You are currently browsing the daily archive for March 5th, 2007.
Posted March 05, 2007 09:03:00(Mla Time)
(UPDATE) MANILA, Philippines — Breaking her silence, Lipa City Mayor Vilma Santos Monday asked her constituents that she be given a week to decide whether to run for the top post of Batangas.
In an emotional message to her constituents at the City Hall, the wife of Senator Ralph Recto said she had been agonizing over the direction of her political career, considering that her brother-in-law, Vice Gov. Ricky Recto, is bent on running against incumbent Gov. Armando Sanchez while a number of town mayors and a ranking church official in Batangas have been boosting her gubernatorial bid.
She reiterated in live television coverage that she did “not back out but gave way” to Ricky Recto, the elder brother of Ralph, in order to keep peace in the family.
She said that whatever she decides on after this week will be her own.
The matter of who would run between Santos and Ricky Recto for the post of governor has highlighted the prickly relationship between the vice governor and his younger brother Ralph, who had predicted that his wife would handily beat Sanchez.
The issue has also thrown into focus the problem of political dynasties in the country. The problem has endured despite a ban on it in the Constitution because of the absence of a law implementing such a ban.
Citing surveys pointing to a Santos victory over Sanchez, a church official told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that appeared to be the predominant sentiment of the people in the province.
“It’s no secret here that only Vilma can beat the incumbent governor,” he told the Inquirer Sunday.
He noted that surveys had suggested that put together, the votes for Ricky Recto, Sanchez and Nestor Sanares, another possible candidate, would be no match to those for Santos for governor.
Among the clergy in Batangas, many were also quietly rooting for the actress supposedly because of her “clean” record in public office, according to the church official.
“For the good of Batangas, Recto should withdraw and just allow his sister-in-law to run and beat the governor,” said the official.
In a press conference more than two months ago, Ricky Recto admitted that Santos had better chances of winning against Sanchez. But he insisted that he would make a better governor.
“I will admit that she’s a better candidate in terms of ‘winnability.’ But in terms of governance … I’ve been vice governor for 12 years. I know the ins and outs of all the four corners of Batangas,” he told reporters.
Ricky Recto suggested that Santos instead run for Congress and represent the fourth district of Batangas.
Malaca? has kept its hands off the family row, at least on the surface.
Last week, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, who is from Batangas, declined to be drawn into the fray, saying: “I have no control over the political personalities” in the province.
Ermita denied Ricky Recto’s allegation that he was backing Santos’ candidacy, saying, “I’m just waiting for developments.” With a report from Inquirer
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
Posted March 05, 2007 06:36:00(Mla Time)
Michael Lim Ubac
MANILA, Philippines — President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will play a smaller role in the electoral campaign in order to focus on the country’s economic progress “rather than a daily tit-for-tat exchange with the opposition,” Palace spokesperson Ignacio Bunye said Sunday.
In a Palace website posting, Bunye said campaigning would be carried out by the campaign spokesperson and the 12 Team Unity administration senatorial bets “while the rest of the Cabinet and the President attend to our people’s basic needs.”
Such a “dividing line,” said Bunye, was needed to ensure that “economic gains are not held hostage to political rhetoric.”
Team Unity campaign manager Reli German confirmed the new campaign policy. In a phone interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer, he said he understood that the President could only be called on for big proclamation rallies and the miting de avance.
Administration candidate Representative Miguel Zubiri of Bukidnon said this new line “is clearly understood by each member of Team Unity.”
“But definitely that will not stop her from calling on key leaders in key areas for us,” said Zubiri.
Buoyed by reports of increased business confidence in the Philippines, Arroyo issued her own statement Sunday assuring the business community that she would not allow the ongoing electoral battle to derail her from making the “hard decisions.”
“Making hard decisions is not enough. I am resolved to cut through the political noise and bring the benefits of the economy to the people,” said Ms Arroyo.
She said the economy could not be derailed by electoral battles.
The American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines said Friday that investors from the United States would be putting in up to $3 billion worth of investments in the country’s infrastructure, manufacturing and information technology sectors.
Robert Sears, the AmCham executive director, made the announcement at a roundtable discussion with the President, noting the improved fiscal situation and business optimism in the country.
Sears had said the figure could “potentially go up to $9 billion in a year” if the government would “take care of some red tape issues.”
“I think the confidence level this year is higher than at the same time last year,” he said, insisting that US businessmen and other foreign investors in the country were not too concerned about the results of the midterm elections in May.
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
Posted March 05, 2007 05:20:00(Mla Time)
Bayani San Diego Jr.
MANILA, Philippines — The country’s leading TV networks are once again gearing up for a full-blown war.
This time, it’s not for ratings supremacy but for the big bucks that will come with the May elections.
An ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. executive described as a “modest figure” GMA 7’s projected revenue of P500 million from political advertisements.
Bong Osorio, head of ABS-CBN’s Corporate Communications, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer Sunday that “simple arithmetic dictates that P500 million is too conservative an estimate.”
He noted that there were 24 candidates in the administration and opposition senatorial tickets.
“Assuming that each (candidate) would spend P10 million, campaign expenses would total P240 million already. But you simply can’t run a national campaign with only P10 million. If a well-funded candidate would spend the average amount of P50 million, the total would be P500 million with just 10 candidates,” Osorio said.
Under the Fair Election Act of 2001, an independent senatorial candidate and a political party can spend P5 for each registered voter. A senatorial candidate on the ticket of a political party can shell out P3 for every voter.
Given that there were 43,817,985 registered voters as of last month, a senatorial candidate affiliated with a party can spend P131.45 million for his or her campaign. An independent senatorial candidate can spend as much as P219.09 million.
KBP appeal
Osorio said it was too early in the game to project earnings from political ads. The 90-day campaign period for senatorial candidates began on Feb. 13.
“It’s pretty difficult to come out with a projected or indicative figure, especially since there is still an appeal from the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) to amend the Commission on Elections rule limiting political advertisements on TV and radio,” Osorio said.
He pointed out that the KBP had asked the Comelec to revert back to the 2004 ruling.
In 2004, the rule was that each candidate would be allowed 120 minutes per TV and 180 minutes per radio station. This year, a senatorial candidate is allowed only 120 minutes of campaign ads to be divided among all TV stations, and another 180 minutes for all radio stations.
This was confirmed by KBP chair Jun Nicdao, who said that the group had sought a dialogue with Comelec Chair Benjamin Abalos.
Nicdao said the KBP was advised to draft a position paper on the issue.
“We’ve sent three letters so far. We’ve been informed that our request is now being studied by the Comelec’s legal affairs department,” he said.
The KBP expects the Comelec to come out with its decision this week.
Two options
Nicdao said at least two options were being considered.
“Instead of an aggregate limit, the cap will be imposed in terms of ‘per candidate and per broadcast area’ or ‘per candidate and per region.’
According to KBP rules, Mega Manila (Metro Manila and suburbs) is a broadcast area; Ilocos Norte is another broadcast area; Ilocos Sur, another broadcast area,” he said.
Osorio said the rationale behind the KBP appeal was not only to pump up a network’s earnings.
“The purpose is to have a more informed electorate. To allow the candidates to inform the public about their credentials and platforms. The current Comelec ruling limits the public’s opportunity to make a more informed choice,” he said.
Osorio said that even non-KBP members would benefit from the appeal because it would apply to all TV networks, not just KBP members. GMA 7 is not a KBP member.
Considerably higher
Although Osorio acknowledged that the campaign period could spell huge earnings for TV networks, the total figure would still depend on other factors, apart from the Comelec ruling.
“If the KBP appeal is granted, the projected income from campaign ads could become considerably higher. But then again, we can’t really predict how the candidates would allocate their campaign funds and divide their 120 minutes,” he said.
Before joining ABS-CBN, Osorio was president of Capri, the advocacy and PR affiliate of the advertising company Campaigns and Grey.
30-percent discount
Although ABS-CBN hesitated to provide projected earnings from political ads, the network’s Corporate Communications office sent via e-mail its rate card for political ads.
“Political ads are discounted 30 percent compared to regular ads,” Osorio said.
The regular rate for prime time shows is P301,133 for a 30-second ad.
For prime time shows like the nightly news show “TV Patrol” and weekly programs like “Sharon” and “Maalaala Mo Kaya,” political ads cost P183,299 per 30 seconds. Or roughly P6,000 per second.
For weekend noontime show “A.S.A.P. ’07,” the rate is P119,977 and for the afternoon show biz talk show, “The Buzz,” P109,424.
For dzMM, ABS-CBN’s AM radio station, ad rates for political ads range from P13,910 to P17,900 per 30 seconds.
For dwRR, ABS-CBN’s FM radio station, political ad rates range from P2,490 to P3,980 per 30 seconds.
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
Posted March 05, 2007 05:07:00(Mla Time)
Nini Valera
MANILA, Philippines — For GMA Network, the coming election spells big business in terms of advertising revenue.
The network hopes to cash in on political ads and generate at least P500 million from the senatorial candidates, the biggest advertising buyers during the campaign period.
Felipe Gozon, GMA chair, president and CEO, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Thursday that the P500 million in projected revenue from political ads this year was a small slice of the network’s total business.
“Last year, we made P10 billion in advertising revenue,” he said. “So the P500 million from political ads is not really that big.”
He said that the P10 billion from advertising revenue last year represented 56 percent of the total “ad spend” of traditional advertisers.
“Our programs generally rate higher than the other networks, and this is working in our favor,” Gozon said.
“So candidates, who have a limited time to get their message across, prefer to place their ads in higher rating shows for greater impact. This is certainly working in our favor,” he said.
GMA 7 has a 71-percent share of non-cable households in Mega Manila, even if ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. continues to enjoy a bigger audience share in the provinces.
Bulk of ad spending
Leah Nuyda, the network’s vice president for sales, said the P500 million in projected sales from political ads represented the bulk of total ad spend for the whole campaign period of 13 weeks for senatorial candidates.
“The phenomenon now is that most of these ads are placed through multinational advertising agencies, so the buying trend is scientific, assuring the clients maximum reach for their advertising,” she said.
The Fair Elections Act, or Republic Act No. 9006, sets the guidelines for the use of broadcast and print advertising by the candidates.
120 minutes for TV ads
Under the act, senatorial candidates are allowed a maximum of 120 minutes of TV ads and 180 minutes of radio ads.
An independent senatorial candidate and a political party can spend P5 for each registered voter. A senatorial candidate on the slate of a political party can shell out P3 for every voter.
As of February, the Commission on Elections counted 43,817,985 registered voters. So a senatorial candidate affiliated with a party can spend P131.45 million for his or her campaign while an independent senatorial candidate can shell out as much as P219.09 million.
Standardized ad rates
Advertising rates have also been standardized by the Comelec.
Ad rates used for political ads for TV have been pegged at 30 percent lower than the ad rates of a year ago, and 20 percent lower for radio, according to Nuyda.
A 30-second TV ad on prime time over GMA 7 goes for P252,000, Nuyda said. The rate varies depending on the time slot, and could go as low as P30,000 for a 30-second spot.
Radio spots cheaper
Radio spots cost considerably less — from as low as P600 for a 30-second plug in provincial stations to as high as P30,000 for Mega Manila stations.
So far, senatorial candidate Prospero Pichay is the biggest spender in terms of media buys.
Pichay spent P33.4 million on TV placements in the first two weeks of the campaign, according to Nielsen Media Research Philippines.
Reelectionist senators Manuel Villar and Ralph Recto spent P30.29 million and P22.79 million, respectively, according to Nielsen.
Credibility
But more important than higher rating programs is the credibility that GMA 7 has built among the viewers, said Gozon, referring to the network’s news and public affairs programs.
“Nobody would watch our shows if we’re not credible,” he said.
In a trade show held last Thursday by GMA Network at All Nations at The Fort in Taguig City, Gozon made a pitch for the network’s election coverage dubbed “Eleksyon 2007.”
He told advertising agencies that Eleksyon 2007 was the most comprehensive and most credible election coverage in the country.
“The 2007 elections are a turning point,” Gozon said in his opening remarks.
He said that while the electoral exercise would not solve the country’s ills, it should be a springboard for much-needed reforms.
“Here, the role of mass media becomes critical. But even then, the responsibility of providing information to empower voters to decide through the ballot lies not only with those who make programming choices. It also lies with the viewers and, to a large extent, with those of you who sustain the lifeblood of the industry,” he said.
GMA Network has partnered with the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, Newsbreak, The Catholic Media Network, AMA Education System, Smart Communications and Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. for Eleksyon 2007.
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
Posted March 05, 2007 04:49:00(Mla Time)
Arlyn dela Cruz
MANILA, Philippines — They all wanted a piece of “Chiz.”
Genuine Opposition senatorial candidate Francis “Chiz” Escudero was literally caught in the middle of a “tug-of-war” between rival politicians in Olongapo City during a press conference arranged for the GO candidate.
The incident which happened on Thursday in full view of local media involved incumbent Olongapo City Mayor James “Bong” Gordon and Vice Mayor Rolen Paulino who is running against the former in the May elections.
There were two versions of the story. One said it really happened while the other said it was all “drama” and that no such thing happened.
But a source who was with Escudero’s party said the young senatorial candidate was stunned. “Chiz was speechless,” the source said.
One account of what happened came from a cameraman based in Olongapo who said: “The mayor pushed Rolen away from Chiz.”
The cameraman was among those who attended the press conference arranged by local media consultant Armin Santos at Wimpy’s Restaurant on Rizal Avenue near the Olongapo City Hall.
“I didn’t exactly see it for my attention was somewhere else but a local media man whispered to me that “hinawi” (he shoved) that was the word used, ni mayor si Rolen.”
Santos said he himself was taken aback. “I was surprised at the turn of events because in the first place I didn’t expect the mayor to be there.”
There was even confusion as to who really had arranged the press conference for the popular opposition candidate.
Another source said it was not Santos but Mike Pusing who had arranged the press conference.
Eggai Geniza, a local broadcaster who interviewed Escudero for his morning show over radio station dwHL, said, “Rolen, according to several eyewitness accounts, was shoved by the mayor who suddenly entered the restaurant where the press conference for Escudero was supposed to be held.”
In a phone interview, Paulino confirmed that he was indeed shoved. “It seemed that my lungs would collapse by the sheer force of it.”
Asked how he reacted, Paulino said he left the restaurant and restrained himself from reacting physically in deference to Escudero who is a party mate in the Nationalist People’s Coalition.
“Mas nakakahiya kay Chiz kung para kaming batang nagpang-abot doon kaya lumabas na lang ako at pinabayaan na lang si mayor na masolo si Chiz (It would be a shame if we would act like children so I just went out and gave way to the mayor).”
Paulino, a former prot? of the Gordons, said the rest of the local media who witnessed the incident walked out with him, leaving behind only the crew of local station STV-6 and Pusing’s group.
But Vic Vizcocho Jr., public and media information chief for City Hall, denied the incident.
From Wimpy’s Restaurant, Gordon and Escudero held a motorcade up to Gordon College and then parted ways.
Escudero went on to Mansion Restaurant where Paulino was waiting and there faced members of the media who had earlier walked out.
Escudero declined to comment on the incident.
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
Posted March 05, 2007 03:30:00(Mla Time)
Jocelyn Uy Norman Bordadora
MANILA, Philippines — If the Genuine Opposition appears to be off to a lethargic start, it’s all the administration Team Unity’s fault, says ousted President Joseph Estrada.
Speaking by telephone from Tanay, Rizal, where he is detained on plunder charges, Estrada said on Sunday that the perception that GO had a “weak organization” was a result of work done by administration “spin masters.”
Estrada said the campaigning had just begun and it was understandable the opposition would encounter some “hitches” in its campaign sorties.
The opposition had to cancel two rallies on Panay Island following “threats” that could put people’s lives at risk. But the administration’s Team Unity said GO was simply losing grassroots support.
“That’s what they say,” said Estrada. “Everywhere they (opposition candidates) go, they are widely accepted by the public,” Estrada told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
However, he said that his being locked up in Tanay was one of the opposition’s disadvantages.
In a comment submitted to the court opposing Estrada’s plea to be transferred to his residence in San Juan, Special Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio said that Estrada did not have to personally engage his candidates’ opponents in a debate.
“The candidates of his party should not depend or ride on his popularity but on their own competence, qualifications and popularity,” Villa-Ignacio said.
Also Sunday, Estrada’s son, San Juan Mayor Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, said GO would hold fewer rallies but make more radio and television appearances. He made the announcement in the wake of the canceled rallies in Western Visayas last week.
“I’ve always said that it was a media war. From the start we already knew that. It was the locals who wanted the rallies,” said Ejercito, who will turn over his post as campaign manager to outgoing Sen. Sergio Osme?II.
Ejercito had earlier said he would organize “town hall” meetings with sectoral and community leaders to hear complaints and issues “directly from the people.”
He denied it was a copy of Team Unity’s “Pulong Sulong” dialogues with local officials.
“No, we’ve been telling the media about our plans to have community forums as early as the start of the campaign. It’s just being drowned out by all the other issues,” Ejercito said.
“We’ve also conducted consultations in the community as early as last year. We’re just re-introducing them in the campaign.”
Ejercito would not say if the opposition’s local leaders did a bad job of mobilizing the people for GO’s rallies and motorcades.
“They said there was a security threat locally. Let’s just leave it at that. We’ve been talking about Iloilo for a week now,” Ejercito said.
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
Posted March 05, 2007 02:57:00(Mla Time)
Amando Doronila
MANILA, Philippines — The appointment of Sen. Sergio Osme?II as campaign manager of the Genuine Opposition confirms that its drive to sweep the Senate election in May has run into deep trouble, three weeks into the campaign.
Osme?eplaces Mayor Jose Victor “JV” Ejercito of San Juan, who has decided to concentrate on his reelection in the core constituency of the dynasty of former President Joseph Estrada.
The dumping of Ejercito signals the abandonment by the opposition of the Estrada strategy of making the election a test of his vindication and political rehabilitation following his ouster in People Power II in 2001 and the plunder charges lodged against him by the government under President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
With his narrow base and limited political experience, JV was not up to the task of forging a united opposition, and commanding the respect of the fractious United Opposition, despite his father’s push behind the scenes to build a formidable machine to oppose the administration’s resources and party apparatus. Estrada personalized the campaign, including his selection of issues, by using his dynasty to implement his strategy.
During the past three weeks, the opposition’s drive faltered and lost momentum. It has sunk deeper into disarray. The re-baptized Genuine Opposition is even more disunited today than it was in January when everybody, who thought he or she was somebody, scrambled to come on board the bandwagon and coalition leaders arrogantly slammed the door on them.
The message the public got from this disarray was that the opposition’s campaign cannot be successfully run on highly personal steam, much less the charisma and populist rhetoric of Estrada.
Former Sen. Vicente Sotto III, a former Estrada ally who has crossed over to the administration’s Team Unity as a senatorial candidate together with ex-Sen. Tessie Aquino-Oreta, has said the Estrada magic is gone.
Estrada a dead weight
Sotto can’t be any more accurate. To put it bluntly, Estrada as a campaign issue and as an asset is a dead weight.
It may well be that the GO executive committee has recognized this, prompting them to change horses in midstream with the appointment of Osme?s general campaign manager.
While it is true that Osme?as considerable political experience gained from two terms (12 years) in the Senate, it remains to be seen whether he can re-ignite the sputtering opposition campaign. He has to rescue the opposition from the doldrums; otherwise, its candidates would be slaughtered by a well-oiled and amply funded administration machine.
Nitpicking elitist
The challenge facing Osme?s that he has to revamp the opposition’s strategy and repackage its issues to make the campaign catch fire across the spectrum of voters — from the middle class down to the poor masses.
Osme? reputation as a political strategist is on the line, but the first obstacle he faces is to erase the perception that he is an elitist, and as an oppositionist, he opposes for the sake of opposing, to the point of nitpicking.
From his statements to local reporters in Iloilo-Negros last week while attending a family function of the Lopez clan, there is little clue of what he intends to do, and what political formula he has to offer in repackaging the issues and reinvigorating the campaign.
Without prejudging Osme?he talked about safeguarding the ballot from cheating to avoid a repetition of the alleged 2004 election rigging, corruption of the administration, the poor performance of the economy, and the failure to reduce poverty.
While these issues are valid ammunition for a campaign, they are not the issues that can make the voters angry sufficiently enough to enable the opposition to win at least nine seats and take control of the Senate.
Human rights issue
It is what Osme?mitted that gives the public misgivings that GO might be ignoring an issue that is causing considerable concern among the people — the human rights abuses stemming from the spate of extrajudicial murders.
The omission reflects Osme? elitism. The issue affects the middle class and the poor, especially the latter — not the rich. It makes people angry and inspires fear. The value of this issue to drum up negative votes can be discounted only at the risk of the opposition losing relevance. This is the reason the public has much stake in the revamp of the opposition’s campaign.
In a briefing with Philippine Daily Inquirer editors and reporters last week, GO candidate Alan Peter Cayetano revealed the extent of the discord tearing the GO apart over the inclusion of Senate President Manuel Villar and Sen. Francis Pangilinan in its Senate lineup.
It was revealed that the point in including them, although they have fiercely proclaimed their independence from the GO team, is that the inclusion scuttled the formation of a “third force” ticket.
It was feared that a third force would draw votes away from the opposition ticket and prevent it from winning enough seats to gain control of the Senate. The result of this shortsighted strategy is counterproductive.
Disappointing crowds
Villar remains as a reluctant “guest” candidate. Pangilinan has been dropped and the team went into the campaign limping with 11 candidates, instead of 12.
Pangilinan is still running as an independent with the backing of the Drilon-wing of the Liberal Party, reducing his chances of reelection. Pangilinan gained nothing from his dumping; neither did the GO.
The disunity plaguing the opposition has taken a toll on its campaign. Its rallies have had disappointing crowd turnout. Cases in point were the proclamation rally of its senatorial candidates at Plaza Miranda, which drew a thin crowd of no more than 6,000 people, and its rally in Makati City, supposed to be a stronghold of Mayor Jejomar Binay, who failed to deliver the mass.
These are wake-up calls to avert disaster. Osme? task is to turn the tide. He has much work to do.
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
Posted March 05, 2007 02:45:00(Mla Time)
Gil C. Cabacungan Jr.
MANILA, Philippines — The proposed debate between opposition and administration senatorial candidates to be hosted by business groups on March 14 at the Manila Hotel will push through despite the refusal of the Genuine Opposition to participate unless it is held at Plaza Miranda and not in an “elitist” venue.
“Some of them (GO) candidates have already informed us that they will attend,” said Francis Chua, president of the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc.
Chua said the business groups were eager to sponsor the debate because they wanted to get a peek at the stand of the candidates on key issues, particularly those affecting the economy.
The GO candidates had earlier accepted the business groups’ invitation but begged off over the weekend because they preferred to hold the debate at Plaza Miranda which was more accessible to the masses than the function room of a luxury hotel.
“Our main concern is to prevent a repeat of the last three years where Congress was distracted from its main duty of legislation by numerous investigations. We want to see who among the candidates are serious in pushing for the national interest when they are voted into office,” Chua said.
In a statement, Sen. Manuel Roxas II welcomed the move of the Commission on Elections and the business community to organize public debates to raise the level of political discourse during the campaign.
Public forum
Roxas, chair of the Senate committees on economic affairs and trade and commerce, said the senatorial candidates needed a well-publicized responsible public forum to air their views on a broad range of issues, specifically the proposals to implement a second wave of tax reforms, the ratification of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement, and amendments to the Labor Code.
Roxas said a key concern of the public was the intent of the Arroyo administration, as declared by Finance Secretary Margarito Teves, to implement new tax measures to sustain the current fiscal momentum.
“The public deserves to know the candidates’ stand on how to sustain fiscal reforms and whether they support the idea of new tax legislation, including a recurring proposal to tax text messages,” Roxas added.
Catholic bishops also support the debate, saying this will give the electorate a chance to get to know who they would be voting for.
“What is important is for the political parties to reveal and explain their respective platforms of government,” said Iloilo Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, also president of the influential Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines.
The debate was sparked by a challenge hurled by Presidential Chief of Staff Joey Salceda at the opposition to a public discourse on the economic performance of the Arroyo administration after GO came out with paid advertisements in several newspapers claiming the economy was in worse shape than during the term of detained President Joseph Estrada.
The ad, titled “So the People May Know: The Real Score on GMA’s Economic Performance or Why the Nation is Worse off than in January 2001,” said that the economic gains under the Arroyo administration did not reach the majority of Filipinos.
The opposition initially accepted Salceda’s challenge but wanted the debate held at the Plaza Miranda to enable more people to watch and hear the candidates.
But Team Unity spokesperson Joseph “Ace” Durano said that GO could not claim that the debates would be inaccessible because it would be fully covered by television, radio and newspapers.
Team Unity candidates took swipes at their rivals for backing out of the debate.
Senatorial bet Luis “Chavit” Singson said this showed that the opposition was only good at “heckling from the gallery” because they did not have an alternative program to the President’s economic strategy.
Senatorial candidate Michael Defensor said the preference for Plaza Miranda was just a lame excuse to cover up for GO’s strategy of hurling mud at the administration and just wait if anything stuck.
Originally posted at www.inquirer.net
