Iloilo City, – Upholding the principle that youth plays a vital role in nation building and registering social changes in our motherland, student and youth organizations in Iloilo convened last June 13, 2009 at the Retreat House St. Clements’s Church, La Paz, Iloilo City and formed an alliance group called the “KABATAAN KONTRA CON-ASS AT CHACHA” or K2C2 with the theme “Ngayon na ang panahon. Kabataan, bahagi tayo ng pagbabago!”. The alliance condemns and protests congressmen who signed and agreed on the passage of House Resolution (HR) 1109, stating that the Lower House of the Congress shall convene as a Constituent Assembly to amend the 22-year old Constitution.
‘Youth can make a change!’
“Youth occupies almost 60 percent of the population. This remarkable number, undeniably, can truly make a change! It is prudent to be vigilant and militant regarding issues. Taking no stand should not be an option because if we take it to legal matters, silence means consent.”, Atty. Joshua Alim, one of the convenors of Ilonggo’s Movement Against Arroyo’s Charter Change (I-MARCH), said during the discussion of Charter Change and the youth’s role on the issue.
He also emphasized the reason why the campaign is against ‘Arroyo’s Charter Change. “Sang ginpasar sang mga Kongresista naton ang HR 1109 sa Kongreso, naghambal si Gloria [Arroyo] nga untata kag ibasura ang Con-Ass haw? (When HR 1109 was passed and approved by our Congressmen in the Lower House, did Gloria ever take actions to stop and junk Con-Ass?”
Why Chacha now?
Julie Bedrio, one of Lead Convenors of K2C2 and Western Visayas Regional Director of Kabataan Party, said “Ang kabataan at ang bayan ngayon ay nahaharap sa napakaraming mga krisis, tapos [mas] uunahin pa ng mga kongresista natin ang Cha-cha na yan?(The youth and the nation are facing numerous crises yet our lawmakers in the Lower House prioritized Charter Change.)” K2C2 strongly denounces the continuous increases in Tuition and other Fees amidst global financial crisis. It reiterates the youth’s right to education and the state’s responsibility to make such education accessible to all, as stipulated in the Constitution.
“Yung House Bill 2044 nga na nagtatakda ng tatlong taong moratorium sa pagtaas ng matrikula at iba pang bayarin ay hanggang ngayon ay nakabinbin pa rin sa kamara, na alam naman natin na [kahit papaano] ay makakatulong sa mga kabataan at kanilang pamilya.(House Bill 2044, the one that mandates a three-year moratorium in tuition and other fees, is still pending in the Congress until now, yet we all know that this would [at least] help the youth and their families.)”, she added.
Edgar Pelayo, one of the speakers during the convention, said “Youth should do something now. Their future is at stake. These congressmen won’t do well for the people because they will only bring and assert their personal and of their master’s interests. It is the time for the youth to move.”
‘Expect more of the youth!’
After the discussions and open forum, the newly-formed alliance made plans for their campaigns and propagandas in relation to their opposition to Con-Ass and Cha-Cha. They collectively created their manifesto of unity, asserting that amending the constitution by a Con-Ass will not bring the true interest of the youth, in the particular, and of the nation, in general. Every school or unit will hold local activities such as teaser-hanging, room-to-room campaigns and discussions, picket rallies and posting of teasers and position papers in their respective campuses, aside from the activities that the whole alliance will be consolidated. On June 15, K2C2 planned to hold a candle-lighting activity at the Iloilo Provincial Capitol.
James Saguino, one of the Lead Convenors from League of Filipino Students-Iloilo, said “Expect more of our movements and mobilizations to show our protests to this Constituent Assembly. The youth shall not remain timid and quite as long as basic human rights are concerned.” Leo Balidiong, also a Lead Convenor from WVSU-Anakbayan said “Only through militant struggle can the best in the youth emerge.”
Organizations who attended the said convention were WVSU-USC, WVCST-SG, Young Christian Workers, UPV-Sandigan para sa Mag-aaral at Sambayanan (SAMASA), UPV-Oikos, WVSU-Political Science Students Organization and WVSU-Oikos, together with the Kabataan Party, League of Filipino Students and Anakbayan as Lead Convenors’ Organizations.
Walang komento:
Mag-post ng isang Komento