| Youth Council of the Philippines Sangguniang Kabataan |
|
|---|---|
| Type | |
| Type | Youth council |
| Leadership | |
| National President | Gabriel Louise del Rosario |
| Members | 41,995 Chairmen 293,365 Councilors |
| Elections | |
| Voting system | Direct election |
| Last election | October 2010 |
| Meeting place | |
| SK National Congress | |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
The Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) (Youth Council) is the governing body in every chapter of the Katipunan ng Kabataan (Youth Federation). Each barangay in the Philippines is mandated by law to have its own chapter of the Katipunan ng Kabataan, aging from 15 to 18 years old who resides in their respective barangays for at least 6months and registered in the Sangguniang Kabataan, or in the official list in the custody of the barangay secretary. It is the local youth program and projects implementation partner of the government. The Katipunan ng Kabataan members elect their officers known as Sangguniang Kabataan which serves as the local youth legislature in the village. The Sangguniang Kabataan is an off-shoot of * the KB or the Kabataang Barangay (Village Youth) which was abolished when the Local Government Code of 1991 was enacted.
The Sangguniang Kabataan is the youth legislature in every local village or community. They are in the age bracket of 15 to 18 years old during the time of election. They initiate policies, programs and projects for the development of youth in their respective political territories. The Chairman/President of the Sangguniang Kabataan acts as the Chief Executive of the Sanggunian (Council) while the Kagawad (Councilor) as the legislative council. The Kagawads approve resolutions of the Sanggunian and appropriates the money allotted to the council, a share in the revenue of the Barangay.
The Chairman automatically sits in the Sangguniang Barangay (Village Council) as ex-officio member. He or She automatically gets chairmanship of the Committee on Youth and Sports, one of the standing committees in the village council. Every Sangguniang Kabataan is then federated into municipal and city federations, then city and municipal federations are federated into a provincial federation.
The barangay SK Chairman/President represents the barangay in the municipal or city federation. The presidents of the city and municipal federation becomes a member of the provincial or metropolitan federation. They elect their own president as well. The presidents of highly urbanized and independent component cities (Metropolitan Federation) and the provincial federations compose the membership in the national federation. They elect the national federation president who automatically sits in the National Youth Commission as ex-officio member of the commission.
Except national federation, each level of the federation form municipal, city to provincial is governed by the Local Executive Committee composed mostly of the seven regularly elected officers of the federation.
Since 1992, there have been three simultaneous nationwide SK elections held in the Philippines which each term lasting from three to five years due to amendment of the regular 3-year term of the council. After every election, association officers are chosen. The elected presidents of the municipal associations sit as ex-officio members of the municipal councils, while the provincial president sits on the provincial board. All of these ex-officio members automatically chair the respective councils' committees on youth and sports development.
Jane Censoria Cajes from Bohol was elected SK National President in an election in Feb. 2008.
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The youth have been highly encouraged to participate in politics and governance, and the Philippine government is the only nation in the world who has a mechanism of involving the youth sector in governance. This is in response to the United Nations’ Convention on the rights of children to create an avenue wherein they can engage and represent their sector towards active participation in the affairs of the government and in the country as a whole.
It was in 1975 when the first youth council was established. Former President Ferdinand Marcos issued Presidential Decree (PD) 684 to announce the formal creation of the Kabataang Barangay (KB) to give the youth a chance to be involved in community affairs and provide the government means to inform the youth of its (government's) development efforts. The KB had accomplished numerous projects and programs for livelihood, sports, and culture, including the Youth Development Training program which aims to develop values of service, nationalism, and leadership among the youth to make them more productive leaders.
However, controversies and criticisms have surrounded the KB during those times, like the enforcement of authoritarian rule among the youth, opposition of militant youth activity, and the KB's failure to develop the youth as a responsive collective. Since then, the KB grew less popular among the youth and instead student activism became the trend in youth participation in the country.
In June 1986, a study was conducted on the KB and came up with the following recommendations:
Youth consultations were held, and the KB was at once abolished by the government and created resolutions which affirmed the suggestions by the above study. However, then-president Corazon Aquino have already established the Presidential Council for Youth Affairs (PCYA) instead of NYC, which was successful in coordinating with the youth federations to develop future national leaders, but lacked the powers the Filipino youth envisions for the NYC because PCYA merely coordinated with youth groups. A proposal was then crafted by the Congress youth representatives and PCYA's technical committee in 1989 to 1990.
The proposal that created the Katipunan ng Kabataan (KK) and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) that we know today was incorporated into the 1991 Local Government Code (known as Local Autonomy Law or Republic Act 7160). It formally abolished the KB and provided the youth with a new opportunity to involve themselves in government affairs through the KK and SK.
So far, there were only three SK election that have been held since 1992 because of the repeated amendments to the regular three-year term of the officials. Currently, the age range of the youth eligible for the KK and SK was reduced to 15 to below 18 due to the change in Republic Act 9164 in 2002. [1]
Except in 1992 and 1996 elections, Sangguniang Kabataan elections have been synchronized with the Barangay election starting in 2002, and in 2007. The term limit for Sangguniang Kabataan officials is usually three years but since the first election, there have been extension of terms ranging from one to two years more in office.
The Municipal SK Federation is composed of the barangays belonging to a particular municipality or town. It is a representative federation since only the Barangay SK Chairman sits as member of the federation not the entire officership of the Sangguniang Kabataan in the barangay.
The City SK Federation is composed of the barangays belonging to a particular city. It has the same set-up or structure with the municipal federation.
The Provincial SK Federation is a federation of all municipal and component city federations. The representation is thru the presidents of the municipal and component city federations.
The Sangguniang Kabataan National Federation (SKNF) is a federation of highly urbanized cities, independent component cities and provincial federations of Sangguniang Kabataan. It is the central federation and the highest administrative body of the Sangguniang Kabataan. The SKNF is aided by the National Executive Board (NEB) which is composed of the officers of the SKNF. The NEB is the policymaking body of the SKNF while the SKNF President serves as the Chief Administrator of the Federation.
In April 2010, Cajes was charged before the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas in Cebu City for lack of transparency in her financial dealings and for flaunting her wealth. However, Cajes said it is a black propaganda orchestrated by their political enemies[2].
During the SK National Congress 2010 held on July 28-30, 2010 in Panglao, Bohol, the participants urged Cajes to present the financial statements[3]. The local newspapers in Bohol reported that the SK members claimed they already demanded for the financial report which Cajes failed to present. These alleged unaccounted money include PhP10 million provided in 2008 by presidential fund, PhP10 million given in 2009 by DENR, financial statement (FS) of 2008 regarding congress in Cebu, FS of 2009 congress held in Subic Bay, and FS of National Convention and launching of Sama-sama Para sa Kalikasan held in Bohol[4].
The participants also insisted that Cajes should likewise render her report on the donations coming from the Philippines Charity Sweepstakes Office, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, Department of National Defense and other private donors such as The Bar[5].
Cajes' former aids file a complaint against her before the Office of the Ombudsman. [6]. The complainants, Manuel Ferdinand De Erio and Leo Udtohan are seeking an immediate investigation leading to the filing of appropriate criminal and administrative charges against Cajes[7].
| Date/Year | Venue |
|---|---|
| October 28-30, 2008 | Waterfront Hotel, Cebu City |
| October 27-29, 2009 | SBMA, Olongapo City |
| July 28-31, 2010 | Alona KEW Hotel Panglao Bohol/Alona Studios Hotel |
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