The MCS-COMELEC Organizes a Miting De Avance for Aspiring Campus Leaders 

The MCS-COMELEC hosted a Miting De Avance for Malateans to get to know their SCB candidates for the school year 2023-2024 and provide the candidates an opportunity to present their platforms and beliefs.

Written by: Ruanne Tan

Layout by: Aurora Isabel Madali

Photojournalist: Jianne Paula Saliedo

May 31, 2023 | 2:00 P.M.

On May 23, 2023, at 1:30 PM, a Miting De Avance was held, an event where SCB candidates showcase their platforms and advocacies. The event took place in the Audio Visual Room (AVR), was facilitated by Mr. Kenjie Eneran, and hosted by SCB STEM representative Sun Hi Kim and Ronnie Margaret Lacorte. It was also live-streamed on the MCS Student Coordinating Board Facebook page.

The gist of the rules was that executive position candidates except the Vice President and President will be allowed to speak for 2-3 minutes. Questions are read twice by the SCB officers before the candidate answers. The candidates, depending on the position they are running for and the question asked, are given 30 seconds to 1 minute to answer. Grade level and strand representatives were allowed to convey their speech for 2-3 minutes. For Presidential candidates, the question and answer portion is divided into two rounds.

The Miting de Avance began with the campaign managers of each party introducing their candidates. It started with the ALAB partylist, followed by the APTITUDE partylist, and the KAAGAPAY partylist.

Vice-Presidential Candidates

For the junior high school vice presidential candidates, when asked what issues they advocate for and how they planned to raise awareness about it, Tiffany Isais from ALAB says she valued letting others speak about their problems, Beatrice Salvacion from KAAGAPAY advocates for anti-bullying and letting students speak their own opinion. 

For the senior high school vice presidential candidates, when asked if they would be able to handle cases that require a mature perspective with responsibility and maturity, as well as avoid any bias or unfair favoring when handling said cases, Adia Avendaño from APTITUDE promotes equality, Aira Lao from ALAB focuses on transparency with students and friends, and Reigne Bautista from KAAGAPAY said that she can lead without bias as she is disciplined with her morality.

Presidential candidates

In the first round, the candidates were asked about their stance on mandatory ROTC in schools. Aurora Madali from KAAGAPAY does not believe that it should be mandatory and students should be allowed to decide for themselves. Joshua Shimizu from ALAB only approves it if they have safety measures to avoid hazing. Pauline Bonoan from APTITUDE believes that it is not needed and should not be forced.

When asked what advice they would give the people experiencing inflation in the Philippines, Aurora Madali states that everyone was affected by it and that she could give awareness and advice on how to handle it. Pauline Bonoan expresses that she would help advise on how to slowly deal with it. Joshua Shimizu says that budgeting was important in dealing with inflation.

Lastly, when asked why their country still suffers from poverty, Joshua Shimizu  believes that the problem was not only in the government but also with the people. Pauline Bonoan claims that the problem was people being unfair and not selfless. Aurora Madali, on the other hand, expresses that it is a prevalent problem as there is a lack of execution in the projects of the government.

For the second round, when asked what leadership style they would demonstrate to maximize the efficiency of each member, and how they would lead them in accomplishing the goals that they wished to achieve, Pauline Bonoan states that she would help students by being there for them. Joshua Shimizu affirms that he would lead with leniency and with positive reinforcement. Aurora Madali conveys she wanted an open-minded and engaging government, to have an awareness of problems, and to reach their full potential.

For their final question, they were given 1 minute each to answer. The candidates were asked on how they would consistently embody the values and virtues the school upholds. 

Joshua Shimizu from ALAB said he believes he would be able to embody the values and virtues by being what his seniors were to him. He wanted to be someone people could rely on and be comfortable with. He wanted the Student Coordinating Board to be friendly and approachable, to be the people whom students could go and talk to if they ever had problems with the school or the system. 

Pauline Bonoan from APTITUDE says if she would win the presidency, she would embody faith, excellence, and service. 

Aurora Madali from KAAGAPAY declares that she would inspire through action and embody faith by being a consistent server of the church; with excellence, she would encourage Malateans to be engaged in their skills, talents, and knowledge; and she will provide service to the public, not exclusive to Malateans.

For final statements, all presidential candidates advocated for their party list and encouraged Malateans to vote for them.