Filipino Youth in Local Governance: The Sangguniang Kabataan

in Crisis

By Claudine Claridad Tanvir

1. Introduction

It has been recognised in several literatures and studies that the youth has anindispensable role in
nation building (UNESCO; UNICEF, 2007). Comprising 1.8billion

of the world’s

population, adolescents and youth

have been the objects of andsubjects for change. Social policies, for example on human development,
underscorethe need to be sensitive to the needs of the youth in terms of education and
healthprovisioning to maximise the impact to the sector (UNDP). In the political sphere,electoral
campaigns are being designed to draw the attention and support of the youthby highlighting youth-

focused provisions in the candidates’ or political parties’

platform of governance and optimising youth-friendly modes of campaigncommunication through the

to swing the majority of the youth’s vote

to their advantage. Youth power was alsoevident in political uprisings across the world where
dissatisfied youth demand forsocial justice, for example,

regarding workers’ wages and corrupti

on in governments.The People Power Revolution in the Philippines in 1986 showed massive

.In the Philippines where children and youth comprise one third of the population,
theinstitutionalisation of youth participation in local governance in the Philippines hasput the country in
the higher ground as it is the only one in the world that hasestablished a system that allows youth to
govern themselves. The SangguniangKabataan or SK as a youth council is an elected position and
functions in eachbarangay (village) in the country to provide platform for youth participation. It has
1

Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) or the Village Youth Council is a community based youth
organisationcomprising of a set of officials duly elected by youth with ages 15-17 years old in every
village. It ispart of the barangay (village) which is the smallest political unit in the governance structure
of thePhilippines under the mandate of the Local Government Code which institutionalised
youthparticipation in nation-building.

For the purpose of the paper, global statistics that account for youth population will use UNFPA’s age

grouping of young people which is 10-24.

Ferdinand Marcos served from 1965 to 1986, the longest running presidency of 21 years.

been serving the youth since the passage of the Local Government Code in 1991

,notably a few years after the end of Martial Law in the Philippines, throughimplementing development
projects that directly benefit its constituencies. It has beena landmark policy

that harnesses the youth’s voice

and action until it was suspendedin 2013 due to allegations of corruption and political patronage. To be
able tounderstand the whole politics within the SK system, it is necessary to look into itshistory as well
as its socio-political underpinnings that make up (and unmake) thepolicy of youth participation in local
governance in the Philippines.

2. History of Youth Policy: From Kabataang Barangay to SangguniangKabataan

As slightly mentioned in the previous section, the policy formulation andinstitutionalisation of the youth
policy is heavily drawn from its political history ondemocratisation processes in the Philippines. The
youth involvement in localgovernance can be traced as early as in the 1970s. The Kabataang Barangay
(KB orVillage Youth) was created in 1975 by virtue of Presidential Decree 684 thatmandated the
organisation of KB units in 42,000 barangays across the country withthe purpose of providing the youth
(15-21years old) a definite role in local affairs andopportunities to express and be heard as part of the
community development andgovernance processes. The passage of Presidential Decree 603 or the Child
and YouthWelfare Code in 1975 as well recognised the right of children and young people toparticipate
in governance.However, despite this gain for the young generation, it should be noted that this
waspreceded by those trying times when democracy was a challenge in Philippinesociety. The
controversial declaration of Martial Law (Proclamation No. 1081) bythen President Marcos on 21
September 1972 has created dissent and protests againstthe curtailment of civil and political rights
particularly from the nationalist youth. Itwas this political juncture that the intention for KB was highly
questionable especiallywhen its president from 1975 to 1984 was the presidential daughter Imee
RomualdezMarcos. The nationwide formation of local youth therefore was seen as a tool to

Local Government Code of the Philippines 1991 or the Republic Act 7160 is a law that decentralisesthe
functions of the national government to the local government which gave way to the localautonomy and
development of any territorial and political subdivisions of the State.

reinforce the political legitimacy of the Marcos regime by infusing developmentprojects in the
grassroots communities. The authoritarian style of youth governanceand the suppression of youth
activism among its rank during the Marcos regime havediminished its popularity and further pushed
away young people from KB.The restoration of Philippine democracy in 1986 propelled by the People
Power andmandated Mrs. Corazon Aquino

as president paved the way for the 1987 PhilippineConstitution which further recognises the rights and
the role of the youth in nation-building and national development as articulated in Article 2 Sections 12
and 13. Theactive engagement of civil society, political youth movements, nationalistorganisations, the
academe and the public at large expanded the provisions in theConstitution especially in the areas of
human right promotion and protection ofFilipino citizens. The Bill of Rights which occupies a large
section of the Constitutionis considered as the Philippine expression of the Universal Declaration of
HumanRights especially after emerging from a dictatorship regime accused with variouscounts of human
rights violations. This in effect galvanised the further inclusion andarticulation of youth participation in
the Local Government Code of 1991 (RepublicAct 7160) which

repealed Marcos’ PD 684 and

was enacted four years after the newConstitution has been enforced. The law has been authored by the
current senatorAquilino Pimentel, Jr., a former political prisoner during the Marcos years.
Itsconstitutionally-enshrined principles of decentralisation and democratisation wereconsidered the
most radical and far reaching compared to any other prior system usedin the Philippines (Schuchmann,
2005).The Kabataang Barangay was then renamed as Katipunan ng Kabataan (KK or YouthFederation)
which served as the general assembly of and elects the SangguniangKabataan (SK). Following this line,
another law was passed under President Fidel V.

Ramos which gave more prominence to young peoples’ role in governance th

roughthe enactment of Youth in Nation Building Act (RA 8044) in 1994 in support to RA7160 where SK
provision is articulated.

Corazon Aquino served as the Philippine President from 1986 to 1992.

The main focus of this study was to evaluate the participation of sk towards community development at
Brgy Datu Pinguiaman D.O.S Maguindanao. Specifically study attempt to answer the following
questions:

1.
Significance of the Study

The Sangguniang Kabataan was created for youth empowerment. The SK should be the representative
of the youth in the local government. They should provide the youth with programs that would enhance
their overall personality. However, a thorough analysis of the Sangguniang Kabataan would lead people
to a question: is the Sangguniang Kabataan serving its purpose? Legislators and local leaders say the SK
is not. And, funny as it may seem, some of the youth themselves think that the SK is not functioning as it
was designed to be.

This study aims to present the functions, role , mandates and duties of the Sangguniang Kabataan at
barangay level. Intends to show what needs to be done in order to relive the spirit of youth
representation.

This study will evaluate the participation of Sangguniang kabataan towards community development