With a strike of a gavel, a four year-old idea became etched in our city’s book of laws.
The passage of the Oro Youth Code of 2018 is a milestone for local youth participation in governance. It signifies a sort of transfiguration where a rag-tag project born out of classroom idealism finally transformed into an official mandate of local power.
We always say that this Code is not a product done overnight. It took years of accumulated experience, social capital, and momentum to finally carve the youth’s place in the systems of city hall. But as all laws, it is still words on print. What matters now is how we build and nurture this new institution and make it bear fruits for the common good.
The movement for a more inclusive and democratic youth platform in local governance, at least in the context of the Oro Youth Development Council, started in 2013 when students of a social formation class asked a familiar question; “how we, as young people, can co-create the social good in our city?
It was clear in the election season of 2013 that voters’ education is not enough. As a collective, we need to translate our aspirations into a development agenda if we are to make an impact in a longer term. And this agenda is only beautiful dreamy words if it is not being actively lobbied to people in power. It is only through a platform of active citizenship can we transform our dreams into actual policies and programs.
That is the basic value proposition of the Oro Youth Development Council. It provides a platform for youth organizations across various sectors to exert its influence and input its advocacies in the local governance equation. In many ways, this approach has produced numerous innovations and policy changes in the city. A youth-led audit on police stations was created; a summer work program was expanded to include leadership and education tracks, a new scholarship code was enacted, an enhanced youth leadership support program was formed among others.
Through this narrative, we are hoping to set up a durable and working model where other local government units and civil society organizations can replicate and improve.
From a movement to a law - this has been the familiar pattern of social change. At least in our locality, we have made strides in replicating this approach. But its passage is only the beginning. Academe, civil society, the church, and other convergence points of youth movements should continue to engage this new office as it unfolds. It is only through the perspective of partnership that we can refine processes and bring good results.
As they say, if you want a better quality of life, you have to involve yourself in the process. Getting involved in the civic affairs of our community is but a natural function of human nature. A deep sense of satisfaction and meaning comes from our conscious engagement in the public realm. There is joy in the steady work of citizenship. This platform – the Oro Youth – is only one of many platforms around us that hope to transform our individual energies into a collective action for the common good.
Article by Atty. Ernesto Neri
