What I saw then was how powerful participatory media can be: how citizens using their cell phones are enfranchised to demand justice and accountability. It showed me how technology could be used for good: for citizen empowerment, voting and democratic engagement, and integrity and truth. It is why I still believe that the Philippines was not destined to become the country it did under Duterte and that ultimately, average citizens won’t stand for a dictator’s repression if there was a free press they could run to for help.
