Press Release
March 15, 2011

BONGBONG MARCOS: THE YOUTH ARE AGENTS OF CHANGE;
NO TO SK ABOLITION

Senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos, Jr., chair of the Senate Committee on Local Government, said that he prefers to enhance and empower the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) rather than abolish the institution, which has been coming under fire for its perceived proneness to corruption, its inefficiency and superfluity.

"We have been hearing calls to get rid of the SK on allegations that in some instances, youth leaders have been used, abused, and exploited by some politicians and political parties for their own political agenda. I say we give this institution a second chance. Through restructuring, reforming and re-engineering, the SK can once again form our youth to be agents of change." he said.

Senator Bongbong, keynote speaker during the 1st Sangguniang Kabataan Joint Regional Assembly for Luzon held in Zambales on the previous weekend, emphasized that the problem of corruption is not confined to the youth. "Corruption is a menace in our own society. The answer or solution to this social cancer of ours is a serious reconstruction of a new moral value system, which has been severely damaged over the years," he said.

Speaking before an estimated 2,000 youth leaders from Luzon, Senator Marcos challenged the young leaders to be at the frontline of the so-called "moral reformation" to train and produce a value-based and value-driven core of political leaders for the future governance of the country.

"You are in a better position to understand this new moral regeneration. Young people are co-creators in society not enslaved to any political leadership, helping shape the social environment we live in, responding to stimulating contemporary cultural changes brought about by the adoption of modern technologies, and ultimately inheriting the social systems that are currently in place," Marcos said.

The Senator recalled with fondness the heydays of the erstwhile Kabataang Barangay, during which there were a lot of leadership trainings on the Filipino ideology, all geared towards enhancing the value system of the youth and inculcating patriotism.

"We must try not only to revive these programs, but to further improve and strengthen them in our ever-changing environment. It is essential therefore that in the schools and colleges, lectures be given by veteran resource persons of the institution-concentrating on our Filipino heritage and derived value system," he said.

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