Prospects and Limits of My Power as a Citizen

“What are the prospects and limits of my power as a Citizen?”

According to a policy and programme guide that I have read, titled Children as Active Citizens (2008), every person who is entitled with “civil, political, social and economic rights” (p.4) has the means to practice his or her citizenship. It was mentioned that even children are considered citizens because their right to be called "citizens” does not actually rely on their “future contributions to society” (p.4). When these children grow up and learn, their ways of exercising their rights and responsibilities as citizen progress. But is this a fact? Does people’s ability to exercise their citizenship rights and responsibilities really progress when they grow up? In almost four months of taking up this CITIGOV subject, I am somehow enlightened on how we, Filipinos exercise our power as citizens. During one session in this subject, I remember watching an informational short talk that highlights the idea of using the “hand” to solve problems in our own communities, instead of just voicing it out to the government. In this talk, a citizen was featured who tries to seek help online because she found a possum in her garbage can. A neighbor read it and passed by the area mentioned by the lady who has concerned about the possum. He solve this small problem by using his “hand”, instead of just waiting for the authorities to solve that small and easy to solve problem. Of course, a lot of us know that as citizens, we have the freedom of speech. Obviously, that lady who was too much concerned on solving her problem about the possum practiced this so-called “freedom of speech”, but what progress could happen if she just voiced everything out, instead of thinking of a more practical solution? As citizens, we have the right for freedom of speech, but we also need to practice our citizenship through volunteering and giving help to our co-citizens. Aside from the citizen’s right for freedom of speech, every citizen...