December 02, 2015, 2:35a.m. – A MOBILE application aimed at engaging users to participate in the 2016 national elections was launched by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and ABS-CBN News on Tuesday.
The “Comelec app,” developed by ABS-CBN News, includes features such as technical instructions on voting, profiles of national candidates and a “cheat sheet” that can be used by voters on election day.
Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista urged young people to use technology and social media and engage in citizen journalism during the 2016 national elections.
The youth, which accounts for 37 percent of the voting population, should increase their participation and interest in political and social issues, he added.
Bautista lauded ABS-CBN for its “Bayan Mo, iPatrol Mo” or BMPM, a voter’s education program and citizen journalism campaign during elections.
Rowena Paraan, head of BMPM, said the media and youth go hand-in-hand because media raises social awareness among the youth. “Technology can be harnessed so we can use it to help our communities, school and the nation,” Paraan said.
ABS-CBN News chief Ging Reyes urged the youth to be “agents of social change.”
“Keeping up with the latest advances in technology empowers you to contribute to the progress of society,” she said.
ABS-CBN personalities Kori Quintos and Atom Araullo hosted the app launch, while Gretchen Ho was introduced as BMPM’s “new face of the youth.”
The event, titled “Bayan Mo, iPatrol Mo: Digital Bootcamp,” was organized by ABS-CBN News and the “Aktiboto” University-wide election advocacy at the Civil Law Auditorium. Paul Xavier Jaehwa C. Bernardo
