NYC urges voters to be critical in choosing SK bets

With no legislation from both chambers of Congress to postpone the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections on May 14, the National Youth Commission (NYC) said it was now time to be critical in choosing candidates “who personify the valuable traits of a new breed of SK leaders.”

“As we celebrate our victory in advocating for the non-postponement of this year’s synchronized Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections, let us maximize time to encourage other young people who are passionate, dedicated and committed to the service of the youth sector to be part of the reformed SK,” NYC commissioner James Ceasar Ventura said in a statement.

“We have won the fight. It is up to us now to convince our legislators that the SK is a formidable institution for youth leadership and good governance. Let us vote for the best, and advocate for an informed choice among the youth voters,” Ventura said.

The House of Representatives voted 164-27 to approve the consensus of the House committee on suffrage to postpone the election in May and move it to October.

But the bill was not tackled by the Senate before it went into recess on March 23. It would resume session on May 14, the day the Barangay and SK elections was scheduled to be held.

READ: Bill on barangay poll postponement dead in Senate – Koko

For Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel, the piece of legislation had no chance in the Senate, saying that they were instead inclined to study the divorce bill.

“Postponement of barangay elections has no chance anymore in the Senate,” he told reporters. Dissolution of marriage is a new concept hence give us time to study it,” Pimentel told reporters on March 19, three days before Congress went into recess.   /muf