With the 2022 National Election closing in, with less than two months to the voter registration deadline, these are the days that are crucial. The civil right that counts the most, the right that can shape the state of democracy as we see it: the right of suffrage – to vote. Are you registered yet?

The 2016 National Election brought many changes over a short period of time, no more noticeable than in the first year alone. The war on drugs had dead bodies lined the streets, plastered with post-mortem cardboard accusations of drug pushing, nanlaban (fighting back/resisting arrest) cases— while the PNP had officially recognized some 5,810 kills in 2020, the less conservative number is estimated by the Commission on Human Rights at 27,000.

And that was just the tip of the iceberg. In the years to follow, the economy reached record lows — its lowest since 1947. Despite a seemingly higher value peso exchange rate, one economic study cites this as the continuation of a downtrend in weak imports, the national debt, and fewer remittances. When you take into account the rice import boom and the multiple loans spurred across the two years, suddenly two and two come together.

It was in the pandemic response in 2020 that tied all these threads together; a greatest hits of all the administration had infamously brought forth. If it wasn’t the widespread red-tagging (everyone from college students who ‘mysteriously’ turn out dead weeks later like Zara Alvarez to Olympic gold-winning athletes like Hidlyn Diaz ) or explicit misogyny (“I have told Inday not to run (…) This is not for women”) — all between 2020 and 2021, it was the abysmal COVID-19 response.

Mass unemployment, no wage support and fallback plans for businesses; all leading to the longest lockdown in the world.

All the while the administration parades their achievements, both in infrastructure and policing budgets, as triumphant despite the massive casualties and consequences.

The Duterte Administration’s legacy in this will leave a bitter taste:

The one that lost a drug ‘war.’
The one that’s losing a pandemic.
The one that chose shoddy infrastructure instead of upholding civil liberties.
The one that lost its citizens’ trust.
The one that uses the pandemic for its own political ends.

But you can put a stop to this – with your vote.

Vote creates change. It is an assertion of your democratic power in a system, an inalienable right. It is a reminder that the power is still with us, the people, and that public servants are supposed to do exactly that: serve the public. And to serve them well.

We are a democratic country, but what happens when economic freedoms are restricted? What happens when the peso makes another record-low, more and more businesses close shop, when your job is threatened and becomes unstable—for both you, your family, and everyone around you?

Simple. It stops becoming a democracy. When you lose democracy as a businessman, you lose your business; as a parent, your children’s future; as a worker, stable and living wages.

You slowly, surely, lose your livelihood, financial stability, even physical and mental health, and, soon, the entire country – whether that’s to foreign land grabs, resource grabs, pollution, or unfettered, unmitigated corruption.

But the people brought them this power, the people can also take this power away.

PURVEYR is proud to use Vote Pilipinas’ platform in championing the power of the voice. by spotlighting their registration utility: Voter Registration Service Test Tool – the newest, easiest way to book, verify, and stay informed on your voter registration credentials.

In the past, the steps to voter registration was quite the undertaking, even for those seeking to reactivate (having not voted in any of the last two major elections). On top of being a Filipino citizen, at least 18 years of age, having voted in any of the last two major elections, you need to know what Comelec office to inquire at, the right forms, and photocopies of any valid ID.

Thankfully, the Voter Registration Service Test Tool lets you assess your credentials through at least four clicks. At least four clicks, and the power to shape the course of Philippine democracy is in your hands.

Tell your friends and family to register to vote. Make it known to your known circles that you’ve registered to vote. Share stories of criticism and dissent. Talk, advocate, register, and most importantly act.

There is no time like now. Time to make a difference lies in you, your vigilance, your vote.