Candidates who will skip Comelec debates to lose slots in e-rally platforms

Candidates who will not participate in the debates organized by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) will lose their slots in the poll body's e-rally platforms until the end of the campaign period.

This was disclosed by acting Comelec chairperson Socorro Inting on Monday during the signing of the poll body's memorandum of agreement with Impact Hub Manila, the group behind Vote Pilipinas, for the conduct of the "PiliPinas 2022 Debates 2022: The Turning Point."

"One who refuses or skips the debates will not be allowed to join the e-rallies," Inting said.

Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said this is an agreement that they have with the candidates.

“We do have the e-rally that we allow them to use the platform, and one of the agreements is that if they skip the debates then they will not be able to air their e-rallies on our e-rally platforms,” Jimenez said.

Article IV of the Comelec and Impact Hub Manila MOA states that “[p]residential and vice-presidential candidates are strongly encouraged to participate in the Pilipinas Debates 2022 and their non-attendance may result to the forfeiture of their opportunity to air their e-rally on the Comelec’s official e-rally page.”

Before the official campaign period started last February 8, the Comelec has launched a Facebook page that will provide a platform for free livestreaming of national candidates' online political rallies amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Campaign S.A.F.E. Comelec e-Rally Channel on Facebook grants online airtime to candidates for president, vice president, senator and party-list groups ranging from three to 10 minutes.

Each candidate for president and vice president will have a 10-minute airtime  for each of three slots in a day, while Senate bets will have three minutes for each of five slots in a day.

Party-list groups, on the other hand, will have three minutes each for each five slots per day.

Political parties, for their part, will each enjoy 10 minutes for each of their three slots per day.

So far, Jimenez said the Comelec has yet to secure written confirmations from the candidates regarding their attendance to the Comelec-organized debates.

“We don’t have written confirmations yet, but we are working on getting written commitments from the candidates,” he said.

“By and large, however, the candidates seem inclined to participate in the debates in the understanding that this is the official debate series for this elections. So we are hopeful that we will be able to secure their commitments within the week,” he added.

Jimenez disclosed that they already met with the candidates’ parties last week to discuss the debates and they are planning to have another meeting this week.

The Comelec spokesperson reiterated that the poll body will disclose the general topics or the general areas of inquiry for the debates, but not the specific questions which will be asked.

He explained that the specific questions for every topic will be coming from different sector groups.

These questions will be vetted by the Comelec and everyone who will be “involved in the process will be asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement.”

“Perhaps, it is very important to maintain the integrity of the questions and by maintaining the integrity of the questions, it means taking all the necessary steps, including legal, to make sure that no one releases it ahead of time,” he said.

The first presidential debate is set on March 19 while the first vice presidential debate is scheduled on March 20. Both events will be held at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila in Pasay City.

The second presidential debate is also scheduled on April 3.

According to Comelec, each debate is anchored on a set of predetermined topics on pressing concerns of the country, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the economy, and the pool of questions will come from the concerned sector groups.

The debate will follow a single-moderator format with no live audience.

The Comelec said there will also be a presidential and vice presidential Town Hall Debates on April 23 and 24, respectively. These events will have both remote and in-person audience, and a post-debate roundtable.

Jimenez said the Town Hall debates that the Comelec is planning to hold will have a “massive audience participation” where they can also ask questions.

“The main guarantee of ‘PiliPinas Debates’ is that we are going to treat all candidates fairly…We will make sure that the questions are vetted and the persons themselves are vetted,” he said. —KBK, GMA News