By Joseph B.A. Marzan
Angelique Ardena, a 19-year-old Person With Disability (PWD), was one of the first to line up for the Boto Tayo Sa Mayo (BTSM) on Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021, at the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) in Iloilo City.
She spent 15 minutes in the queue starting at 8 a.m., and around 20 to 30 minutes to register despite not filling up some entries of the registration form.
“While ginapangita namon ni tatay kung diin mapila, ginhambalan nalang kami sang isa ka staff nga mauna nalang kami daw sa may auditorium. Kung isipon ko, medyo lost ko throughout the whole process, and daw nagsala pa ko because may ara pa parts sa form ko nga wala ko na fill-in, pero I’ve managed. I think it might have been around 20-30 minutes until I was fully registered,” Ardena told Daily Guardian.
What motivated Ardena to register to vote is the fact that while she only had one vote, she believed it could have an impact on who could be the next leaders of the country.
“I want to help make a change. The process of voting might be simple, but our votes play a huge role in determining the future of our country. That’s what motivated me to register,” she said.
It was difficult for her to go out as a PWD since she was also studying and because of the current pandemic, but she described her registration experience as “PWD-friendly”.
Ardena added that registering to vote made her reflect on her desire to be part of the electoral process and exercise her responsibility as a citizen.
“Personally, I can say the experience was something to think about, to reflect on. It’s because now that nakapa-register ako, I have been given this responsibility to become a registered voter and with this in mind, I also have another chance or another opportunity to have a say in regards to the future of our country,” she said.
With the limited amount of time left to register, Ardena also encouraged others to go out and register.
“In voting, we go through this process. But sometimes, what we don’t think much about is that this said process will lead us and this country to something big, something that will be for the greater good or the opposite of it. Your votes will not only matter in the elections, but it will matter in the years after it. It will matter to the generations ahead of us. That’s why, if given the chance, please register to vote,” she said.
