Titan’s Vote Webinar Series
As the next presidential election approaches, the Enderun Leadership Program and Titan’s Vote Team in partnership with Vote Pilipinas and Enderun League of Economic Development hosted a three-day event last May 6, 20, and 27 to encourage the youth to use their voices and exercise their right to vote. Presenting all information needed to get started on voting with the help of guest speakers and Q&A sessions, the webinar series has empowered many students to take a stand and register to vote for the future of our country.
To start, Ms. Sean Resurreccion, Information Officer III working under the COMELEC Information Department, explained all the things one needs to know about the registration process of voting here in the Philippines. The biggest hurdle that she identified was that there are so many Filipinos that are of voting age, but still haven’t registered yet.
The talk served as a way to motivate the viewers to use their “powers” to make a change. She talked about the qualifications one must have in order to register, as well as how to fill out the registration form and where to get them given our current situation. It goes to show just how little time it takes to sign up for something that can change our fate as a nation; a few minutes to sign up to fight for what’s right.
Moving on to the second day of the webinar series, “The Why Behind Voting”, Mr. Mark Ramirez, Information Officer II working under the COMELEC Education and Information Department, spoke on the importance of voting and our duty as citizens to exercise our right to do such. He explains that we as citizens have the power to vote for who we want to represent our country, and with that comes great responsibility. Whoever we elect as our government leaders have control over our lives. With this, we should step up, and take the initiative to contribute to the betterment of our country. As stated by Mr. Ramirez, “Through elections, we have the power to elect people who will serve us wholeheartedly, so as responsible citizens, let us not waste this power to vote and let us exercise this right in May 2022…”
Lastly, on the third day of the series, a talk about Engaging in Political Conversations was given by Ms. Gen Bucao and Ms. Z Santillan, who are both founders of Inclusiviteach which is a movement towards a justice education that embraces and celebrates diversity, inspiring the youth to look inward and engage outward through interactive, collaborative, and guided workshops. They discussed how it’s important to teach children to be more inclusive in order to have a more just society. Here, they shared different skills on how to understand or accept different perspectives and opinions when it comes to political conversations. In a world where people are quick to judge or bash when things don’t go their way, it’s hard to fight for what you believe in. It’s important that we keep an open mind and learn to engage in differences. That way, it can be a healthier space for us both in the media and in real life to discuss and share our thoughts on politics whilst avoiding its tendency to become toxic.
To conclude, these past three days have served as a reminder for each and every one of us to use our voices to make a change. Halalan 2022 is nearing, and we must take a stand to make the Philippines a better place for the upcoming generations. The last day to file for your application for Voter Registration is on September 30, 2021, so for those who are 18 years old and up, make sure to register and fight for what you think is right in May 2022! Even if others seem to have opposing views, even if a particular person seems to be winning on votes, we must continue to choose and support those who we truly believe will do right for our country. The future of the Philippines lies in our hands, so we should take a stand to make a change. Every vote counts, no matter how small a part you think yours will have.
You may download the application form to register to vote at www.comelec.gov.ph! Please do be mindful of the guidelines and remember that personal appearance of the registrant at the OEO is required in order to officially sign the application.
