More than 2 years since the last Student Council Elections (SCE), most of the then-elected SC officers have already graduated or have resigned to their respective positions due to the circumstances brought upon by the pandemic.
SC Holdover
Due to the ongoing pandemic where community quarantine is implemented, and school activities shifted to online, the Student Council Elections annually scheduled and should happen in 2020 was put on hold and thus, the term continued for the remaining SC officers of each SCs in PUP Main. Challenges occurred throughout the year, and for the remaining officers of each council, this may have brought exhaustion and have become more challenging to continue. This wasn’t surprising after the number of student council officers rendered their resignation.
Few notable resignations happened earlier this year with Student Regent Ellenor Joyce Bartolome who submitted her irrevocable resignation from the post last May 1, 2021. As the elected President of the Alyansa ng Nagkakaisang Konseho (ANAK) PUP SC Federations, she become the student representative to the Board of Regents (BOR), the highest policy-making body of the university. Representing over 70,000 Iskolars ng bayan, her sudden resignation became a risk to ensure that pro-student policies and people-oriented programs be advanced to the BOR. In an official statement released by the ANAK-PUP Federations, they recognized the former SR’s situation cited in her letter. “As an independent body that pushes for a safer space and better mental health to our students, we support Ms. Bartolome’s decision of prioritizing herself in these trying times. She already dedicated her utmost efforts and dedication for the students in the span of her time as the representative of the studentry and her college.” Few days after her resignation, the election for Interim Student Regent (ISR) was then announced and occurred last May 11, 2021. With 13 out of 21 votes, and 6 abstained, Rommel Gonzaga of PUP San Juan Student Assembly was then elected as the ISR. Beating PUP Main Sentral na Konseho ng Mag-aaral (SKM) President, Jonero Dacula.
Just a month after, SKM Pres. Dacula filed his resignation citing “personal life struggles”. In his letter sent last June 11, 2021, addressing the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs and Services, Office of the Student Services, PUP Student Council Constitutional Commissions, PUP Commission on Elections and received by the Local Student Councils, he expressed his inability to continue the holdover term due to recent events in his personal life. Additionally, Dacula appointed the SKM incumbent Councilor and Secretary-General Aubrey Garganera as the Officer-in-Charge for the rest of the term.
Conflicts in-between
Before Dacula’s resignation, the PUP COC-SC sent an open letter addressing the SKM, particularly to its then-President Dacula last June 5, 2021. COC-SC calls out the ineffective leadership of the SKM regarding the urgent matters concerning the students and the Student Council Assembly (SCA). One of the significant calls mentioned were the SC Elections which was then saw a light after SCA’s resolution No. 013, series of 2021. The said resolution had appointed this year’s COMELEC Commissioners composed of bonafide students from different Colleges in PUP Main.
Dacula has also been involved in the issue regarding financial transparency and the liquidation of funds at the IGNITE: PUP Concert for a Cause that happened last February 28, 2020, as a fund-raising event for the victims of the Taal eruption earlier that year. The said concert has raised 100,000-102,000 pesos with over 5,000 attendees. The funds and goods that were raised allegedly did not make it to the supposed beneficiaries.
Moreover, a year has passed and financial statements are still yet to be cleared sparking controversy as Dacula refused to take accountability and wished to be dissociated from the said project. SKM was the primary partner organization responsible for the said concert – Dacula took the position during 2019 until his resignation in 2021 making the project fall under his term. Dacula has stated sent through email to the Office of the Student Regent (OSR) “With the issue of transparency, during my term as the president we have not been negligent of this duty and in fact, we had complied with all the university accounting and auditing procedures. Yes, the activity fell under my term but that does not mean we were not being accountable enough to face it."
Mass disaffiliations from different college councils from the OSR-SKM event were made, releasing statements within their Facebook pages stating that they have already passed the necessary liquidation reports. The apparent pinpointing between committees caused the delay of financial statements and reports. Furthermore, the dispute regarding the liquidation of funds continues as organizers and committees involved in the event had either refused to take accountability or wishes to disassociate themselves. A year later after the IGNITE Concert, transparency is still yet to be achieved.
Another notable controversy that sparked this year was the recent event hosted by SKM inviting a speaker who was one of the principal writers of the Anti-Terror Law; ACT-CIS Representative Cong. Rowena Niña Taduran went on to be the speaker of the event entitled “DON’T BREAK MY HEART! Guarding your Health for your Heart” last April 27 this year. SKM cleared that the speaker was invited as the event centered on advocacies such as the promotion of a healthy and smoke-free environment. While SKM itself campaigned against the ATL it also vehemently gave a platform to one of those who gave way for the bill to be passed as a law. This act was strongly condemned by SAMASA stating on a post “Kung tunay na tapat ang PUP SKM sa laban nito hinggil sa Anti-Terror Law, marapat lamang na hindi nito binibigyan pa ng plataporma sa pamamagitan ng hindi pagpayag nitong maging tagapagsalita ang pasistang Kongresista…”.
New Leaders for the New Normal
The ongoing SCE will indeed replenish the Student Council roster, thus making a new wave for new student leaders in the university. While the previous SCE last 2019 and before are as equally important as these online elections, the call for active participation of Iskolars ng Bayan is needed more than ever. To elect rightful leaders for their respective colleges, and the SKM office who will then secure the welfare of the students and the people during these trying times. Time has changed since the previous SCE, and these changes require an adaptive student leader we all need. #Makibalita #Makiisa #Makialam #PUPSCE2021
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