Magisterial Lectures

Is Democracy The Solution or The Problem?

In this lecture, Dr. Abao attempts to answer this question: Is democracy really the solution to societal ills or is it part of the problem?

Carmel “Melay” V. Abao

Carmel (Melay) V. Abao, Ph.D, is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the Ateneo de Manila University. She specializes in social movement studies and international political economy. Before joining the academe, she was involved in a number of social movements in the country – as a labor organizer for Workers’ College (now defunct), as an urban poor organizer for the Partnership of Philippine Support Service Agencies (PHILSSA), as deputy director of the Institute for Popular Democracy (IPD), and as founding national secretary general of Akbayan (Citizens’ Action Party).

In this lecture, Dr. Abao attempts to answer this question: Is democracy really the solution to societal ills or is it part of the problem?

The Magisterial Lecture series is a collection of selected talks from Ateneo classes, delivered by some of the University’s most respected faculty members. They are produced and shared for the benefit of learners everywhere. Magisterial Lectures will be available on Areté’s YouTube channel for free.

Magisterial Lectures is an Areté Production done in partnership with The Department of Communication, Loyola Schools and the Eugenio Lopez Jr. Center for Multimedia Communication.