THE newly sworn-in Sanguniang Kabataan (SK) Federation President Councilor Kristine Abdul Mercado of Barangay Sasa, outlined her commitment to youth empowerment and development during the 43rd regular session of the 20th City Council on Tuesday morning, November 21.
“Our primary goal is to amplify the voices of our youth, advocate for their needs, and work towards leadership that will enhance their lives and the lives of everyone,” Mercado said.
Planning to visit every barangay in the city, she aims to create objective programs promoting lifelong learning and providing quality education to all young people, irrespective of their socioeconomic status.
Through skills development workshops, she envisions transforming the youth into agents of change.
Mercado called on everyone to join and support their endeavors, recognizing that achieving these goals requires collaboration between the community and the government.
In a media interview, she revealed a focus on extending services to far-flung barangays, especially Paquibato and Marilog District, where access to government services is challenging.
A member of the Tausug tribe and a third-year student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration at Davao Merchant Marine Academy (DMMA) College of Southern Philippines, she expressed her commitment to continuing some of the programs initiated by former SK Federation President Jaffar Marohomsalic.
In his farewell speech, Marohomsalic expressed gratitude to the Duterte family for their support, recognizing the valuable contributions of his staff and fellow city councilors.
He thanked the councilors for enabling the representation of the Muslim sector in the city and acknowledged the trust placed in him during his term as federation president.
Marohomsalic served as the youth representative during the 18th, 19th, and 20th city councils and pushed for two of the significant youth ordinances which are the Davao City Youth Development Council (DCYDC) Ordinance and the Davao City Youth Development Division-Local Youth Development Office (DCYDD-LYDO) of Davao City Ordinance. RGP
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