“What is the most pressing issue the newly elected Sanggunian should address?”

“I think that one of the most pressing issues the Sanggunian must tackle is the political turmoil and confusion with regard to our take on the current administration. Due to the recent events in social media, the Ateneo community in general has now also become a public entity. Thus we need to put a more conscious effort on how we as students of the Ateneo project ourselves and our school.”

Mark Adam Ferry

5 BS CH-MSE

“They should fix the suspension system, because lagi tayo pinaasa, like the government says it already, UP, and all the other schools in Katipunan are suspended, but us, no? People commute to school and need an early suspension announcement para they can prepare, diba? And traffic, too – all guards should be able to give gate passes in all lanes para mas mabilis flow from Katipunan to outside Ateneo, and pedestrian lanes should be managed better.”

Bri Sandoval

2 AB IS

“The issue of sectoral representation should be addressed by the newly elected Sanggunian as soon as possible. The Sanggunian needs to be sensitive to the particular needs of certain student groups. Democracy works when sectors within the student body are properly represented and given avenues through which they can participate in the decisions of the student government.”

Alexa Grace Fontanilla

President, Development Society of the Ateneo

“There is a reason as to why the Ateneo was only able to elect a president this year. The inception of the Constitutional Convention last year initiated by [Shiphrah] Belonguel because of the series of failure of elections only substantiated the main problem of the Ateneo student body— apathy. I was a victim too of the failure of elections when I ran as my batch’s Executive Officer last 2013 and until now, talking to different Ateneans, those who voted and those who didn’t lingers around the premise of Sanggu’s transparency and supposed ‘inactivity.’ A lot of students are unaware of the activities initiated by Sanggu and often ask the question, ‘What does Sanggu do?’ As far as the general populace is concerned, Sanggu is only ‘apparent and active’ on social media because they are unaware of Sanggu’s initiatives (Secwalk Bridge, etc). As mundane as it could be, maybe Sanggu has to reestablish itself and make itself more ‘transparent’ through more activities, events that could tickle the interest of the constituents.”

Brian Pineda

4 AB EU

“The most pressing issue that should be addressed is to provide tutors for people who need it. I’m so tired of having to contact different school organizations only for them to turn me down because they do not have any tutors. Why do some of them even promote their tutors if they do not have any? Or they turn me down because it is already too late, or it is very expensive.”

Isa Padilla

4 BS LfSci

“I think the Sanggunian shouldn’t focus their efforts too much on mobilizing students into numerous advocacies and issues but rather start working on rallying for the improvement of processes and services in campus. It’s a basic thing that the Sanggunian should address first! The Sanggunian speaks for the student body as a liaison to the admin first and foremost.”

Bea Ruiz

Secretary-Treasurer, COA Business Cluster

“Inactive participation of the student body. Everything starts here. We have a system wherein the functions of both the Sanggu and the student body are of great importance. For starters, Sanggu has been facing difficulties in reaching the quota recently and that’s because of the inactive participation of the students. It would be easier for the Sanggu to be a successful voice of the students if only the student body is active and cooperative. If only Sanggu could reach out to the students more, we could achieve that harmony between the students and the student government. But this is not just a problem of Sanggu, this is a problem of the whole student body. So, the things to do are to cooperate and participate.”

Princess Jazmin Solas

2 AB POS

“Outside Ateneo, the country is in tough times. Never has the society been this polarized, and never has Ateneo been this compelled to take sides. The new Sanggunian should work on dealing with socio-political apathy that rests on the student body, without infringing on personal choice. Sanggu should pose more questions, demand more answers, and ultimately help Ateneo to become a larger, more integral part of the political discourse.”

Iñaqui Angelo Mangahas

3 AB POS

“I think the urgent issue that the newly elected Sanggunian should focus [on] is ensuring that the majority of the student body is aware of their presence as elected officials, and go beyond this awareness. The new officers should build on awareness to encourage engagement, so that the students know that officers work not only for but with the student body.”

Veronica Baguio

Externals Vice President, Ateneo Gabay

“I think that the issue Sanggunian needs to address, in the context of urgency, is to clarify the Constitution. Certainly, it needs to look for ways to make itself relevant again, but a clarification of the Constitution is definitely the most pressing because it’ll set the stage for the actions of the all successive Sanggunian, and a confusion now could easily lead to a constitutional crisis.”

Dom Martin G. Rañises

Socio-Political Awareness Head, ARSA

“I think the most pressing issue that the Sanggunian needs to address is the general lack of awareness around the campus. A look around campus suggests apathy towards the student government (and the Sanggunian), and a general lack of awareness about student rights and representation. A lot of students did not even vote in this year’s Sanggunian election, which is alarming.”

Antonio M. Tablante

2 BS ME

“Given the new constitution, the challenge for Sanggunian this year is internal bureaucratic management – the creation of new offices and the maintaining of old structures in accordance with the new constitution. Aside from the internal overhaul necessary this year, the second concern facing the Sanggunian is the question of its relevance towards the student body. I believe that the success or failure of the internal reorganization will affect Sanggunian’s bid for igniting student involvement.”

Jill Mosquera     

3 AB POS