SK members disillusioned with the system, call for abolition

By Abby F. Castelo

In light of recent preparations for the upcoming national elections, members of the Sangguniang Kabataan from different exclusive barangays in Metro Manila have expressed their disappointment in the SK system. Representatives from Ayala Alabang and Bel-Air conveyed their wishes for improvements and even the abolition of the system.

“After two years in the SK, I now support its abolishment,” said Xavier Virata, SK kagawad from Barangay Ayala Alabang. “Once we got elected we found out that even in a barangay, there’s a game of politics you have to play. I didn’t expect it to be in such a level.”

Demands and schedule conflicts

The SK is a youth council elected in every barangay by its youth constituents. It began with the Kabataang Barangay during the Marcos presidency, and evolved later on to the Katipunan ng Kabataan (or Youth Federation) which was established under Republic Act (R.A.) 7160 during the Aquino administration. The last SK election was held in 2007; those elected then are still currently in office.

Since its formation, many of the present SK members had been students in universities, making their schedules much more difficult to work around.  “There are also conflicts with our academics. We expected we’d have time to meet, but we have to commute and travel all the way to school from Alabang, so we can’t meet as much as we want to. We could not have predicted how much college would take of our free time,” Virata added.

Culture shock and breeding ground for corruption

Rafael Cruz, SK Chairman of Barangay Bel-Air, also attested to the detriments of the SK system. “I think the SK is useless,” he said. “First, I think it’s a bit imposing because a big problem of the SK is that the age limit is low – around 16 years old. The problem with that is if you’re that young, and you’re suddenly thrust into that kind of world, it can be shocking.”

Cruz added that the SK can also make the youth prioritize the wrong things. “If you’re sucked into this kind of system, it doesn’t really help. The system of the SK isn’t really geared towards to actually forming leaders…It just gives you a lot of kids who want power – some illusion of power. I’ve seen it firsthand, what it can do, and how it can corrupt,” he said.

Virata also agrees that the roots of corruption are bred in the SK. “The SK has a big budget for its projects in one year. If we don’t spend the budget the remaining goes to the barangay, so some attitudes of previous SK councils were to spend the budget as much as possible for their own interests.”

Can we do without it?

When asked about extending their terms, the SK members all answered the negative. “If I had a choice, I wouldn’t extend my term. I have the option to resign but I won’t because I’m accepting the responsibility that I signed up for,” Virata said.

“Before, I genuinely saw it as an opportunity. I did welcome it at first; I thought of it as an opportunity to learn. I won’t discount the fact that I did learn a lot from it. But I definitely wouldn’t do it again. I’m just trying to make do with what I have,” Cruz answered.

The SK representatives also said that the country can do without the youth council system. “I honestly think the Philippines would not feel its loss,” said Cruz.