ANGARA SEEKS REVAMP OF YOUTH PARTICIPATION IN GOV'T

In a recent interview, Senator Edgardo J. Angara stated that the SK or Sangguniang Kabataan has already served its purpose as an indicator of youth governance in the Philippines, but may have already outlived its usefulness.

"The SK election is an experiment conducted by the government in the 80's to gauge the participation of the youth in the governance of the country. However, after almost 30 years, I believe that the SK has already outlived its usefulness," he explained.

Angara expressed concern over putting the youth--an ambiguous term in itself, but in this case referring to young adults and teenagers as young as 15 years old--in the middle of an admittedly dirty political arena.

"We have to consider the fact that we're exposing the youth to politics--Philippine style, which we all know is a no-holds-barred avenue. I am concerned because we are accelerating the entrance of such malleable, impressionable minds into Philippine politics and all its less-than honorable practices," he stressed.

According to Angara, several options are possible to continue the representation of the youth in the government without the negative by-products.

"Perhaps we can create an elected position within the barangay council, municipal council or provincial council for the representatives of the youth, instead of setting up an independent institution like the SK.

"This will be more practical and economical, since there will be no need to hold separate elections specifically for them, and because of the integration, these representatives will have better access to the resources for their projects," he said.