The Philippine Online Chronicles

Of the 3.8 million new voters targeted by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), only 1.6 million registered to participate in the Oct. 25 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections, according to COMELEC spokesperson James Jimenez.

The COMELEC attributed the dismal statistic to recent suggestions to postpone or scrap the SK elections.

“The hovering possibility of postponement of the Oct. 25 polls could have discouraged a large number of our kababayans to go out and register,” Jimenez said.

Region III garnered the highest number of new registrants as well as then highest number of registrants for the SK polls.

Regions with the highest number of new registrants are as follows: Region III with 76,206; Region IV-A with 59,264; and National Capital Region with 42,672. Meanwhile those with the highest number of SK registrants are: Region III with 131,677; Region VII with 111,931; and Region IX with 111,218. The total SK registrants are reported to be 1,005,790.

According to BusinessWorld Online, the Palace said last week that it wants to push through with the barangay elections, abolish the SK council and instead retain a single representative to represent the youth in the barangay assembly. The plan was proposed by Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo. According to Robredo, the government would save up to P3.5 billion with the abolition of the SK.

However, Kabataan party-list Representative Raymond Palatino said President Benigno Aquino III’s decision to do away with the SK is “unreasonable and unacceptable.” He said it would deprive the youth of a venue to participate in nation-building. The only youth representative in Congress said the SK should instead be reviewed and strengthened to make it responsive to the needs of the youth.

Palatino said having a single youth representative would make it more vulnerable to the influences of traditional politics. In fact, it is already become a “breeding ground for trapos because it is not empowered enough to have a strong and independent voice in the council, needing padrinos to implement projects.”

Palatino has already filed House Bill No. 1963 to “strengthen and reform the SK” and amend provisions of the Local Government Code of 1991.

HB 1963 includes provisions that give the SK fiscal autonomy, strengthen its consultation with youth groups, institute a standard procedure for the releasing and reviewing of the SK budget and regularize its training seminars for the members.

There are in fact 30 other bills filed before the House of Representatives seeking to defer the barangay elections, postpone the elections until next year or even 2012 and synchronize all local and national elections. The said bills will be tackled on Wednesday.

In other news, ABS-CBNNews.com reported on the chaotic registration at the COMELEC office along Arroceros Street, Manila. A registrant interviewed by the network said they have been in line since last Sunday. The office was reported to have handed out numbers to registrants but some said a ComeleC employee asked for P100 for the number. Yesterday afternoon, an angry mob broke the line and tried to break down the doors of the office.

Amid calls to extend the registration, Jimenez said there will be none.