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Youth Participation in Local Governance
By Ramon T. Ayco, Sr.March 2008
I.
 
Introduction
The words “governance” and “good governance” appear frequently these days in the discourse of aid agencies, civil society groups and governments at all levels. In the development world, theterm
does
refer to the activities of government, but it is understood to go beyond government andto include the relationships between formal government institutions and an active civil society.There are eight (8) major characteristics of good governance and the first one is participatory.The other seven includes: consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective andefficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law.Indeed, participatory is the first characteristic and is a key cornerstone of good governance.Participation could be either direct or through legitimate intermediate institutions or representatives. It is important to point out that representative democracy does not necessarilymean that the concerns of the most vulnerable in society would be taken into consideration indecision making. Participation needs to be informed and organized. This means freedom of association and expression on the one hand and an organized civil society on the other hand.Civil society refers to that sphere of voluntary associations and informal networks in whichindividuals and groups engage in activities of public consequence. It is distinguished from the public activities of government because it is voluntary, and from the private activities of markets because it seeks common ground and public goods. It is often described as the "third sector."Civil society includes voluntary associations of all sorts: churches, neighborhood organizations,cooperatives, fraternal and sororal organizations, charities, unions, parties, social movements,interest groups, and families. The inclusion of the family among those forms of social interaction between economy and state yields the broadest definition of civil society. The boundaries aredefined variously in the theoretical literature, and there is much elasticity and ambiguity.Reformers in Eastern Europe, who have been key to reviving the use of the term in recent years,use it expansively to define the challenges of a democratic transition from statist regimes.American conservatives are likely to speak of "mediating structures" more narrowly, and focuson the family, neighborhood and local voluntary associations. Left-liberal intellectuals oftenmake the new social movements (women's movement, environmental movement etc.) the heartof their argument for a renewed civil society that places the public sphere on more pluralisticfoundations.According to the Centre for Civil Society at the London School of Economics, “civil society”refers to the arena of un-coerced collective action around shared interests, purposes and values.In theory, its institutional forms are distinct from those of the state, family and market, though in practice, the boundaries between state, civil society, family and market are often complex,
 
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 blurred and negotiated. Civil society commonly embraces a diversity of spaces, actors andinstitutional forms, varying in their degree of formality, autonomy and power.The idea of civil society as a corrective force to both arbitrary government and imperfect marketsemerged in the 19th century. The impetus for better governance has come, more often than not,from grassroots movements in both urban and rural areas. Recent examples include the role of student protests in the 1960s in the United States (US) and Europe, citizen and youth protests insome Asian countries (e.g., Philippines, South Korea); movements organized aroundenvironmental and global issues, etc. Often the root of such movements and organizations is afeeling of alienation and non-consultation in the process leading to major decisions affecting thelivelihood of people.The transition from single-party to multi-party systems in many transition and developingcountries has resulted in new, and often fragile, forms of representative government that aresuperimposed on the erstwhile colonial or authoritarian structures and have not yet taken rootamong the citizens. In such nations, civil society organizations play a critical role in counteringarbitrary actions and consolidating the base of good governance.
 
Moreover, recent efforts to address social exclusion and a democratic deficit focus on the role of civil society organizations, use of volunteers, and partnerships. Democratic deficit involves thelack of voice to the people, beyond electoral franchise and periodic elections. Social exclusionrefers to the marginalization of minorities, women, and weaker sections from the processes of  policy making, local administration, and the delivery of services.Encouraging civil society organizations can, in time, help address both problems by fostering theinvolvement of people in specific activities of concern to them, and they create a newassertiveness and habit of participation.In the Philippines civil society started blossoming in the late twentieth century, ironically, duringthe dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos (1972-86). The fifteen years of arbitrary governance, crony protection, profligate living and gross human rights violations, capped by economic collapse,heightened organized resistance to the repressive regime. In four momentous days in February1986, Filipinos cried, “Enough!” Marcos Dictatorship was toppled down by a people power uprising called EDSA I.The years since EDSA I have witnessed an explosion of civil society groups in the Philippines.From 27,100 non-government organizations (NGOs) registered as non-stock, non-profit with thePhilippines Securities and Exchange Commission in 1986, the number almost doubled to 50,800 by March 1992. That figure has increased to anywhere from 60,000 to over 95,000 NGOs today.However, only an estimated 5,000 – 7,000 of these are grassroots NGOs whose organizers focuson empowering poor and excluded people, and who live and work with them to overcome poverty and powerlessness in rural, urban and indigenous communities. The other registered NGOs center their activities around more middle-class interests, as in professional associations,church-related groups, welfare associations, student alliances, professional organizations, labor unions, academic institutions and the like.
 
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Formally registered people’s organizations (POs) number in the thousands, augmented by 35,000registered cooperatives, and a large but uncertain number of unregistered community groups.Although the total figure for POs in the Philippines is difficult to estimate, one can confirm thattheir numbers are growing. The local as well as national influence of NGOs, and increasinglyPOs, is all the remarkable when one considers their aim of transforming a society with a population pegged at 82.6 million in 2004 by the National Statistics Office (NSO). A 1998nationwide survey revealed that no more than 15.9 percent of families listed themselves asaffiliated with POs or NGOs, while another 12.9 percent cited membership in cooperatives.While these figures may appear small, in actual numbers NGOs and POs reached 2,384,943families out of the 14,370,711 total for the entire country. Cooperative families covered 852,385families. This is no mean feat.The Philippines has often considered as possessing one of the most vibrant, robust, dynamic, and participatory civil society in the world (Clarke 2000, Racelis 2000). Several cases has proven itsefficacy in providing policy inputs (Magadia 2003), delivering social services, pursuing socio-economic development, and generating accountability. There is added significance if this will be juxtaposed in the prevailing belief that the country possesses a “weak state” (Hutchcroft 1991).But beyond this, the context of an active civil society in the Philippines is contingent upon theidea that the process of democratization is an inclusive process that definitely necessitates its participation and active engagement.In fact, as much as there is a burden on the part of the state to institute the necessary reforms andaddress the existing deficits in its democratic governance, civil society organizations areresponsible for a substantial portion of this task. As the primary actor responsible for thetransition from authoritarian rule, they cannot sit back, relax, and leave the task to thegovernment as there remains a plethora of problems, inadequacies, and limitations of the currentdemocratic polity.At present, there are two interrelated modes of civil society engagement as far as theagenda for democratization is concerned (Eaton 2003). On the one hand, there is the
 protest 
mode which is what most civil society actors are familiar. The tactics of “expose andoppose” run deep within the nature of Philippine civil society as manifested not only in the anti-dictatorship struggle but significant instances in post-Marcos politics. It comprises of the so-called “parliament of the streets”, coalition-building, collective mobilization, mass actions,media campaigns, and community organizing. This mode of (dis)engagement often is a weaponof last resort, particularly if normal or available venues have been exhausted.Moreover, this contentious approach is often utilized when civil society perceives that thedemocratic gains that it vehemently fought for are being jeopardized. This precedent hadtremendous repercussions for the nature of civil society that developed in post-Marcos Philippine politics. It would not be the last time that societal groups were able to successfully demandaccountability from the state. The anti-Estrada campaign that culminated in the so-called PeoplePower II Revolt (or EDSA 2) is a genuine testament of the efficacy and strength of collectivemobilization in the Philippines. In this highly contentious episode, societal actors came tochallenge the legitimate rule of a very popular leader on charges of cronyism and corruption. The
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Princess Monique

this article helped a lot

reply03 / 31 / 2011
stargazer11

this article is very helpful....

reply10 / 07 / 2010
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