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UP POLIS AMENDS CONSTITUTION

UP POLIS HOLDS APPLICATION

PERIOD 2014: YAP EMERGED

AS BEST APPLICANT

PRACTICUM CONFERENCE 2014

YAP AND GALLARDO HEAD AS APSOP

SECRETARIAT

APSOP ADOPTS NEW CHARTER

SOVEREIGNTY FOR SALE

ELECTRICITY AND ELASTICITY

A GAME OF TRAINS

ROSE

ON TO GREATER ROADS

OF GIVING BACK

PRACTICON SPECIAL

MEET THE EXECOMM

MY HUNGER GAMES EXPERIENCE

THE PERKS OF BEING

A POLSCI MAJOR

Fea

ture

Ed

itor

ial

Contact us !

13’s THIS POLIS YEAR

The number thirteen has been commonly associated with bad luck and negativity. If you will look at elevators, buildings do not have a button for the 13th floor. Most of the time, when the 13th day of the month falls on a Friday, it is believed that it is a day of bad luck. There are many other negative connotations about this number that even trace back to biblical and historical accounts such as The Last Supper and the murder of the Knights of the Templar. These made people think even more that thirteen is a bad omen, and that at all times, it should be avoided.

But as UP Political Science Society celebrates its thirteenth year, we dare to challenge this negative notion. UP Polis is an organization that continues to excel in the pursuit of advancing Political Science, and extends service as we conduct activities advocating change in the society. This year, it is our primary objective to continue what UP Polis has started.

We have started this 13th year by expanding our family and engaging in a socially relevant Application Week. Kicking-off our anniversary celebration, we release the first issue of Pulitika to broaden our reach and provide account of what we have accom-plished so far. It is also an avenue to showcase the writing skills of our members as we also aim to provide a more critical analysis of the issues today. So where is the bad luck in that?

Towards the end of the year, we will continue to support the advancement of Political Science by initiating academic discussions and career orientations for the benefit, not only of Polis members, but also of the whole PolSci community. We will continue to support our program by participating in its projects and promote Political Science as a discipline. Truly, there is no need to rely of prophesies of luck. It is a matter of perspective and perseverance that we will be able to accomplish all of these.

With this vision of a bolder and more upward UP Polis, I invite everyone to become part of the journey of perpetuating what we have started as a Political Science organization. We have envisioned a lot of activities to celebrate UP Polis’ Thirteenth Year that will go on until the end of the academic year. Let us take this opportunity to become more active members of the organization and contribute to the strengthening of UP Polis’ foundation as an academic and socio-civic organization. From here, let us extend our organization to the society.

Let us move together, ever upward!

Vinculum Unitatis Vincit Omnia!

CHA I RPERSON S MESSAGE

Ann Claryn Yap Chairperson, UP Political Science Society

N E W S

A fter the battle of intelligence, skills and wit, John Christian Yap, second year, was named as the best applicant of the

first-ever two-week long application period of the University of the Philippines Political Science Society with the

Hunger Games-inspired theme “Tikas-Husay-Gilas,” September 15-28.

UP Polis holds Application Period : Yap emerged as best appl icant

Danielle Mercene

Among the 59 applicants, Yap garnered a total percentage of 84.88%, followed by Marijo Angela Conejero, fourth year, garnering a percentage of 82.33% and Tanya Mindo, second year, with a percent-age of 81.84%. Acceptance in the organization is based on the following criteria: Group Activities and Appli-cant’s Kit (60%), Executive Commit-tee Interview (30%) and Alumni Interview (10%).

Applicants’ Week and the Tributes

The applicants were divided into six groups following the initials of the Hunger Games Series (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay). Each group were asked to name their team according to their assigned initial: Team-tation, Team Holistic, Team Game, Team Candor, Team F na F (Fierce na Flexi), and Team Morrow.

Every applicant was given an applicant’s kit containing the different tasks that they should finish as part of the application process. Aside from group activities, they were also tasked to make an individual essay, poster and slogan, answer some Political Science-related questions, collect signatures of the members of the Execu-tive and Membership Committees by answering trivia questions about them, get dedication messages from the members of UP Polis and complete a total of at least 5 hours in the Polis tambayan.

For the first time in the history of the application period of UP Polis, a buddy system was adapted this year wherein each of the applicants were assigned with a buddy, a UP Polis member, who served as their guide in the different activities. The applicants and their buddies were tasked to submit a buddy picture. It was a challenge of creativity and social relevance as each of them portrayed through a creative shot the specific issue assigned to them.

Following the Hunger Games theme, the 12 districts from the series were trans-formed into 12 key political issues which

include commodification (luxury), sub-standard housing units (masonry), UPM enrollment system (technology), territorial

dispute (fishing), energy crisis (power), MRT/LRT (transportation), illegal logging (lumber), local textile industry (textile), rice crisis (grain), local livestock industry (agriculture), and mining (mining). Each of these issues was assigned with a corre-sponding activity to be completed individu-ally, by group and by buddy all throughout the application period.

During the first week, the amazing race activity was held wherein there were different stations which symbolized the enrollment process in UP Manila. The applicants’ goal was to complete every task in all of the stations. Another activity was the longest line activity in which the players maximized whatever resources they have at hand in order to make the longest line among all the groups. For the second week, the trust of the applicants to their buddies was tested in the landmines activity. The applicants were blindfolded and were guided by their buddies to reach a certain station without stepping on the paper boats placed along the way. Lastly, a memory game was also held afterwards.

Due to the inclement weather, the original one-week application period of UP Polis was extended to two weeks in order to fulfill all the planned activities for the applicants

Applicants’ Day

As a culminating activity, the appli-cants’ day was held at the Chinese Garden, Rizal Park, September 28. More activities were prepared for the groups including the clingy race, build a tower and 5 pics and 5 words. Each of

them also showcased their talents in singing, dancing or acting through an on-the-spot performance about the issue of rice crisis.

They were also interviewed one by one by the Finance, Membership, Legal and Public Committees in order to know the appli-cants more and to assess the possible committees where they can be assigned. Later on, they were also interviewed by the Executive Committee and the Polis alumni. Among the alumni present were Jewelle Santos, Mohammad Muktadir Estrella, Keith Detros, Jude Itutud, Robert Go, Katashiro Sangreal, Ira Balucan, Eliana Cortes, Ronald Ednalan, Jr., Marielle Atienza and Darlene Estrada.

The odds are in their favor

After the evaluation of all the applicants, 34 new members were added to the UP Polis family and in order to formally welcome them, UP Polis organized an acquaintance party at the Midland Plaza, Adriatico St., Malate, Manila, October 7.

The new members had the chance to finally meet the other members of the UP Polis during the event. Games and food were prepared for all of those present in the event. Afterwards, the new members were introduced to their assigned commit-tees and met with their committee heads.

In recognition of the efforts and skills shown by the applicants during the whole

THE VICTOR. John Christian Yap emerges as

the 2014 Best Applicant of UP Polis. He was

awarded during the UP Polis Acquaintance Party

at the Midland Plaza, October 7.

N E W S

The aim of the Practicon is to share their experiences and lessons learned from their Political Science 190 during the previous summer. The PractiCon is entitled Talaghay: Paglubog at Pakikiisa sa mga Istorya ng Pakikibaka at Pagbangon.

PractiCon officially started upon singing the national anthem, followed by an introductory speech was given by Prof. Ramota, DSS Chair-person for s.y. 2013-2014. After that, Ann Claryn Yap, UP Polis Chairperson also deliv-ered a brief speech to introduce Political Science Batch 2015 and emphasized their unique-ness considering that they encountered a lot of changes in the UP system. The PractiCon was attended by Political Science students from all year levels, DSS professors from the Political Science Program and representatives from invited organizations.

Each group of practicumers was given a chance to give a short foreword for their group and about 20-30 minutes for their video presentation. The groups and their presentation are as follows: (1) Diri Masabtan, The Eastern Visayas Post-Yolanda Situation by Beso, Cabia, Novales and Sunga under the supervision of Prof. Carl Ramota partnered with Health Alliance for Democracy, People Surge and Samahang Operasyong Sagip (SOS); (2) Saling-pusa: Assessing Children’s Rights and Participation in the Philippines by Adriano, Chan, Conejero, Flores, Francisco, Gabi, Ilagan, Parugrug,

application period, UP Polis gave various awards to the different outstanding appli-cants. Alex Buenaobra was awarded with the Pagkamaagap award for being the early bird during the applicants’ day. One of the most awarded applicants, Angela Conejero, aside from being the 2nd best applicant, also received the Pagkamalikhain award for having the best poster and slogan and the Talino award for having the best formal essay. The other most awarded applicant, Tanya Mindo, did not only receive the 3rd best applicant award but also the Pinaka-natatangi award for having the most number

Moselle Hannah P. Bobadilla

L ast September 10, 2014, Department of Social Sciences (DSS) – Political Science Program in partnership with UP Politi-

cal Science Society (UP Polis) hosted the Practicum Conference (PractiCon) of Batch 2015 in CAS Little Theater.

during the applicants’ day while Team Morrow was awarded with the Kooperasyon award, having attained the highest com-bined points in all of the group activities.

The party ended with the official launching of the first-ever 2014 UP Polis House Cup through a kick-off activity wherein the different committees were tasked to complete as fast as they can a puzzle which turned out to be the logo of their respec-tive committees. Activities of the Polis House Cup are expected to be held every month until the end of the academic year.▼

Reyes, Salvador and Yap under the supervi-sion of Prof. Claire Berja partnered with Save the Children, Samahan ng Mamama-yan - Zone One Tondo Organization Inc.

(ZOTO), and John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social Issues (JJCICSI); (3) Maskara: Ang Nakakubling Mukha ng Karapatang Pantao sa Pilipinas by Banzuela, Benedicto, dela Cruz, Garcia, Soneja and Villa under the supervision of Prof. Doroteo Abaya partnered with Samahan ng mga Ex-detainees Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA) and KARAPATAN - Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights; (4) Ipaglaban by Brozo, Cahiyang, Nueno and Pingco under the supervision of Prof. Abaya partnered with National Union

of People's Lawyers (NUPL); (5) Pag-igpaw: Ang Pagtindig ng Masang Pilipino Laban sa Marginalisasyon by Aquino, Bobadilla, Cruz, Fuentes, Gumela, Kua, Laborte, Mamaril, Mercene, Ramos and Villagonzalo under

the supervision of Prof. Bobby Tuazon partnered with Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG); (6) Salumsom: Pagsilip sa Pakikibaka by Aguilar, Alzaga, Cruz, Malijan under the supervision of Prof. Ramota partnered with Citizens Disaster Response Center (CDRC); and lastly, (7) Ambahan: Panaghoy sa Kawalan by Aclan, Santiago and Serrano under the supervision of Prof. Ramota partnered with Katribu and Kalipunan ng mga Katutu-bong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas (KAMP)

After the video presentations, the audience was asked for their comments on what they had watched, wherein many of them answered that the presentations reflected praxis during the Political Science 190 of batch 2015.

Certificates were awarded to the present organizations that helped in making the practicum possible. A closing remark was given by Prof. Mohammad Muktadir Estrella, practicum conference coordinator, in which he addressed each batch and challenged the incoming third years who will be taking their practicum course this school year. The PractiCon extended from 8 am to 12 nn. ▼

of dedications in the apps kit and the Talisik award for having the highest score in the combined points of the alumni and execomm interviews. Meanwhile, the Dedikasyon award was given to Wilson Castro for having the longest hours of stay in the tambayan.

Group and buddy efforts were also recognized and awarded. Kapamaraanan award was given to Erron Medina and Louielyn Dela Cruz for having the most creative buddy picture. Team-tation and Team F na F were awarded with the Talento award for having the best performances

TALAGHAY. The Political Science Seniors,

Professors and guests raise their fists in celebration of

a successful and meaningful Practicon.

N E W S

Yap and Gallardo Head as APSOP Secretariat

Secretary General Ann Claryn Yap and Deputy Secretary General Rein Gallardo, together with the Director Organizations, spearheaded the Charter deliberations that started on July 20 at Brgy. Parang, Marikina City.

Member organizations of APSOP participated in the deliberations as they were divided into different committees headed by the five Director Organiza-tions. After each committee deliberation, the Central Charter Committee discussed and consolidated the committee reports.

After finalizing each part of the Charter, it was presented to the General Assembly in the Charter Convention. UP Political Science Society (UP POLIS) participated in the deliberations and voted for the passage of the Charter as

well.

Some of the important provisions of the new charter include the institutionalization of an Electoral Board that would be separated from the Judicial Council. The Judicial Council was retained and would still be separated from the General Assembly. The organizations also decided that the heads of the organizations would no longer be eligible to run in any of the Secretariat positions.

“The passage of the new Charter will enable APSOP to work more efficiently and effectively. It is a product of a rigorous process, but it was all to ensure that as the Charter, it will serve its purpose of guiding the association towards the fulfill-ment of its goals,” Yap com-mented. ▼

A fter successfully getting a consensus of votes from its fourteen member organiza-

tions, the Association of Political Science Organizations of the Philippines

(APSOP) finally adopted its new Charter in a Charter Convention held at the Colegio

de San Juan de Letran, August 30.

A consensus was reached with the 14

member organizations of APSOP during

the General Assembly for the Charter

revision. (Photo from the APSOP Page)

Secretary General Ann Claryn Yap facili-

tating the deliberations for the Charter

Revision. (Photo from the APSOP Page)

Yap won as Secretary General

over Rodel John Damian from De

La Salle University, in a toss coin

tie-breaker round after both of

them got 6 votes from the present

and voting member organizations

of the General Assembly of

APSOP. Yap chose heads, which

appeared twice over Damian’s

tails. Yap was the former Deputy

Secretary General of APSOP.

Gallardo also emerged as the

Deputy Secretary General after

garnering majority vote against the

other two contenders, Nichelle

Ann Cabog from University of the

East and Patrick Pineda from Far

Eastern University.

New Director Organizations

were also elected by the General

Assembly. UP Political Society

(UP POLSCi) is the new Academ-

ics Committee Director; UP

Samahan sa Agham Pampulitika

(UP SAPUL) is the new Externals

Committee Director; PUP Political

Science Society (PUP PSS) is the

new Finance Committee Director;

UP Association of Political Science

Majors (UP APSM) is the new

Internals Committee Director;

while AdU Pulitika is the new

Socio-Political Committee

Director.

“This would be a year of facelift

for APSOP as we aim to pursue

the Charter Change for a more

efficient and effective association.

I look forward to working with the

new Director Organizations and

with Rein as well,” Yap said in an

interview.

Thirteen member organizations

participated in the elections where

Letran Politicvs stood as part of

the Electoral Board, thus forfeiting

their right to vote. Former

Secretary General Louella Ann

Sedano seated as Chairperson of

the Electoral Board. ▼

S tarting a new academic year for the association, Ann Claryn Yap of University of

the Philippines Manila and Rein Gallardo of University of the Philippines Diliman

were hailed as the new Secretariat of the Association of Political Science Organizations of

the Philippines (APSOP), in an election held at the Adamson University, July 5.

NEWS BRIEFS Students flock at the UP Manila College of Arts and Sciences

(CAS) Quadrangle during the CAS All Orgs Fair last August 8-10.

Around thirty eight (38) organizations alternately occupied the venue.

Through the initiative of the CAS Student Council (CASSC) in the

organization and facilitation of the event, various organizations show-

cased themselves to the CAS community. They offered a handful of

products such as food items, books, and UP merchandise as part of

their income generating projects.

UP Political Science Society (UP POLIS) encamped its own stall at

the CAS All Orgs Fair. The organization marketed lanyards, shirts,

blue books, food items, while encouraging Political Science majors to

join the organization. ▼

Law schools such as the University of the Philippines (UP) College

of Law, Ateneo De Manila Univesity (ADMU) College of Law, De La

Salle University (DLSU) College of Law, University of Santo Thomas

(UST) Faculty of Civil Law, and San Beda College of Law have re-

leased their respective application dates for A.Y. 2015-2016.

Application periods of respective law schools are as follows: UP

College of Law (9th September to 30th January), Ateneo College of Law

(November 2014 to April 2015), DLSU College of Law (2nd February

to 30th June 2015). UST Faculty of Civil has set the submission of

requirements no less than a week before the exam date and San Beda

College of Law’s requirement submission deadline(s) has yet to be

announced.

For detailed admission requirements, deadline and examination date

updates, visit the websites of the mentioned law schools: UP College

of Law (law.upd.edu.ph), Ateneo College of Law (law.ateneo.edu),

DLSU College of Law (law.dlsu.edu.ph), UST Faculty of Civil Law

(ustcivillaw.com), and San Beda College of Law (sanbeda.edu.ph). ▼

Law schools release Application Dates

Apsop adopts New charter

Ann Claryn Yap

UP Manila holds CAS All Orgs Fair

Elected Secretary General Ann Claryn

Yap and Deputy Secretary General Rein

Gallardo after the election held at the

Adamson University. (Photo from Rein

Gallardo)

N E W S

L ast August 8, 2014, the UP Political Science Society (UP POLIS), during its first General Assembly (GA) for the

academic year, amended some of the organization’s constitutional provisions.

Prompted by the academic calendar shift,

UP POLIS amended its constitutional

provisions on the term length of its

executive committee and the regularity of

elections. The provision of Article XI

Section 2 on the term of the organization’s

executive committee shifted from fourth

week of February until the fourth week of

February the following year has been from

adjusted to the fourth week of the second

to the last month of the academic school

year until the fourth week of second to the

last month of the next year. This is

different from the initial amendment

proposing that the officers’ term shall be a

period of one (1) year (from 4th week of

April until the 4th week of April the

following year).

Article IX Section 2 which originally

provided for the elections to be held

during the third week of February was

amended to the third week of the second

to the last month of the academic school

year. It was approved instead of the

initially presented amendment of the

Executive Committee which proposed that

a regular election shall be held during the

third week of April to elect a new set of

officers for the incoming academic year.

The initially proposed amendments were

first countered by UP POLIS member,

Gerani Malijan, who proposed to extend

the term of the current Executive Commit-

tee and to provide a vague designation of

the election day. Malijan’s counterproposal

was supported by Lyod Novales who

justified that the vague designation of the

election period is necessary to accommo-

date the future possible academic year

adjustments. Their proposed amendment

garnered the majority of votes of the

members in the General Assembly.

Abiding by the provisions of Article XIII

Section 2 and Article VI Section 2 regard-

ing the effectivity of the amendments on

the succeeding term and the one year term

period respectively, UP POLIS agreed that

1) the current officers is to finish their one-

year term as stated in Article VI Section 2,

2) elections shall be conducted in accord-

ance to the amended Article IX, Section 2,

and 3) the results of the election that will

be conducted shall be acknowledged

through letting the incoming Executive

Committee assume their positions. As an

implication of the amended constitutional

provisions and as agreed by the UP

POLIS’ members, during the overlap of

terms between the outgoing and the

incoming Executive Committee officials,

the incoming Executive Committee

officials shall serve as interns for the

outgoing Executive Committee officials

and henceforth be addressed as the Junior

Executive Committee.

In addition to the amendments on the

electoral code, implementing rules and

regulations (IRR) were discussed during

the GA. This included the resolution on

the Disciplinary Board in which the

Executive Committee collectively decided

and approved the proposal on the designa-

tion of Legal Affairs Committee Head as

the presiding officer to “deliberate and give

the verdict of anyone who will commit

grave and major offenses.” It was also

resolved that the Committee Heads act as

standing witnesses and clarified that the

Disciplinary Board remains inactive lest a

complaint is filed.

Another IRR is on the number of publica-

tion releases of PULITIKA, UP POLIS’s

official newsletter. Its release was reduced

to minimum of two (2) issues per semester

instead of the minimum of three (3) issues

as originally stated in Article VII Section 7,

with consideration to funds. In view of the

possible financial difficulties of some

members, settling of dues was also

extended from the maximum of 30 days, as

originally stipulated in the Article IV

Section 2 (F), to two consecutive months.

The aforementioned implementing rules

and regulations (IRR) is limited only to the

term of office of the 13th Executive

Committee and succeeding officers may or

may not implement the said IRRs.

The aforementioned amendments and

IRRs have been proposed, presented,

agreed, and made effective last 8th August

2014 during UP POLIS’s 1st GA for

Annual Year 2014-2015. ▼

UP POLIS amends Constitution Von Angelo Suya

Last August 8 2014, the UP Political Science Society (UP POLIS) conducted a roundtable discussion (RTD) regarding Aquino’s 2014 SONA. This was to assess the performance of the Aquino administration since the start of his presidency in 2010.

Governmental accomplishments and proposals as highlights of the SONA were evaluated by UP POLIS. Among the issues raised in the discussion were Aquino’s defense of the Disburse-ment Acceleration Program (DAP) and Enhanced Defense Co-operation Agreement (EDCA). The organization had also agreed

on the lack of focus on more crucial issues. Key policies and con-cerns such as the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill, long term agricultural plans, ongoing energy crisis, and the ASEAN integra-tion were not mentioned in Aquino’s SONA 2014.

UP Polis RTD 2014 was held at the 4th floor, Old Neda Building. The organization’s final assessment was released as a report card entitled “Kwatro: The 2014 Report Card of the Aqui-no Government”. This gave an average grade of 4.0 to Aquino on his over-all state of governance. ▼

The First General Assembly of 2014 discussed amend-

ments of the constitution and also assessed Aquino’s

fifth State of the Nation Address,

E D I T O R I A L

H undreds of years have been spent on throes and blood-shed by the Filipinos to break free from the colonial rule and

to achieve sovereignty. However, those strug-gles now seem futile with the signing of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the Philippines and the United States.

Having a defense agreement between the two countries is not new at all. In 1951, both parties signed the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) which solidi-fied each nation’s support for the other in cases of armed attack by an external party. Moreover, the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) engaged upon in 1999 paved the way for a con-tinuous defense cooperation and for the resumption of the joint military exercises, Balikatan.

Seemingly not contented with its ties with US through those agreements, the Philippine executive is gung ho over the signing of EDCA. This agreement is a more expansive version of the MDT and VFA as this allows the US storage and prepositioning of military equipment in the “agreed locations” to be set. It will also provide for the con-struction and upgrade of Philippine military facilities. It can therefore be seen as a part of the “US pivot to Asia” as its provisions aim to strengthen US foothold in the Philippines through an increase in military presence.

The undue haste in the signing of EDCA sparked the rise of its unconsti-tutionalities. Provisions of EDCA are founded on disregard for national sov-ereignty and territorial integrity. The agreement is a violation of the consti-tutional prohibition on the presence of military bases, troops, or facilities unless duly concurred in by the Senate. The formulation of EDCA has been kept under the cloak of secrecy not only to the public but even to the Senate as well which is supposedly the Presi-dent’s partner in negotiating a treaty. Not a single copy was also released even after its immediate signing. It was only made public by the Aquino government after US President Obama had finished the state visit and left the country. These clearly are abuses of discretion committed to the Filipino people.

The Aquino government had manuevered its way to shun any hindrance in the passage of the EDCA. In order to bypass the Senate, it has showcased the EDCA as an executive agreement thus, exempting it from the queries

of the legislative body. However, the con-tent of the executive agreement is still sub-

ject to the constitutional prohibition which makes it unconstitutional. Furthermore, not publicizing the draft and final text of the EDCA beforehand is a tactic of keeping the agreement, if not free, less of criticisms and attacks from the public. This is to ensure that the Aquino government will be able to

paint a warm welcome for its long-time ally, the United States.

With the slam to the Senate, the EDCA also encroaches upon the judiciary as it de-prives the Supreme Court (SC) the power to review its constitutionality. The national courts cannot exercise judicial power over acts of US forces and contractors commit-ted within the Philippines resulting to any civil, criminal or administrative liability. This is definitely alarming as the Constitution, through blockage of the judicial system, is barred of its power in its own country of governance. Not only did it trample upon the authority of the Philippine laws but also fetters on the ruling of the international law with regard to dispute settlement. As such, the executive infringes on the balance of power that it shares with the legislative and

judiciary. This just goes to show that the in-tensity of the Aquino government’s engross-ment and submission to US puppetry is so high that it could commit such breach.

EDCA is also susceptible to violate the constitutional ban on the entry and storage of nuclear weapons in the Philippines. Preposi-

tioning of military equipment for hu-manitarian assistance and disaster relief is merely a pretext for storing ammuni-tions in the country. Though the ED-CA denies admission of nuclear weap-ons in the country, the US military has a policy of not confirming whether they are carrying nuclear weapons or not. Worse, PH cannot conduct in-spection on US military cargoes. With EDCA, Filipinos have voluntarily placed themselves on threat and inse-curity in their own country. It is expected that with the increase in US military presence in the country, human rights abuses due to militariza-tion will soar. Even with the limited number of US military in Mindanao at present, several cases of human rights violations have already been reported. Militarization of communities is being done to protect the interests of foreign private contractors operating in the country. How much graver could the conditions be with a significant up-surge of US military in the region? Along with this is the threat of further commodification and objectification of Filipino women as the case in the past. Example of which is the Subic rape case that grew into an international controversy in 2006. The alleged mur-der of Jeffrey Laude, a Filipino transgender, by a US marine is also another case. More importantly, shall such criminal cases arise, they could

not be subjected under the Philippine juris-diction as abovementioned.

Environmental issues are not fully ad-dressed in the agreement. The SC upholds the right of the Filipinos to a balanced and healthful ecology. Nonetheless, this may be threatened since the agreement implicitly approved the US entry of hazardous materials and waste in the country. The defense agree-ment also simply dictates that US shall not intentionally release any hazardous materials or waste. Such issue of intentionality is al-ready debatable. If proven done unintention-ally, shall US already be free of liability? ED-CA thus gives US the license to freely manip-ulate the Philippines’ resources together with

Sovere i gnty for Sale : PH bows down to the US geopolitical art of puppetry through its sell out of sovereignty.

Camille Benedicto

Continued on page 9

E D I T O R I A L

Electricity and elasticity: The Rising Demand and Insufficient Supply of Power in the Philippines

Marijo Angela Conejero

Poe. Valte. Lacierda. These people have taken up the #MRTRushHourChallenge issued by frustrated netizens after DOTC Secretary Abaya rode the train on a Thursday afternoon. Abaya wanted to know what the complaints of the long queue were about seeing as he was riding the train rather comfortably – in the women’s and PWD’s wagon if I may add. DOTC Secretary Abaya needs to get in touch with reality through riding the train without bodyguards and doing this during the rush hour. In addition, he should ride on the regular wagons in order for him to realize his rather silly notion that riding the MRT is comfortable when in fact, “you ride the train as a student and you emerge as a warrior.” We can see how the politicians and the government officials are disconnected with the actual plight of the peo-ple.

The inefficiency generated by the perenni-ally heavy traffic at EDSA makes it more practi-cal for people to ride on the light rail instead. Riding the train may seem better, faster and more practical prima facie but in truth, riding the train is a forced choice made by people who must decide between the two evils: be stuck in traffic in EDSA while being relatively comforta-ble in a bus or be stuck inside a train wagon while risking the chance of exchanging faces with the person next to you.

Of course we should not underemphasize

the importance of constructing roads and road-widening projects but aside from developing roads, the government should also put im-portance to developing the railway system. Upon observation, we can conclude that the light rail trains cater to students, to workers and to the members of low-income and middle-income households. It follows that the train system should be developed to give the people who do not own cars or the people who do not wish to be stuck in traffic an option with regard to their mode of transportation.

To sum, transportation is very important. The kind of transportation system that a country has will ultimately affect its economic develop-ment, in particular, it affects the mobility of the labor forces and to an extent, it affects the pro-duction forces of the economy. The daily strug-gle of an ordinary person to ride the train should not be brushed off just because a certain secre-tary deemed the complaints of the passengers as whimsical. Furthermore, if the existence of a problem is not recognized, then we cannot ex-pect noticeable developments in the trains sys-tem in the country. More than publicity, the #MRTRushHourChallenge stresses that to expe-rience is to understand, and if the politicians understand the plight of the commuters, then they will be better equipped to pass policies aim-ing for the welfare of the commuters.

A game of trains: The ascent to the plastic throne*

Mariela Mae B. Mamaril

The rising cost of electricity is a problem for every Filipino. The situation today indicates problems in the Philippine energy system such as collusion of market stakeholders to jack up prof-it, and the lack of regulation of these actors, showing that the ongoing moves for apt regula-tion of price hikes are not enough. The Philip-pines still has the most expensive energy in Asia despite our status as a third world country and the incapability of our impoverished society to afford these prices.

Assuming that we are able to avoid corrup-tion and are able to properly regulate the indus-try, a more long-term problem exists – the dis-proportionate amount of supply of energy to the increasing demand of it from our growing and industrializing population. The basic economic law of supply and demand shows us how likely it is that the high prices will still persist in the long run unless we create solutions to create a larger and more sustainable capacity for power genera-tion. Undeniably, the poor, who comprise a majority of our population, will suffer because they will be forced to pay the high rates to be able to consume electricity.

The problem of corruption is not one to scoff at. The way in which the prices of electrici-ty in the Philippines can also be traced from the

collusion between the power plant operators and market bidders and between the market bidders and sellers. On the one hand, the for-mer type of collusion is probably due to vari-ous suspicious events such as the simultaneous shutdown of key power plants that caused artificial power shortages and raised prices, which has happened multiple times already. The latter type of collusion, on the other hand, can be seen through the capability of energy distribution companies like Meralco, and of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market which deter-mines pricing of electricity to ramp up prices without any prior notice.

What this situation necessitates is a law on regulating transparency of the power industry to solve the short term problem of corruption, as well as more measures for creating more power to solve the long term problem of lack of supply of power.

The extent to which the imbalance in the supply and demand is estimated at such a large gap that since 2013, Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla has warned of an impending energy crisis in the summer of 2015. There have been many denials to the possibility and the immedi-acy of the energy crisis especially in 2014 from

various house representatives. However, the existence of a causal link between the shutting down of plants such as the Malampaya project and the price hikes show the vulnerability and insufficiency of our energy supply.

Sustainable energy is a goal that needs to be immediately prioritized by the government. Our many natural advantages for energy are already being tapped but not maximized. Examples include our geothermal resources in Leyte, hy-droelectric power plants in Benguet and Davao, or wind and solar plants that are sorely lacking in number and size. More power plants could be created, or if we are to move towards large ex-penditure we could as well spend it on green technology which is much more cost-efficient. Other avenues for forms of renewable energy are costly, whether it be the implementation of these forms or the investment in the industry to move towards clean energy, but are only expen-sive in the short-run.

We must all contribute our political will to help check and balance the corruption of the energy sector, as well as continue to pursue our long term goal of creating sustainable energy. It is only then that our electrically-powered future

will be much more secure.▼

its people. Selling out Philippine sovereignty at the

price of military modernity is definitely a derogation of the nation’s dignity. Adding weight to this is the questionable kind of military modernization that will be catered by the US. How could the PH military modernize if the prepositioned military equipment shall only be for the exclusive use of the US? How modern will modern-ization be if the Filipino troops can only train using modern equipment that is yet to be acquired and to be delivered in a number of years? Clearly, EDCA is aimed not to augment the Philippine military modernization but to subsume the coun-try to US control.

Signing EDCA is definitely one of the Philippine’s greatest mistakes in history. By allowing the US to scale up its pres-ence and foothold n the country in a cost-effective manner, the Aquino government has proved to be a puppet of the Obama government. With the Philippines’ solidi-fied military alliance with the US, the country is in a pot of heated relations with China with regard to territorial disputes. In selling out national sovereignty, the Filipinos are once again slaves in their own country.

Stand for freedom. Break free from the US chains.

Junk EDCA! ▼

from page 8

F E A T U R E S

Studying Political Science (PolSci) means dealing with a lot of theories and endless problems of the society. It could get really stressing at

times, considering the loads of readings and books that we need to read and the papers that we need to write. It is difficult to be a PolSci

Major, but despite all the stress and sleepless nights, there are a lot of perks that comes with being a PolSci student.

In PolSci, we don’t

always read over-

whelming amount of

readings and write

hardcore papers, we

also perform. Once a

year in the PolSci-

yahan, the annual variety

show of the Political Science program, students

are able to unleash their talent and creativity.

You get to sing, dance, act (and do other

unexpected things) while catering awareness

and action regarding the different problems in

the society. Examples of the socially relevant

performances that the majors had done are

about inequality and oppression, resiliency and

commodification. And a plus, you are able to

accomplish these simultaneously with the

readings, papers, and exams. Isn’t that

amazing?

I n

P o l i t i c a l

Science, new

avenues of

thinking are

b e i n g

opened to us

every time we

attend classes.

Our discussions are n o t

limited to theories, laws, and government forms

and functions. More importantly, we learn about

the true situation of the society. Our eyes our

opened about things that we would normally not

know or care about.

Our minds our framed in different ways, we

came from different backgrounds of life and we

have been influenced by different political

socialization. Studying PolSci enables us to

socialize with the masses and face the complex

reality of politics. A PolSci major becomes more

critical about things by looking at every angle of

the issue before making a decision. This is one of

the best perks that we get to enjoy, not only as

PolSci students, but as students of the University

of the Philippines in general - we become more

critical thinkers who are aimed at serving the

people.

Aristotle, Plato, Karl

Marx, Immanuel Kant,

Rousseau and many

more. Being a PolSci

major compels you

to study about the

lives and works of

these thinkers to the

point that you’d feel that you’ve become the

best buddies ever. Even if they have been dead

for a long time now, you still spend a lot of time

getting to know them as if getting to know a

new friend, even deeper.

But meeting

people is not

only limited to

p o l i t i c a l

thinkers, of

course. Awe-

some people

also include

those one of a

kind batchmates

and blockmates whom we meet while studying

PolSci. These are the people you are with during

the ups and downs of getting that very much

desired undergraduate degree. They are the ones

you are with during the depressing moments of

the almost-passed-but-one-point-short exams,

the one’s you party with at the successful end of

every semester, the ones you call when you just

can’t understand a lesson. They are the people

you share all your PolSci feels with (and yeah, all

other feels included).

O u r P o l S c i

P r o f e s s o r s

(also one of

t h e

a w e s o m e

people that

you get to

meet) share

w i t h u s

things that

would immediately

trigger our “feels.” Well, this is even if the

professor does not really intend it to be that

way (or sometimes they do). These are words

that are not only applicable to the topic they are

discussing, but could also be applied to some

other “personal” topics. Here are some of the

quotable quotes from our witty professors:

“If you don’t pay for it, you won’t care for it… so don’t give your love freely.” - Dr. Jinky Lu, PS 199.1 class

“Hindi porket malapit sa’yo, sa’yo na.”

-Sir Mudir Estrella, PS185 class, on state territories

“Malalaman mo na tama na ‘yung napili mo kung kaya mo s’yang isama sa pagtulog mo, at sa paggising mo, s’ya pa rin ang gusto mo.” - Ma’am Claire Berja, PS 199.1 class, on choosing a thesis a topic .

“You should not be a substitute for in the first place, you’re not an economic good.” -Sir Chester Arcilla, Econ102 class

“You can compel them for the damages that they did to you, but you can never compel a person to love you.” - Sir Mudir Estrella, PS185 class

"They accumulate more by dispossessing others. Gets ba? Mas nagkakaroon sila nitong bagay na 'to pero kinukuha lang nila ‘yun sa iba." – Ma’am Jopson, PS 163 class, on capitalism and urbanization

Aside from the lessons that we learn about the

society, power relations, human rights and the

government, we also learn a lot of life (and

love) lessons from our professors.

Cramming is a total no-

no, but sometimes, it

is inevitable for

things to pile up,

exams , pa per s ,

presentations, reports

and other require-

ments.

With all this plus the barkada, gimik, family,

and and even love life, sometimes, you would

really have to resort to cramming.

Cramming, depends on your skills, could

be working on a reaction paper an hour before

the deadline or starting to read the material for

a book review and starting to work on the

review on the same night. In PolSci, you would

have a lot of chances to exercise and improve

your cramming skills. If you are planning to

grab the award for this school year’s master

crammer, be ready with all the essentials, a

thermos full of coffee or your favorite energy

drink for all-nighters, confidence to pass the

requirement in case you don’t make it on time,

and strength to swallow the fury of your pro-

fessor and the possibility of failing the require-

ment if he or she refuses to accept your late

requirement.

It is not always safe to rely on cramming.

This is why it is important to develop a good

sense of time management, and learn to set the

right priorities.

F E A T U R E S

8:00 ng umaga

Nanaginip ako. Isa raw akong kwago, ang simbolo ng katalinuhan. Hindi ako pamilyar kung nasaan man ako. Ang alam ko lang ako ay nasa kalagitnaan nang isang malawak na kagubatang tila walang simu-la o hangganan. Kapansin-pansin ang isang bulaklak na pula sa gitna ng mga ligaw na damo. Pano naman kaya ito napasama sa mga matatayog na damo? Lumilipad daw ako papunta sa pinakamalaki at pin-akamatandang puno kung saan ay nagtitipon ang mga hayop na hindi ko mapangalanan. Malaki ang pinagkaiba nila sa akin ngunit batid kong kaisa nila ako. “Para sa araw na ito, ang pag-aaralan natin ang…”, wika ng isa sa mga pinakamatalinong hayop na naroon habang nagsusulat sa lupang bumabalot sa naturang puno.

Nakakatawa na bilang isang kwago, dahil hindi ko marunong magbasa.

12:00 ng tanghali

Nanaginip ako. Isa raw akong leon, ang hari ng kagubatan. Dito sa lugar na ito kung saan wala kang ibang matatanaw maliban sa matataas na damo, kung saan nakita ko ulit ang pulang bulaklak na ngayon ay tila unti-unti nang natutuyo. Nakakapanghinayang ang ganda ng bulaklak na iyon. Paano ba kasi s’ya napahiwalay sa mga kauri n’ya? Habang naglalakad, humayo ang mga hayop na naroroon bilang pagpapakita ng kanilang paggalang at matinding respeto para sa akin. Sa lugar na ito, lahat ng bagay na gustuhin ko ay nakukuha ko. Sa bawat araw ay punong-puno ako ng enerhiya at kagustuhang mas maging tan’yag sa buong kagubatan.

Naramdaman kong mahapdi ang hita at tyan ko. Bigla na lang din akong natumba. May isang matayog na anino ang tumayo sa ulunan ko. Nahuli pala ako.

3:00 ng hapon

Nanaginip ako. Isa raw akong kanggaro, punong-puno ng pagkalinga sa kan’yang pamilya. Kasama ko raw ang asawa ko at dalawa naming anak sa isang bahagi ng kagubatan kung saan ang kristal na dagat ay nagmimistulang repleksyon ng buong kalangitan. Sa araw na iyon, masaya naming pinapanuod ng paglubog ng araw na gumuguhit sa asul na kalangitan habang kumakain ng isang uri ng hala-mang dagat.

Nagulat ako nang bigla na lang akong sipain ng asawa ko at sakim na sinakmal ang aming anak. Nawalan ako ng malay. Ang naalala ko na lang, nagkulay dugo ang malawak na karagatan.

8:00 ng gabi

Biglang nagkulay puti ang buong kapaligiran. Walang tao sa kwartong ito, kundi ako lamang. Panaginip pa rin ba ito? Pilit kong inaalala kung anong nangyari sa akin at kung bakit ako nandito. Higit sa lahat, kung nasaan ako. Isang babaeng nakasuot din nang puti ang pumasok at kinamusta ako. Para s’yang anghel. Patay na ba ako? Ito na ba ang langit na kanilang tinatawag? Dama ko pa rin na medyo masakit pa ang buong katawan at ang ulo ko kaya siguro kung anu-anong bagay na ang naiisip at napapanaginipan ko. Inalalayan ako ng babaeng nakaputi para makatayo at dinala n’ya ako sa tabi ng bintana. Nakita kong muli, ang pulang bulaklak sa gitna ng mga damo.

“Tao ka ba?” tanong ko sa babaeng nakaputi. Hindi s’ya tumingin sa akin at sinabihan n’ya lang ako na magpahinga na lang ulit. Pagkatapos ay lumabas ulit s’ya ng kwarto.

Tiningnan ko ang sarili ko sa salamin. Ngunit ibang tao ang nakita ko. Isang babaeng maga ang mukha dahil sa mga pasa. Ngayon, naalala ko na. Nag-away kami ulit ng asawa ko. Kasalanan ko naman talaga. Hindi kasi ako pumayag na sumipin sa kan’ya nang gabing iyon. Sabi n’ya, dahil raw sa kaartehan ko kaya rin s’ya naghahan-ap nang ibang babae. Kung minsan naman, dinadahilan n’ya na nakakalimutan ko na raw s’ya dahil hindi ko s’ya napaghahanda ng pagkain. Buti pa raw ang mga kaibigan n’ya lagi s’yang sinasamahan at dinadamayan. Nasa akin talaga ang sisi kung bakit kami laging nagtatalo at kung bakit n’ya ako laging nasasaktan. Tama siguro si Inay na ang mga babae ay dapat na patuloy na sumuporta at sumunod sa kan’yang asawa. Sa ganitong paniniwala kaya nagtagal ang pagsasa-ma nila ni Itay. Noong mga bata pa kami ng aking siyam na kapatid, tahimik lang lagi si Inay sa tuwing nagsasalita o nagagalit si Itay. Hindi raw kayang iwanan ni Inay si Itay kahit na mahi-lig s’yang uminom ng alak. Mahal n’ya raw si Itay at hindi n’ya kayang mabuhay hiwalay sa kan’ya dahil wala naman daw s’yang kakayahan. Ganun daw talaga. Una raw kasing nilikha ng Diyos ang mga lalaki kaya sila ang lagi ring dapat mauna sa lahat ng bagay.

Kung pumayag kaya ako sa gusto ng asawa ko ng gabing iyon, hindi n’ya kaya ako masasaktan? Kung hindi na lang ba ako nagtrabaho para lagi ko s’yang mapaghain ng kakainin n’ya, hindi kaya s’ya mambababae? Kung sinunod ko na lang kaya ang lahat ng mga sinasabi n’ya, magkasama pa kaya kami?

Sabi n’ya mahal n’ya raw ako at kailanman ay hindi iiwan. Hanggang ngayon pinanghahawakan ko pa rin ang pangakong iyon.

12:00 ng umaga

May pumasok na lalaking nakaputi sa kwarto. Ayoko sa kan’ya, demonyo s’ya. Binato ko s’ya ng unan pagkatapos lumapit s’ya at may tinurok sa braso ko. Nakatulog ako ulit pero nagising ako nang may tumatawag sa akin mula sa labas. Binuksan ko ang bintana para hanapin kung saan galing ang munting tinig. Tanging ang pulang bulaklak lang ang naroon. Kumikinang s’ya sa ilalim ng liwanag ng buwan. Bumukas ang pintu-an at pumasok ang babaeng nakaputi. “Tingnan mo, parang ako s’ya,” pagmamalaki ko sa kan’ya. Ngumiti s’ya sa akin, “Gusto mo ba ulit magkwento?” At humiga ako sa aking kama habang s’ya ay nakaupo malapit sa akin.

Bago ko pa makilala ang asawa ko, isa akong sikat na mananayaw. Hindi lang ako magaling sumayaw, maganda at maputi rin ako. Ako ang pinakamagaling at pinakamaganda sa pinagtatra-bahuan kong kompan’ya na pinakasikat naman sa lugar namin. Kahit na sabi ng ilan na magre-tiro na raw ako, marami pa ring parokyano na ako ang hinahanap. At buong pagmamalaki kong ipinagsisigawan na narating ko ang posisyon ko ngayon dahil sa aking pagsusumikap at pag-titiyaga. Marangal naman ang trabahong ito, kaysa magnakaw ako o di kaya pumatay. Pero pangarap ko talagang maging katulad ng babaeng nakaputi. Masaya na rin ako sa ganitong trabaho. Malaki ang kita lalo na nang ibinalik nila ang mga base ng mga Amerikano; pero, s’yempre de-pende ang kita sa kakayahan mo at sa kustomer.

Sa tagal ko na sa industriyang ito, halos kabisado ko na ang mga dapat gawin para mapasaya ang aking mga parokyano. Akala n’yo siguro basta-basta lang ang trabaho namin dito. Ito yata ang pinakamahirap na trabahong pwedeng pasukin ng mga katulad ko. Hindi pwedeng maganda ka lang. Wala ring silbi kung matalino ka man. “Hindi ka tatanggapin dun, hindi ka naman marunong sumayaw e,” pang-aasar ko sa babaeng nakaputi. Tumawa lang s’ya kaya tinuloy ko ang kwento.

Nang araw na iyon, may mga bagong dating na kasa-ma. Dalawang magkapatid na batang babae. Ihinabil-in daw ng mga kamag-anak sa may-ari. Lumapit ako sa kanila at nagpakilala. Bata, maganda, maputi…Parang ako sila.

8:00 ng umaga

Sa unang pagkakataon, pinalabas nila ako ng kwarto. Dinala nila ako sa isa pang silid kung saan may isang babaeng nakaitim naman ang nakita ko. Nakasalamin s’ya atsaka mukhang matapang ang mukha n’ya. Habang kinakausap n’ya ako, marami s’yang nilalabas na mga papel. Ang dami-dami n’yang tinatanong. Naiinis ako sa kanya kaya hindi ako sumasagot. Pagkatapos may pinakita s’ya sa aking papel na may nakasulat na hindi ko naman mabasa. Hindi nga kasi ako marunong magbasa. Ang alam ko lang, nakita ko ang pangalan ko sa papel na iyon.

“Kaya kong isulat ang pangalan ko,” pagmamalaki kong sinabi sa kanya. “Tinuruan ako ni Kuya.”

Si Kuya lang ang nakapag-aral sa aming magkakapa-tid. Sampu kaming lahat, at s’yam ang babae. Sabi ni Itay, hindi n’ya raw ako kayang papasukin sa eskwe-lahan kasi wala raw kaming pera. Si Kuya lang daw ang dapat makapagtapos dahil s’ya ang tutulong kay Itay sa gawaing-bukid. Tsaka hindi raw kakayanin ng utak ko kaya sa bahay na lang daw ako para ma-katulong ako kay Inay. Tama rin si Itay. Naalala ko, may isa akong Amerikanong kustomer na nagturo sa akin magsalita ng Ingles. Dapat daw matuto ako nito dahil ito daw ang sikat. Pwede n’ya rin daw akong dalhin sa Amerika kapag marunong na akong mag-salita at magsulat ng Ingles. Kaya lang hindi talaga kinaya ng utak ko kaya siguro iniwan n’ya rin ako dahil ang bobo ko.

Hindi ko rin naman pinagsisisihan na hindi ako nakapag-aral. Masaya sa bahay. Kapag pumapasok si Kuya at pumupunta na si Itay sa bukid, lagi kaming naglalaro ng mga kapatid ko pagkatapos ng mga gawaing bahay. Madalas, nagkakantahan pa kami nina Inay. Pero sabi nila, mas masaya raw sa eskwe-lahan dahil may matutunan ka at marami ka ring makikilalang mga kaibigan. Ano kayang pakiramdam na marunong kang magsulat at bumasa? Kaya ko namang isulat ang pangalan ko.

Inagaw ko ang papel sa babaeng nakaitim at kumuha ng lapis. “Gusto mo bang makita?”

Ayaw n’ya ata makita ang sulat ko kaya inilabas na ako ng babaeng nakaputi at ibinalik sa kwarto ko. Binuksan n’ya ang bintana atsaka ako tinanong, “Ano ang lagi mong tinitingnan dito sa labas?”

Natuwa ako kasi ito ang unang beses na tinanong n’ya ito sa akin. Tinuro ko ang pulang bulaklak sa gitna ng mga damo. “Ako yan.” Nginitian ko s’ya. Lumuluha n’ya akong niyakap nang mahigpit.

“Mama.” ▼

Rose F E A T U R E S

F E A T U R E S

On to Greater Roads of

Giving Back

Mohammad Muktadir Ahmad Estrella is the newest addition to the

esteemed mentors that constitute the University of the Philippines Manila

Political Science Faculty. He was admitted as an instructor of the Political

Science Program last academic year 2013-2014, and will be celebrating his

first year anniversary as an instructor in the university this November.

Being part of the faculty

Sir Mudir, as he is called by his students, is not really a new face in the university. He is a grad-uate of Political Science (PolSci) in 2012 and was the chairperson of the College of Arts and Sciences Stu-dent Council (CASSC) in the school year 2011-2012. After graduating, he took up law in the Ateneo de Manila University, then came back to UP Manila to be part of the University’s Political Science Program, this time, as a mentor.

Life changing – this is how Sir Mudir describes his PolSci life in the university. Coming from a very conservative family, a political clan who benefits from the current system of the society, he was in a disposition where his mindset was geared away from the real problems of the system. Studying in the university isolated him from this point of view, and allowed him to see that something needs to be done with the current status quo.

In terms of his academic life, Sir Mudir was a good example of a model student. He was an active member of 14 organizations and was also the CASSC chairperson during his graduating year. De-spite being burdened with a lot of organizational tasks and leadership responsibilities, he was able to juggle them well together with his academic load. Having a lot of things to do pressured him to manage his time well and make sure that he always allotted time for his studies. He believes that as a student, it is his responsibility to his parents to study well. Moreo-ver, he considers getting good grades as a self-fulfillment. For him, having friends who are always there for you is a big help when it comes to facing one’s academic life.

Even Sir Mudir was not immune to dis-crimination when he was still a student. Being a Tau-sug Muslim from Sulu, he was easily subjected to the scrutinizing eyes of some people. When he was on his freshman year in the university, he experienced some form of discrimination for he was from Sulu. One of his classmates doubted his academic capability, but he eventually proved his classmate wrong. He also expe-rienced other kinds of discrimination, but instead of

letting these experiences bring him down, he

managed to transform it into strength. He believes that the things that make a person unique should be used as an advantage rather than allow other people to use them against you.

When Sir Mudir took his summer in-ternship, he realized that he does not see himself working immediately, so he decided to continue with his studies. After graduating, he entered Ateneo de Manila University to study law. Howev-er, after a year, he decided to come back to UP, this time, as an instructor of Political Science while pursuing his law studies.

Mentoring was really one of Sir Mudir’s passions. Even as a child, he would gather other children and teach them in their home, complete with report cards and medals that he would give away to his “students” afterwards. Though some of his relatives discouraged his dream to be a teacher, the passion for teaching remained in him. Aside from this, he also considers teaching as a way of giving back to the people.

Adjusting from being Kuya Mudir who is the former CASSC chairperson and the Sir Mudir who is a PolSci instructor is one of the difficulties that he has encountered since his comeback to the university as a teacher. But when it comes to han-dling the tasks of a mentor, he holds that one would not find it difficult to do something that one likes doing.

Working with his co-faculty members, who have once been his teachers, is also subject to adjustment for Sir Mudir since he sometimes feels that he is still a student when he is with his fellow faculty members. Being the newest addition to the PolSci faculty, Sir Mudir sees to it that he is open to the pieces of advice and teachings of the other members of the department. He considers the Political Science faculty as more of a family. When he is with his former teachers, now fellow faculty members, he never felt that his ideas were inferior; he was even the person they consult when it comes to student affairs because of his fresh student expe-riences.

In the future, Sir Mudir wants to author a book which could be about the Bangsamoro people or the Tausug Muslim Women, the topic of his under-graduate seminar paper. He also wants to pass the bar exam and be a lawyer for the people. He also aims to be an inspiration to PolSci students who aspire to become a lawyer to pursue their dream. There are times when PolSci students become discouraged to take up law because they start to realize that the de-gree program is not actually a “good” pre-law course. However, for Sir Mudir, there is really no degree program that can be considered the “best” pre-law course that is why they should not be hindered by that hesitation.

Sir Mudir’s advice for Political Science students who want to become lawyers is to work hard and study well. In law school, he observed that stu-dents who are diligent and who devote their time in studying beat smart kids who think that they can relax and take everything easy. Law school demands its students to study and work hard. However, Sir Mudir also believes that anyone who wants to pursue law has to want it by heart, it has to be a personal aspiration. One also has to really see oneself as a lawyer in the future. Most importantly, he reminds law aspirants to never forget the things that they have learned from Political Science. Law school can sometimes be really technical that is why it is important for the students to always remember the critical theories that they learned from UPM Political Science because it allows them to understand how the law applies to the people.

Sir Mudir hopes that the lessons that students learn from their PolSci subjects would not end in the classrooms. He believes that the theories and lessons that we learn from class are best when applied in real life. He also hopes that after studying Political Science, students would be able to cultivate an advocacy that they would really work for. For him, this is one of the clearest manifestations that the program is being able to fulfill its mandate to develop students who would serve the people. Having gradu-ates who would have advocacies would be the real measure of success of the program. ▼

WELCOME BACK

Life as a political science student

Conquering discrimination

From up to ateneo to up

Looking forward

On becoming lawyers

Message

----- DANIE LL E MERC ENE AND ROC EL CRUZ -----

P R A C t I C O n

S P E C I A L

Mainstream Summer? Not in the least!

P R A C t I C O n

S P E C I A L

P R A C t I C O n

S P E C I A L

ExeComm!

For you, UP POLIS is: love What is the most pressing issue

concerning the field of Political Sci-ence today? In UP Manila, ginagawa pa rin siyang stepping stone, para makapasok ng med courses. At the same time, tingin ko malaking challenge din para sa polsci ngayon yung economic integration, I think very interesting siyang tingnan. How do you differentiate being non-aligned and being apolitical?

Being apolitical is you don’t give a damn care about politics, hindi ka nakekeelam sa pulitika. Pag sinabi mong non-alligned, may pakialam ka, pero hindi necessary na meron kang kinikilingan kumbaga, satin as an org, tinitake into consideration yung opin-ion ng lahat ng tao bago tayo maglabas ng stand.

How do you handle your responsi-bilities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? Kailangan mo lang talaga ng time management at list of priorities. Kapag

committed ka naman na gawin yung mga responsibilidad mo, mamomo-tivate ka talaga na gawin sila, lalo na pag nakikita mong, kailangan mong gawin for the sake na hindi masayang o mapunta sa wala yung nasimulan. What is love in the essence of being an iskolar ng bayan? Sakin kasi, kapag dinesescribe ko yung love, automatic na pumapasok ko yung love conquers all, love knows no boundaries, mga ganun, kung irerelate ko sa pagiging iskolar ng bayan, siguro, ipaglalaban natin kung ano yung mahal

talaga natin, at andun yung commitment atyung pagpupursigi na kung ano man yung pinaglalaban mo, ay ipaglalaban mo talaga. Message for UP Polis Members: Lahat na ata ng mageecompass ng ma-gandang sabihin sa mga members ay yung mismong motto natin, the bond of unity conquers all. Gusto ko lang sana na wag nilang kakalimutan na yung pina-kaessence talaga nun na as long as magkakasama tayo, kasi nga, all in one na yung org, hindi tatayo yung org, kung hindi tayo magconcontribute bawat isa. Sa ngayon, nakikita ko na na yung mga members, yung mga iiwanan naming, nakikita ko na talaga sa kanila na meron kaming iiwanan na maganda na may kinabukasan si UP Polis and sana hindi kami mabigo. Si Polis hindi mabigo.

CHAIRPERSON

Yap, Ann Claryn Burgos

UP POLIS member since 2011, 2nd semester Previous positions held in POLIS:

Secretary General (AY 2013-2014), Junior Political Attache (Polis repre-sentative for APSOP) For you, UP POLIS is: The only thing constant in my life for now. UP Polis puts the twist in PolSci. What is the most pressing issue con-cerning the field of Political Science today? I think the most pressing issue concern-ing our field is that majors graduate in the program only to work in fields where the theories we learned aren’t exactly applied as directly as one wants. Minsan napapatanong ako kung gaano ka-relevant ang pagiging political scientist? Syempre, oo. Pero mahirap i-explain,

ganun. Parang sa essay exams lang natin, pahirapan i-explain. How do you handle your responsi-bilities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? Masaya kasi sa Polis. Ayoko mabaliw kaka-readings, kailangan mo rin ng ibang gagawin na makabuluhan sa buhay. Saka yung execomm ngayon, sobrang understanding nila. Tulungan lang, ganun. Walang iwanan. What is love in the essence of being an iskolar ng bayan? Love is never giving up on the things you believe in. Kung alam mo yung tama, edi ipaglaban mo. Kasi kung hindi mo ipaglalaban, mas talo ka. Message for Members: Life is more special when we spend it with other people. Hehe. Polis loooove. Rak!

Vice CHAIRPERSON For internal affairs

Sunga, anna gabrielle UP POLIS member since 2012 Previous positions held in POLIS: Membership Com-

mittee member For you, UP POLIS is: family What is the most pressing issue con-cerning the field of Political Science today? Sa polsci kasi sa UP Manila, ‘yung mga pumapasok kasi dito, hindi lahat e ‘yun talaga ang gusto so parang hindi nabibig-yan ng opportunity yung kung sino talaga ang may gusto, actually kung titingnan mo yung majority ay recon talaga. How do you handle your responsibil-ities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? Time management, tamang priorities, kung meron kang pwedeng isacrifice na

hindi naman ganun kaimportante okay lang naman yun. Kasi pumasok ka sa responsibility na to, dapat panindigan siya. May mga tao kasing, may mga kailangan syang gawin pero hindi nya ginagawa, so hindi lang kasi yung tao yung naaapektuhan kung hindi yung buong org, so malaking bagay sakin yung kailangan gawin mo yung dapat mong gawin. How do you differentiate being non-aligned and being apolitical? Kapag apolitical, wala kang pake talaga sa politics per se, kapag non-alligned, wala kang kinikilingan sa dalwang sides na meron tas kinicater mo lahat ng sides na meron, saka ka gagawa ng stand. Message for UP Polis Members: Sana maging active sila and magpartici-pate sa mga events na gagawin ni Polis. Sana mahalin nila si Polis.

Vice CHAIRPERSON For external affairs

Montemayor, teresa

A new academic year means a new set of Executive Committee (ExeComm) for UP Polis! Let's get to know

the ExeComm a little deeper and see how they look at some important things in their Polis lives.

UP POLIS mem-ber since 2013 Previous positions held in POLIS:

Public Affairs Committee member

For you, UP POLIS is: A family.

What is the most pressing issue con-cerning the field of Political Science today? The development of it as a discipline. Improving the perception of people with

regards to what it truly is (as opposed to just being a pre-law course). Estab-lishing the degree of relevance it actu-ally has.

How do you differentiate being non-aligned and being apolitical? Apolitical is not caring at all about society (not just politics) and I person-ally define this as political illiteracy. Being non-aligned is being objective, of being cognizant of what each side

fights for, (not even just in the ex-tremes, in the continuum as well). However being non-aligned is a myth for me, all of us deviates from the center to a certain extent.

How do you handle your responsi-bilities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? Much discipline in time management, REALLY being in the moment, and giving 100% in each and every endeav-

our. Coffee. Yoga. God, so much God. Affirmations What is love in the essence of being an iskolar ng bayan? Love is happy, genuine service. Love is ensuring that all that you care for is well, if they’re not, you fight for them to be well. Love is equality, ensuring that no one is discriminated upon, no one is left out. Love is the devotion of your skills (and your education) to making the world a better place.

Message for POLIS Members: Hi, bayad kayong dues. Attend kayong events. Love kayo ni polis :) We are all family. Love ya’ll.

Secretary general

Reyes, daniella DOminique

UP POLIS mem-ber since 2013 Previous positions held in POLIS:

Public Affairs Committee member For you, UP POLIS is: UP Polis is what made me love Political Science. Alam ko meron sa ating hindi naman talaga ginustong mag-Political Science. Kahit nga PolSci ang sinulat kong 1st choice sa UPCAT dati, hindi ko pa din alam kung bakit nga ba ako nandito. Pero nung sumali ako sa UP Polis, mas naappreciate ko at mas nada-ma ko ang pagiging Political Science major ko. Nandun kasi yung feeling na kasama ka sa isang org na isinusulong ang interest ng mga PolSci majors at ang

kapakanan ng sambayanan. Masayang makasama yung mga members ng UP Polis. Hindi ka lang basta magiging aware sa iba’t-ibang isyu ng lipunan, magkakaroon ka din ng kasamang maglaro ng UNO cards, may taga-bantay ng gamit mo, may kasama ka palaging kumain at higit sa lahat, sa kabila ng lahat ng katoxican ng UP life, may mga taong sasabayan kang ta-wanan lang ang lahat.

What is the most pressing issue concerning the field of Political Science today? Para sa akin, isa sa mga isyu na kinaka-harap ng Political Science ay yung paglugar niya sa sarili niya kung isa ba siyang science o hindi. Dahil nga kara-

mihan sa subjects ng mga pag-aaral sa Political Science ay mga tao, hindi maiiwasang maging subjective ang dating nito at dahil dito ay sinasabi nila na hindi tayo isang science dahil hindi fixed ang mga resultang nakukuha natin. Pero naniniwala ako na dapat itong ituring na isang science dahil, bukod sa ginagamit din nito ang meth-odologies ng science, nagagawa din naman ng Political Science na mapag-aralan ang mga political phenomena sa pamamagitan ng empirical evidence. How do you handle your responsi-bilities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? “Tiwala lang.” Sa kabila ng santambak na acads stuff lalo na dahil seniors na

kami, nagagawa pa din naman nating umattend sa mga meeting at makapa-ghanda tuwing may events si Polis. At dahil yan sa tiwala—tiwala sa sarili, sa org at sa mga kasama mo. Syempre ang una mong dapat gawin ay ang subukang balansehin ang oras mo pero pag di ka nagtagumpay, magtiwala ka lang na kaya pa din yan! Message for UP Polis Members: Hi Polis loves! Maraming salamat sa pagi-ging parte ng UPM life ko. Simula nung sumali ako sa UP Polis, yung tambayan na natin ang naging tirahan ko sa UPM. Para sa mga new members, sana maramdaman niyo din ang sayang dinala ni Polis sa buhay namin. Pag kailangan ng tulong, nandito lang kami palagi. Kwentuhan tayo sa tambayan! Sana magkaroon din tayo ng madaming good memories. Enjoy your stay in UP Polis!

auditor

Mercene, Danielle allana

Member since 2013 Previous positions held in POLIS: Public Affairs Com-mittee member

For you, UP POLIS is: happiness

What is the most pressing issue con-cerning the field of Political Science today? Sa tingin ko ay nauundermine din kasi ng mga students yung esensya ng political science. Ginagamit nga nila ito bilang stepping stone-parang iniisip lang nila, pagkagraduate ko ng polsci, saka ko ipupursue yung ibang bagay. Hindi tayo nagkakaron ng goal na dahil polsci ako, magagawa ko to.

How do you handle your responsibil-ities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? Para sakin tamang time management

lang. Kailangan nating magprioritize ng mga bagay, if you need to drop social life dahil sa sobrang busy ka, you have to drop it, kasi priority naman natin ngayon ay makagraduate. Actually, yung kapag kasama ko yung friends ko yun na yung pinaka social life ko.

What is love in the essence of being an iskolar ng bayan? Para sakin, hindi ka papasok sa isang bagay na sa huli ay alam mo lang na-man din na susukuan mo, andun sa paaralan para ipaglaban yung mga bagay na mahalaga sayo. Gamitin nating inspirasyon ang mismong insti-tusyong pinapasukan natin.

Message to POLIS Members: Hindi lang tayo basta isang acad org, tayo po ay isang pamilya, tayo ay isang love life, isang social life, isang aca-demic na pagsasama-sama. Yay love!

Public affairs committee head

Aclan, marialla isabel Member since 2013 Previous positions held in POLIS: Finance Committee member

For you, UP POLIS is: UP POLIS is my family in UP Manila. I’ve met new parents, new siblings, new kids and new friends that could random-ly greet you and make you smile during the most unexpected times of the day. How do you differentiate being non-aligned and being apolitical? UP POLIS is a non-aligned organization and NOT apolitical. Being apolitical is completely taking no sides in an argu-ment or issue on the other hand; being non-aligned is not having a stand in an argument or issue right away without consulting or weighing both sides of the issue properly. How do you handle your responsibilities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? If you love what you are doing, you will make time not only to do it but to do it

well. With the great support system I have from my friends and family, I am able to get through my academics and org duties alive. hat is love in the essence of being an Iskolar ng Bayan? Love means being able to give all that you have without asking anything in return. Love means sacrifice – the willingness to sacrifice all that you can for the sake of helping other people. Message for UP Polis Members: Hello UP POLIS Members! I hope we can all find some time to bond and know each other more despite the toxicity of our academics. I hope that you learn to love Polis the way I fell in love with it because in that way, every-thing you do for this org will be a labor of love, which for me is the best you can give for Polis. Good luck sa ating acads! If I can be of any help, please do not hesitate to approach me PS. Huwag din po nating kalimutang magbayad ng dues ah. Hihihi

finance committee head

KUA, TERESA KATHERINE

Member since 2013 Previous positions held in POLIS: Legal Affairs Com-mittee Member,

Pulitika Contributor For you, UP POLIS is: UP Polis is like a puzzle piece. Everyone has their own ideas, opinions and mind-sets but in the end, we stand united. We fit together no matter how unique each piece is, just like a puzzle. What is the most pressing issue concern-ing the field of political science today? Ignorance is one of the pressing prob-lems in the field of political science today. Today, I feel like the people are too focused on their own problems so they fail to see the bigger picture. I find it really weird that the people (especially the youth) are now more interested in Daniel Padilla rather than the crucial national issues that the Filipinos face. Consequently, fewer people are inter-

ested to dabble with political science. PolSci is a subject that everyone should be interested in What is love in the essence of being an iskolar ng bayan? Being an iska/isko compels us to feel that we love our country but in truth, only a handful really loves the Philip-pines. To say that we love the Philip-pines, we must be loyal to it by striving to remove or at least lessen our coloni-al mentality; we must respect it by honoring our history; we must cherish it by contributing to change it for the better. Message to Polis Members: Hello members! Studying in UPM may be tough but always remember that college life is not all about your aca-demic standing. College life is an op-portunity to meet new people and to forge new bonds. With that said, I hope you will all have a fruitful year.

Legal affairs committee head

Mamaril, mariela mae

Member since 2013 Previous positions held in POLIS: Membership Com-mittee member

For you, UP POLIS is: Si UP Polis ay isang mahalagang part ng student life ko.Tinulungan niya kong magkaroon ng mas matinong sense of responsibility. What is the most pressing issue concern-ing the field of Political Science today? Masasabi kong ang pinakamalaking probleman ngayon ay kakulangan ng wastong edukasyon tungkol sa mga problemang panlipunan. Marami sa atin ang walang alam at walang pakialam sa mga suliranin ng ating bansa. Marami sa

atin ang hindi pa bukas ang isip sa mga bagay-bagay at pinipiling wag alamin ang mga ito; bagkus ay pinipiling gami-tin ang kung anumang paniniwala ang itinakda sa atin ng lipunan, nang hindi tinitignan kung ito nga ba ay tama. . How do you handle your responsi-bilities as part of the ExeComm and as a student? By setting my priorities straight! What is love in the essence of being an iskolar ng bayan? Love is a continuous struggle. Message for UP Polis Members: Hi! Participate tayo sa activities at sana (dapat) mas maging close pa ang lahat sa org at sa isa’t isa. :)

membership committee head

Gumela, jimson leandro

F E A T U R E S

POLIS Apps Week, cliché as it may sound, was

the best application process I had encountered in my entire ‘org-life’ here in UP. This year’s Hunger Games inspired theme “Tikas. Husay. Gilas.” adds more excitement not only because of the popularity of the book but also because this remains true to the organiza-tion’s objective of being readily involved in serving the people.

(noun) Physical, and mental

quality that facilitates achievement

or accomplishment.

All of the activities during the application

period tested our mental, physical, social and emotional

skills. As in the Hunger Games, we indeed became

tributes, excluding of course the killing of one another

to win. We competed as a team in accomplishing several

tasks like, to name my favorites, longest line that

symbolized the insufficiently supported textile industry;

memory game which included pictures of livestock and

viruses held by different members; pseudo-enlistment

that portrayed the oppressive system of education we

currently have; and personally, the most memorable

game, the “collective feet” challenge that represented

the degrading transportation system in Metro Manila. As

Team-Morrow stood by its mission of exercising undis-

puted collective effort, we nailed task after task and

became this year’s best team.

Accomplishing the tasks in the apps kit demand-

ed profound interest in the academic organization. My

buddy Denise B. Musni, supported me throughout the

process by helping me in answering some questions in

the apps kit. I had to answer several questions about

concepts in Political Science which I have not yet

encountered. Knowing more the executive committee

and membership committee by discovering their person-

al facts was a clever part of the apps kit. I found this

challenging as I was actually entering an organization

with no knowledge at all about its members.

My frustration for being artistically inclined

which for the longest time had been repressed had

eventually materialized during the application period

when we were tasked to take a buddy picture which

must convey commodification. The competitiveness was

exuding in our buddy picture from the sophisticated

alternative sablay adorned with money and a graduation

hat with a price tag that signified commoditized quality

education. It took me two straight hours to finish the

sablay made up of cartolina. To think that all those

preparations would only result into a single picture,

despite the stringent academic load, was surprising in

our part to make it possible. Fortunately, considering the

aesthetic skill my buddy and I have, we produced the

second best buddy picture in this year’s apps week.

Indeed, the

ability or as defined,

the physical and

mental capacity to

achieve something,

cannot be said to be

inherent to a handful

of individuals only.

Rather, this ability,

as what the applica-

tion period has

taught me, could be

molded through

collective efforts.

Most importantly, it

could be appreciated

even in the simplest

My experience John Chr i st ian Yap

F E A T U R E S

things that we never thought we were capable of doing.

(adj.) Marked by

effective action to become more

open-minded and to escape from the

room of individualism.

The thrilling experience in the Apps week did not

stop there. The interview portion required adequate

mental agility. At first, I became nervous and anxious

because of the traumatic experience I suffered in my

previous interview sessions. As each phase, from commit-

tees to alumni interview, stimulated a less-intense atmos-

phere, I became more open-minded and was able to

answer questions thoroughly. Some old members of the

organization had already anticipated the troublesome

interaction I might experience during Sir Jude’s critical

level of conducting an interview but I was determined as I

respectfully defended my answers to him, without realiz-

ing that I was already talking for 20 straight minutes

exceeding the maximum 5-minute time between each

alumni. I appreciated what Ate Claryn, the chairperson,

did when she debriefed me after the process. It was as if I

had gone through an accident where a paramedic rescued

me to give me first aid.

I thought the interviews were the most pressing

mental exercise before proceeding in this ‘last’ applica-

tion process. Personally, I really thought that the applica-

tion process would end after the interview. I was not

aware of this ‘trust’ part of the application. It actually

turned out to be the most life-changing (no exaggeration),

experience not just in entering Polis but in my entire

academic life. The sudden emotional break- down

after Kuya JL explained the

essence of the activity

was the least expected scenario after I signed up in this

organization.

Anyone could have their own life-changing

stories. It could be when we start to fall in love for the

first time, or it could be our first Uno in college. But then,

while it is a very subjective concept, a life-changing

experience is not just something that you cannot forget. It

is that part of your memory that ought not to be lost but

instead, treasured.

(noun.) The act of

binding yourself to a course of action.

Joining an organization is not an easy process. It

does not merely end after the application period. It is also

not just about meeting new friends. Nor can it be simply

equated with having study buddies, acquiring free review-

ers and compiled readings. In fact, the application re-

quirements and the whole procedure are not just for mere

formality but these tested the commitment of an ‘acad-

busy’ student to function as an active member once one is

accepted in the organization. Allegiance is the keyword. It

is important that before signing for an organization, one

should think of it as committing with a person you

treasure most. It is as if you are establishing an effective

nationality link with a particular state. Other than the

perks you can get in joining an organization, it is an act of

committing oneself to the purposes of the organization. It

is an act of binding oneself to a specific course of action.

The experience and learnings I got, thanks to this

organization, was worth a special compartment and will

be forever residing in my mind. Vinculum Unitatis Vincit

Omnia! ▼