Stage set for 5 presidentiables for Cagayan De Oro leg of PiliPinas Debates 2016

Photo by Jo Madrigal

The stage is literally set as Cagayan de Oro City prepares for the first presidential debate on Sunday.

The five presidential hopefuls Vice President Jejomar Binay, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, Senator Grace Poe, former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, and Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago are all expected to face off for the first time on Sunday since they declared to run for president.

The first of the PiliPinas Debates 2016 is organized by GMA 7, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and the Commission on Elections. Similar debates will be held in Luzon and in the Visayas over the course of the 90-day campaign period.

The Mindanao debate will be held at the Mini-Theater Building of the Capitol University. It will be the first time that a presidential debate will be held in Mindanao.

The event will be moderated by GMA News anchors Jessica Soho and Mike Enriquez and Inquirer.net editor-in-chief John Nery.

The Comelec earlier said that the venue can only accommodate 500 people.

Technical staff check on the stage where Sunday's debate will be held. Photo by JESSICA BARTOLOME, GMA News

Photo by JESSICA BARTOLOME

Aside from the the organizers, the security officials of the Cagayan de Oro City have also started preparing for the debate. In its initial advisory, they told residents to expect heavy traffic along Corrales, Osmeña, Gaabucayan and Recto streets on Sunday.

The PiliPinas Mindanao debate will air from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. live over GMA-7 and Super Radyo dzBB and will be livestreamed at GMA News Online. —Trisha Macas/NB, GMA News