Substandard Pinoy Youth Ambassadors

Here's another reason why politics in the Philippines suck!

This year's National Leader for the Philippine Contingent to SSEAYP (Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Program) is no other than Dino Badilla, a Commissioner of the National Youth Commission. This would be the first time in 34 years that someone from the same organization tasked to scout and screen applicants for the post bagged the post.

A National Leader is the head of the the Pinoy Delegation to SSEAYP. The NL will lead 28 Participating Youths (PY) from the different regions of the Philippines. They will represent our country in various SSEAYP activities like discussion forums, exhibits, homestays, courtesy calls, cultural presentations and youth interactions as they tour all over Southeast Asia in a span of almost two months.

Who selected this year's NL? No other than the NYC commissioners themselves, considering that our ex-PY from 1992, Aldrin Mendoza, topped the NL preliminary interview. The remaining 12 PYs were also selected by the NYC commissioners from their ranks.

SIP (SSEAYP International Philippines, the alumni association of former PYs and NLs) was never consulted on the matter.

This is tyranny and uncalled for in a democratic system of government. Something should be done about this. We can't sit back and watch our country be represented by substandard delegates.