Last November 22, representatives from political parties of Santugon sa Tawag ng Panahon (Santugon) and Alyansang Tapat sa Lasallista (Tapat) went head-to-head in Harapan 2019: Special Elections (SE) Debate, organized by the DLSU Commission on Elections. The event featured two rounds of debate, one between Legislative Assembly (LA) representatives and the other between batch presidents. This was followed by an open forum that allowed the audience to engage with the two political parties.
Candidates expressed their opinions on salient student governance matters, which included handbook revisions, student participation, and financial transparency within the University Student Government (USG).
On handbook revisions
Hannah Pimentel, who is running as a candidate for the EXCEL2022 LA Representative position under Santugon, and Mabelle Pangan, Tapat’s candidate for the FAST2019 LA Representative seat, faced each other in the first round of debates, which centered on proposed handbook revisions.
Pimentel argued that the academic policy where incurring academic failures disqualifies students from receiving Latin honors should be revisited. “Failures are an important part [of] our academic life because it shows we can bounce back despite those failures,” she emphasized.
Pangan echoed Pimentel’s sentiments, saying, “Porket ba may binagsak ka, hindi ka na qualified for Latin honors?” She added that this proposal is already part of Tapat’s LA agenda, explaining that students should be given a chance to redeem themselves despite incurring academic failures.
(Is it fair that just because you have academic failures, you are no longer qualified for Latin honors?)
However, Pimentel made a distinction between the parties’ stances in her rebuttal. Though Santugon and Tapat had both proposed similar revisions to the qualifications for Latin Honors, they each had different reasons for doing so, she said.
“[Santugon] wants to build a culture of academic resilience, while she (Pangan) mentioned that there are so many students who are redirected and they might fail as the reason why [we] should change academic standards,” she elaborated.
On financial transparency
The second round of debate was between Santugon’s 74th ENG Batch President candidate Gwendolyn Ang and Tapat’s FAST2019 Batch President candidate Ranj Remedios. The two faced off on plans for the USG’s budget allocation.
Ang proposed revisions that would make the guidelines flexible and accessible for individual college governments. Remedios, on the other hand, questioned the effectiveness of Ang’s proposal in light of the University’s current “bureaucratic processes”.
Ang, meanwhile, added that there is a need to create an institutionalized standard that all colleges and student leaders can follow to ensure efficiency. “We will be having regular consultation with the units because they’re the ones who know which problems they’re facing like for each college they all have their own set of challenges…We want to adopt the best practices not just from the CSO but from other Universities and other similar systems [as well],” she elaborated
Remedios bared a tough stance for transparency within the USG, emphasizing that “a government that is not accountable is essentially corrupt.”
Ang similarly emphasized the need to focus on addressing the concerns of the students by having an accountable and transparent student government. She cited efforts by former USG President Zed Laqui, who opened the USG’s financial records to the public during his term, as an example of praiseworthy leadership.
From the audience
In a town hall forum following the debate, members of the audience took turns directing questions toward the candidates.
On unique contributions of the political parties to the USG and students’ welfare, Santugon’s EDGE2019 LA Representative Johann Coscolluela shared past legislative agendas spearheaded by the party, such as pushing for proper representation of student interest groups; reviewing class allotments and security assessments, and lobbying for research for Special Education students.
“As a Santugon leader, it shows our brand of leadership—consultative, being proactive, and being responsible,” he claimed.
Remedios, meanwhile, restated Tapat’s platform to raise awareness on mental health. “For our agenda, we have mental health which calls for the assistance of psychologists and psychiatrists here in DLSU,” he explained. Aside from this, he also championed inclusivity for Persons With Disabilities (PWD) by improving the current building designs, noting difficulties PWD students face when navigating the campus.
Candidates were also asked how they would ensure student participation in projects. Santugon’s FAST2019 LA Representative candidate Lara Jomalesa reiterated how the party’s focus on consultation will aid in the development of their plans. “We are able to know their needs and their wants, and by knowing their needs and their wants, students are able to engage with our projects,” she expounded.
Meanwhile, Tapat’s BLAZE2020 Batch President candidate Maxine Silvino quoted Sen. Risa Hontiveros in her response, “Every human being cares for one thing and that’s fighting for one thing,” emphasizing that it is the candidates’ duty to evaluate what they would fight for. She also stressed the importance of having projects that are beneficial to the students, as this boosts participation.
The voting period for SE 2019 will run from November 25 to 28, while the canvassing of ballots will be held on November 29.
