As of press time, a proposal to (once again) postpone the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (BSKE) elections has been approved by both chambers of Congress.
It is now in the hands of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos, Jr. to approve or veto the proposed measure.
The pending move on the postponement of the BSKE also comes as the country commemorates one of the darkest chapters of Philippine history: the declaration of Martial Law by President Marcos' father on September 21, 1972.
In both instances – the declaration of the suspension of people’s liberties and rights and the impending postponement of the right to choose their leaders – it is clear that the people are being robbed.
It appears now that it is not enough for our “trapos” to rob the people of trillions of pesos that they are essentially forced to contribute through burdensome taxes that end up in the pockets of greedy politicians.
What they aim now is to rob the people of one of the most fundamental tenets of democracy: the right of the people to choose their leaders.
After all, if they could succeed in indefinitely postponing elections for the most basic unit of governance – the barangay – what’s going to stop our “trapos” from postponing elections at the municipal, or heaven forbid, the national level?
There’s actually no need for Marcos, Jr. to emulate his father and issue a formal declaration of emergency powers that would suspend the rights of the people, abrogate Congress’ power to enact laws, and send in the military to police our everyday lives.
There are more subtle moves, actually, to take away our fundamental rights even without appearing to.
There are recent calls in Congress to regulate social media use and restrict access to minors, all in the name of national security and protecting our young from the harmful effects of media.
Isn’t that, in itself, abrogating the right of access to information and freedom of speech?
And now, with the impending postponement of the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, the bigger issue is that once again, the Filipino people’s rights are about to be taken away from them, under the guise of streamlining bureaucracy.
Wake up, Philippines!
#OpinYonLaguna #Editorial