THE YOUTH PERSPECTIVE

 (Editor’s note: Three weeks after the elections, two students shared their experience on election night.) 

It was a similar scene when a blockbuster movie is set to be released. Bright colored posters, crammed flyers, and building-tall billboards decorated the streets and dominated one’s eye level. Everything is either clothed with tarpaulins of smiling politicians with their back arched and arms crossed, or laced with dangling banderitas, giving the impression of festivity. 

A recurring theme in most films is the presence of lifesavers. During election season, these politicians are often portrayed as superheroes who would drastically change the lives of many. They often recite a litany of promises, just enough for those who are too thirsty for such to willingly swallow the water from their questionable well—not knowing that a historical plague was once caused by such actions. 

Like the night before the premier of a movie, anticipation filled the air. Still, the night remained quiet, an eerie silence echoed as people readied themselves for battle the next day. 

On election day, another striking similarity was the lines. People lined up to reach the ticket booth, like voters jammed in a narrow hallway of a school building. The biggest difference was that only one cinema was available. And technically, the majority of the audience gets to decide which movie would show up on the big screen—so the battle to vote for their heroes heats up. 

As time went by, it became clearer what movie would premiere that night. It was a historical movie, and in my opinion, not exactly a new one as it seemed like a rerun. 

My eyes darted corner to corner, and there was tension in the air: from the nonstop rallying of the children, the constant shushing of their parents, the cheering of the so-called victors, to the somber anguish of others. Some say it was over but the movie on my mind said otherwise.  Even then, the children wouldn’t stop crying, hoping against hope that their movie with roses and greens was the one playing before them. 

But I know one thing for sure -- those cries would forever reverberate on society’s grounds, those wails would be the very sound that would keep the cheaters awake, and those tears would water the soil that would bring forth a sprout of a new tomorrow. 

(Leona Paula D. Arcilla is a humanities student at De La Salle University. She is a member of the DLSU-SHS History Club and an editorial writer under one of the school’s official publications, Pana Verde. She enjoys writing pieces that are influenced by socio-political truth and drawing out inspiration from both historical and contemporary narratives.)