“Bad officials are elected by good citizens who do not vote.”
This, according to Quezon City 5th District Councilor Karl Castelo, is a quote from George Jean Nathan uttered about a century ago but still rings true today, especially in the wake of a very low turnout in voter registration for the 2022 elections.
The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) recently reported that only a little over a million new voters have registered so far out of an estimated 4 million Filipinos who are qualified to register. The agency also announced that it had deactivated the registration of around 7 million voters who had failed to vote in both the 2018 barangay elections and the 2019 national polls.
“Kung nais po natin ang pagbabago, nagsisimula ito sa ating mga sarili.”
“Kung nais po natin ang pagbabago, nagsisimula ito sa ating mga sarili. Kung gusto po natin ng mas matulungin na mga lingkod-bayan, makukuha natin ito sa pamamagitan ng pagboto ng wasto. Ang unang hakbang dito ay mag-registro,” said Castelo, who is on his third and last term as Councilor.
“Kung gusto po natin ng mas matulungin na mga lingkod-bayan, makukuha natin ito sa pamamagitan ng pagboto ng wasto.”
Ten million voters is ten million votes. They can make or break any candidacy, given that the next election is a presidential election. Every Filipino must exercise this right to vote. We can influence our future by electing the right leaders,” reminded Castelo.
Deactivated voters may just apply for reactivation. There is no need for a new registration. For first-time voters, they have until September of this year to apply for registration.
“Dahil rumaragasa pa rin ang pandemya, sana gumawa ng paraan ang COMELEC na maging mas madali ang proseso, katulad siguro ng pagkakaroon ng mga roving satellite registrations sa iba’t-ibang barangay, na coordinated ang schedule sa mga LGU officials, para mas maraming mga tao ang makapag-rehistro, kahit na may mga quarantine at restrictions pa,” suggested Castelo.
“We hope the youth, or the younger generations, participate in elections. In these uncertain times, we need everybody to get involved, especially those who have the largest stake in a volatile future, which we all pray will stabilize soon. So let us all register early, vote wisely,” concluded Castelo.