The elections per se can be framed specifically to exclude parties with a small or

minimal level of support. The development of the role of parties as a vehicle for
individual political leaders is another trend which can be facilitated or retarded by
election design decisions. The elections should encourage the development of
parties which are based on broad political values and ideologies as well as specific
policy programmes, rather than narrow ethnic, racial or regional concerns. As well
as lessening the threat of societal conflict, parties which are based on these broad
crosscutting cleavages are more likely to reflect national opinion than those which
are based predominantly on sectarian or regional concerns.
The elections should help ensure the presence of a viable opposition grouping which
can critically assess legislation, question the performance of the executive,
safeguard minority rights, and represent its constituents effectively.
Our election which appears at the outset to be a little more expensive to administer
and more complex to understand may in the long run help to ensure the stability of
the country and the positive direction of democratic consolidation.

1. Corruption in the government.

2. Poverty
3. Education system
4. Lack of Basic Infrastructure
5. Energy Crisis
6. Traffic congestion on the main roads and highways
7. Flood crisis and disaster management
8. Inefficiency in process
9. Unemployment/Lack of local opportunities to promising graduates
10.
Overpopulation

Such sheer number of people means we have more mouths to feed,

therefore our meager resources are stretched thin and it severely affects
the government's ability to provide housing, work, healthcare, food, and
education.
As difference between demand and supply continues to expand due to
overpopulation, it raises the prices of various commodities including food,
shelter and healthcare. This means that people have to pay more to
survive and feed their
families.
This results to poverty and gives rise to unemployment as there fewer
jobs to support large number of people. Rise in unemployment gives rise
to crime as people will steal various items to feed their family and provide
them basic amenities of life.
The poor quality of life forces people from poor families to go overseas,
exposing them to abuse and constant wars.

A basic issue in the discussion of the role of the mass media in todays
society is whether they do reflect social reality in a broad sense, or
whether, instead, the elites which control them filter out the view of
reality which they see fit to be made public. To my mind, the answer to
this question is that the media do both, depending on the way we
define reality.
To take, first, political reality, mass media, in one sense, do not
provide a faked view of it. Taking into account what is considered as
politics today, i.e. the activity of professional politicians representing
the people, one may argue that it is politics itself, which is faked, and
mass media simply reproduce this reality. In this sense, the issue is
not whether the mass media manipulate democracy, since it is
democracy itself, which is faked, and not its mass media picture, which
simply reflects the reality of present democracy. But, at the same
time, if we give a different definition to political reality, mass media do
provide, in general, a distorted picture of it. In other words, if we
define as real politics the political activity of people themselves (for
instance, the collective struggles of various sectors of the population
around political, economic or social issues) rather than that of
professional politicians, then, the mass media do distort the picture
they present about political reality. They do so, by minimising the
significance of this type of activity, by distorting its meaning, by
marginalising it, or by simply ignoring it completely.
Furthermore, mass media do provide a distorted picture of political
reality when they come to report the causes of crises, or of the
conflicts involving various sections of the elites. In such cases they
faithfully reflect the picture that the sections of the elites controlling
them wish to reproduce.

The media play an indispensable role in the proper functioning of a

democracy. The media's functions within electoral contexts, often focuses on
their role by unfettered scrutiny and discussion of the successes and failures
of candidates, governments, and electoral management bodies, the media
can inform the public of how effectively they have performed and help to
hold them to account.

Yet the media also have other roles in enabling full public participation in
elections. By educating voters on how to exercise their democratic rights; by
reporting on the development of an election campaign; by providing a
platform for the political parties and candidates to communicate their
message to the electorate; by providing a platform for the public to
communicate their concerns, opinions, and needs, to the parties/candidates,
the government, and to other voters, and to interact on these issues; by
allowing the parties and candidates to debate with each other; by reporting
results and monitoring vote counting; and by providing information that, as
far as possible, avoids inflammatory language, helping to prevent electionrelated violence.
The media are not the sole source of information for voters, but in a world
dominated by mass communications, it is increasingly the media that
determine the political agenda.
Elections constitute a basic challenge to the media, putting its impartiality
and objectivity to the test. The task of the media, especially national media
outlets, is not and should not be to function as a mouthpiece for any
government body or particular candidate. Its basic role is to enlighten and
educate the public and act as a neutral, objective platform for the free
debate of all points of view.

ARTICLE II

The Principle that we maintain is embodied in the 1987 Constitution,

Article II, Sections 1-6.
PRINCIPLES
Section 1. The Philippines is a democratic and republican State. Sovereignty
resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.
Section 2. The Philippines renounces war as an instrument of national policy,
adopts the generally accepted principles of international law as part of the
law of the land and adheres to the policy of peace, equality, justice,
freedom, cooperation, and amity with all nations.
Section 3. Civilian authority is, at all times, supreme over the military. The
Armed Forces of the Philippines is the protector of the people and the State.
Its goal is to secure the sovereignty of the State and the integrity of the
national territory.
Section 4. The prime duty of the Government is to serve and protect the
people. The Government may call upon the people to defend the State and,
in the fulfillment thereof, all citizens may be required, under conditions
provided by law, to render personal, military or civil service.
Section 5. The maintenance of peace and order, the protection of life, liberty,
and property, and promotion of the general welfare are essential for the
enjoyment by all the people of the blessings of democracy.
Section 6. The separation of Church and State shall be inviolable.