In each and every second of my seat here as the head of this country, my mind

becomes more aware of the principles that I and the governing body have to follow and the
sacrifices that we have to make. Every day it becomes clearer and clearer that the road up
ahead is a tunnel without a light. I stand before you today to reignite this light, not as your
President, but as another Filipino who loves and adores his home.
Our country is plagued by imperfection, certain things we refuse to correct even though
we can. Never in history has a country been perfect, but that does not mean that we should not
strive for it. In the first month of our service, we had uncovered many things. It is my desire to
convey to you some of the problems we, as a country inherited, and what we are going to do
about it.
I have been made aware of the agricultural situation of our nation. It is truly bizarre how
an agriculture-based country such as ours have been relegated to a position in which we cannot
even sustain our people on our own. We have become dependent on imports from other
countries of products that we can produce here. But this is not without reason. For as long as I
can remember, farmers have been neglected. Now as to why a country would disregard its own
best human-resource, that I do not know, but we will make steps to change that
Agricultural Import dependency is a terrible crux that our country has as of now.
Therefore, we the government will start to prioritize farmers in order to get rid of the problem’s
roots. Instead of allowing an unlimited and unrestricted flow of imported rice into the country, we
will give local farmer support the utmost priority.
To assure lower costs, we will adapt tax holidays and lower the cost of farm supplies
through subsidies. We will also begin making significant investments in mechanization and
advancing agricultural technology within the country. Farmers that use gasoline for their
equipment and to transport goods have been burdened more as a result of rising excise taxes
on fuel items under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Act, that of which we will
reform so that farmers have a lighter load to bear.
We will also build more accessible Farm-to-market roads which will assist farmers and
fishermen in obtaining higher prices and provide a wider market for their goods. This will, in turn
boost the country’s economy and provide rural areas more authority; essentially killing two birds
with one stone. As a result, the establishment of FMRs will become crucial to our attempts to
advance rural development and spur economic growth.
The next issue that I will put in the limelight is the ever-decreasing demand for public
transport. We have observed and we have seen; people would wait 2-3 hours just to get on
LRT’s every day. This greatly stunts workplace productivity and throws away precious time. It is
clear why people, especially the working class, choose cars over any means of mass
transportation. This gravely injures our economy as not every person in said class can afford
said vehicles. This is extremely wasteful as the time spent waiting could’ve been well spent on
working and resting.
 I will acknowledge that trains, jeepney’s and many other types of public transportation
can be quite a hassle to deal with as they are not exactly in best quality, it is not the first option
we will think of when we want to go somewhere. And it seems to us that many people agree.
We believe that the root cause for the lack of efficiency regarding these aspects is the absence
of proper maintenance that mass transportations suffer. Trains haven’t changed since the early
2010’s but we, as a country have. And it is about time they do too. The lack of proper mass
transportation injures our collective workforce so we, the government will attempt to mend it.
We will put the time, the resources and the effort to renovate every train station in the
country to allow for a more efficient system to be implemented. We will modernize all that we
can control so that people wouldn’t waste as much time. We will also ensure that the price is
maintained in a point where it is both equitable, and reasonable; Afterall there would be no point
in putting so much effort in a thing nobody is going to use.
With the ever-expanding world of technological advancements, it is not fair that certain
facets are left behind. What about the people that cannot afford these technological revelations?
Are they just to lie in wait? Unchanging? Forever unable to close the gap between those who
can? We want to provide the people with the same quality in every aspect. We are looking to
decrease the amount of time wasted by the average Filipino per day, and so, we are going to
provide those who don’t have access to cars to have an equally reliable way of transportation.
We hope to accomplish so much in so little time, which is why we are going to help each other
in the little ways that matter.
And lastly, we will attempt to kill corruption once and for all. Corruption had always been
a big problem in every country’s governing body. Many methods have been done and all of
them failed as corruption prevailed. It has always been the collective sickness in any society in
which power is existent. This naturally affects the dignity of our nation. If we can’t keep our own
people from committing treason against itself, then we have failed as a country. What more
should we expect if our own hands remain dirtied.
It is a fact that in every presidential generation it is said and it is promised that corruption
will die. I will not deny the fact that all these attempts have led to failure and that we do not have
much of a better chance either. It seems as though no matter what we do, we cannot rid
ourselves of this intrepid virus. So, what makes our approach different to those that came
before? And to that I answer indiscretion.
Rash as it may seem, the only way we can fight corruption is by limiting human
discretion. If we can’t keep secrets then there will be no secrets. Everyone will know where
everything goes, nothing can go missing. We will also promote the ease of doing business in all
levels of government. It may also be noticeable that this gives the country’s competitors an
edge, but if that is the price to remove such a deeply rooted flaw within our governance, then
that is a price we are willing to pay. And besides, the money we will lose is far lesser than that of
what we already lost and is going to keep losing given this is left unchecked.
 Much research has been put upon this decree but we believe that it is the right step
towards establishing a country that does not sabotage itself. In the coming years of my election,
we will introduce the simplification of government processes by digitization and automation. We
will also review, remove and update existing laws and prioritize systems with evolving
landscapes. The internet's revolutionary influence upon the world has changed the relationship
between government and citizens significantly. As a result of this, a new public administration
paradigm will emerge in which digital technologies are at the heart of government organizational
systems.
This not only makes accessing the government’s services easier, but also eliminates the
shady part of confidentiality as it is properly recorded. It is much harder to completely eradicate
tracks that are left online as once it is recorded, it will remain recorded. It is said that you can’t
truly erase something from the internet and we will use this fact to our advantage. Once the
digitalization of all government transaction and accounts are implemented and properly utilized,
the end of corruption will near.
I have spent most of life trying to reach an aspiration I’ve always thought was beyond my
reach. But as I stand on this podium today, all I can wonder is what comes next. When all your
dreams come true, does it have to end there? No, it shouldn’t. We are in a state of uncertainty,
a place in time where we cannot see past tomorrow. Which is why I look onto the horizon and
ponder to myself what could be. This may be my dream, but this is only the start of my regime.
We have been blinded, kept in the dark of what truly occurs within the depths of our
beloved nation. But that all ends today, as I have no intention in falling under the pressure of
what was left for me to fix. It doesn’t matter if I go against the grain; there will be change and
that is my vow. This is my country, and I’ll be damned before I throw away my shot. Pilipinas,
Mabuhay!
Submitted by: Adrienne R. Cabochan
Section: Gr. 10 St. Augustine