Who will garner the youth vote?

“Our  elected officials are able to regulate even the most personal aspects of our lives, from the cleanliness of the air we breathe to the identity of the people we marry. Keeping this in mind, casting a ballot is not just essential – it’s practical!” -Maria Rubio, Brooklyn College

MS. Rubio, an activisteformist and student representative of Brooklyn College Student Government, was very straightforward when she mentioned that political decisions, ordinances and public policies implemented by the people we elect into public office, can make or break the lives of their constituents.

According to the 2010 Census Data, Cagayan de Oro has a total population of 602,088 and half of its population belong to the age group of 24.2 years old and below. The data available is enough to conclude that half of the number of people living in Cagayan de Oro are young residents. The PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority) Census data also says that, “Persons aged 15 to 19 years (10.8 percent) comprised the largest age group” in Cagayan de Oro City. The third most significant result we can conclude from the data, according to the PSA is that “The voting-age population (18 years and over) accounted for 63.2 percent of the household population of the city in 2010, up from 58.4 percent in 2000.”

As of the moment, I have commissioned a survey to narrow down and identify the population of age group 15-35 years old, which is the United Nations official definition of Persons that belong to the “Youth” category. That information can help us define future articles for youth.

Consequently, what the data says is very relevant to all political candidates running for this year’s elections because it is proof that now we know that a huge portion of CDO’s population are coming from the youth. Do not wonder why I want to make an emphasis on data because there is still a huge portion of leaders in different areas of the Philippines that continue to neglect their duty of properly understanding the profiles of their constituents, specifically their needs, issues and challenges.

This evidence is enough for candidates to take into consideration the needs and concerns of this growing age group and how the Local Government can be a partner in providing more opportunities for growth and development in the city, especially for its young constituency.

Again, because we have established that we the youth, comprise a significant portion of residents in the City, we as a youth sector must be relevant in the eyes of our leaders. Our needs must be addressed by the city, particularly by its political leaders.

Political Leaders have the power, the influence and the trust and confidence of the people to create a better city. It is their mandated duty engraved in their iron throne.

Kagay-anon youth are very promising. Ernesto Baconga Neri, a Xavier University Youth Leader, tells us that the Kagay-anon youth are “engaged and participative.” He continues that “In Cagayan de Oro, the youth has a high level of societal consciousness.” But Maria Rivera, a Development Communicatons professor, says otherwise that CDO youth are becoming complacent and to quote her statement in a social-media website article, “there is too much complacency among the youth. Saan ba dapat manggaling ang hugot para umaksyon tayo?”

It means that though youth have a high level of awareness when it comes to problems and issues faced by the city of Cagayan de Oro, participation in the processes to help resolve the City’s concerns is absent from most of our youth, especially in the democratic political process.

These young leaders imply that the ability to participate in the processes to help resolve and address the City’s concerns is absent from most of our youth, especially in the areas of the democratic and political process.

Again, another this is another issue that must be resolved. We must have a youth leader, a total representative of the Youth of the City. The absence of the SK has left a significant gap in the political process especially in determining the windows of opportunity of our youth in the city. Nevertheless, we emphasize the need for a leader who can take into consideration the needs of those next in line to govern and live in this city.

Now is the time to look into the longun. We need a leader who can put into his personal and political agenda the needs of our young Kagay-anons. There is no need to explain this. Who else will propel this city and make it a city of the future but the next generation? I am talking about us, the youth who toil day and night with their studies, the youth who hardly make ends meet in this city. Who is caring for the youth? Our parents who have gone abroad because the opportunities in this land are not enough to yield sustainable income to feed a family?

Now that is also another issue that must be addressed. Ask around your peers or even in your own family, there must be three out of your 10 relatives in Cagayan de Oro that survive through the remittances of their OFW or OCW relatives. Though labor export disguised as a cruel OFW migration phenomenon, decorated as “Modern Heroes” our City must also look into the welfare of the families left behind by those parents who work abroad.

Kabalo naman siguro ta nga daghan sa kabatan-unan sa syudad sa Cagayan de Oro naay ginikanan nga buhi sa ilaha pamaagi sa pag trabaho sa gawas sa nasod, pero ang kwarta nga mo abut sa ilaha ma waldas sa gimick, barkada, lakwatsa o drogas. Issues like this must be resolved if we want to make a better city.

We need a leader who can bridge the missing gap in the political leadership. We need a leader who will look into the welfare of our young generation. Mag sige ta ug reklamo nga mao ra gihapon atong mga politiko, walay ikapuli nga mas maayu pa, pero nag huna-huna ba ta para sa kaugmaon sa atong kabatan-unan? This is not a problem we are encountering just today, it is a problem that has always been there since the time of the inception of this City but we have failed to address it properly. Of course, this is not a one-man solution but it is better to vote and elect into power, a leader who will have a good vision of changing the next generation, make it better than what it was before.

Universities in the city and its schools have had a shot in making a better generation, better than the previous. Making leaders and youth who are better equipped to tackle the city’s issue and concerns. But, may kulang pa. So I urge all groups in this city, to work and put into consideration the political dimension. How to transform our ideas, make them work in the local level. Dili lang ta sige tudlo ug insakto, dapat ang atong syensya ug agham magamit ug matuman. Political will must come from a leader who will transform ideas of our youth into political programs and ordinances if we are to make this city a better place. We need to vote for a leader who is a banner of the youth.

So far, among the three political colors in this city, I have only seen one carry the youth banner. I am simply hoping and would personally invest my time and effort in the political group that can empower the youth and help us create a pro-youth city, where our youth can create and be part of making this city a better place for themselves and their families. —Gilbert John Red R. Emano V, emanogilbert@gmail.com

(Known as“Red” among his colleagues, the author is a certified market researcher and is the former vice president of the Centrist Democratic Youth Association of the Philippines. He is a recipient of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation program for political leaders and has traveled to different parts of the Philippines and in Germany to study pressing issues that concern the youth and how to address them. He currently resides in Cebu City pursuing higher education in Law and Economics.)