Louise Marie Carmel Solarte, NSTP2 YB Student

The current global health crisis has affected a lot of sectors in our country. Looking at the situation of every Filipino family suffering in poverty, hunger, and the lack of access to professional health care could pave the way for us to realize the loopholes and shortcomings of the government. 

The upcoming 2022 national elections are an opportunity for us to express our political views and elect political leaders who are qualified for the position. An election is a crucial pillar of democracy in our country. It assures us of a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

Societal engagements are one of the highlights in implementing the National Service Training Program (NSTP). Since the pandemic started, we resorted to new ways of reaching out to our communities through “Social Media engagements.” We are a generation of the internet and technology. We can spread awareness about everything in just one click. We can share stories and information that can inspire other people to lend a hand in helping the communities. As prime users and knowledgeable about it, we are responsible for the engagements we do online. We were encouraged to be more involved in the different aspects of our community, especially the different social issues and the upcoming 2022 national elections. 

Despite the setting that we have right now, it was never a hindrance for us to encourage people to be aware and be involved in social and community development. XU-NSTP opened doors for the students to have community engagements through social media. They facilitated various activities to encourage young people like us to be involved in the upcoming elections. Some of the activities that we had were registering for the 2022 national elections. These activities showed us that it is our social responsibility to vote and be politically active.

The first social media engagement that we did was the “Meme-making activity.” Memes are one of the most popular forms of entertainment in social media. It is a humorous image/text that is eye candy for the young generations and can be spread rapidly through social media. The task of the students was to make memes with the themes: Why register? Why vote? Why the youth? It is an entertaining and clever activity because the platform itself attracts the younger generations that can help to spread the importance of voting. The second social media engagement was the Tiktok Dance Challenge (Love Kita Pinas!) and the promotional videos for the Filipino Youth (Why Register? And Why Vote?). This activity tackles why we should register and why we should vote for the upcoming elections. These promotional videos encouraged the younger generations and the Filipinos to engage actively in the 2022 elections. The third social media engagement we had was the “tingog sa mga kabatan-onan” an activity that tackles the qualities that we, the youth sector, look for in a candidate. We did a short 2-3 minute video that talked about the qualities that we look for in a candidate. This activity became our eye-opener to what are the right qualities we should look for in a candidate. In an incite from our NSTP 2 professor, Mr. Nestor Banuag Jr. said “Pinaagi sa mga kalihukan ONLINE gamit ang social media, makahatag kini sa dugang INFORMATION ug UPDATES sa mga NITIZENS (mostly gikan sa youth sector) nga maoy maghatag sa OPORTUNIDAD kanila nga mo-engage SOCIALLY and POLITICALLY as active citizens sa atong siyudad ug rehiyon”, these activities made us knowledgeable and ready to choose the right leaders for our country.

As Dr. Jose P. Rizal said, “Ang kabataan ay ang pag-asa ng bayan”, the youth sector is believed to be the hope of our country, but how can we prove that we really are the “PAG-ASA” ng bayan? The Philippine election is approaching. In less than a year, we will have to choose the candidates we think are qualified for the position in the government. Youth participation in the upcoming Philippine elections is significant as a large portion of the population has a limited voice or influence in decisions that affect the community. To make a difference in the longer term, it is essential that the youth sector is engaged in formal political processes and have a say in shaping today’s and tomorrow’s politics. For young people to get represented in political institutions, processes, and decision-making, particularly in elections, they must know their rights, gain the necessary knowledge and capacity to participate in a meaningful way at all levels. There is a call for us to be aware of the things currently happening in our country. If we want to see and experience change, we must first know the candidates that will lead us aptly to that change.

As members of the youth sector, it is our responsibility to rebuild our community for future generations. In every step that we take, millions of dreams are happening in the process. One vote can lead to a future filled with hope and prosperity, and with this, we can build a strong nation that will surpass the trials of time.  

NSTP 2 YB Synchronous class

Meme Making Activity

Promotional videos for the Filipino Youth (Why Register? And Why Vote?)

“Tingog sa mga kabatan-onan” an activity that tackles the qualities that the youth sector look for in a candidate