized,” he says.

Similarly, Mel Santella, chief at NYC-RYDD, says that the people from the NYC are still very optimistic towards the retention of the SK because of the SK Reform Law.

“In the meantime that there is a debate and the discourse going on whether to abolish [the SK] or not, we in the NYC are still in high spirits that there is still an SK,” he says.

On the other hand, Andi Legaspi (4 BS CTM), former SK representative for Barangay Blue Ridge A, admits that her experience in local government allowed her to learn both its good and bad sides.

“I got to see how there can be kind people in the government, meaning that I also unfortunately got a firsthand look at how SK was the supposed breeding ground for corruption and whatever it is that’s wrong in the government,” she says.

However, Legaspi thinks that the changes imposed by the SK Reform Law could be beneficial for the youth council in the long run.

“It’s good that they’re changing the age bracket,” Legaspi says. “It’s important for the people in SK to have accountability for their decisions and to have a backbone when calling the shots.”