By Danilo P. Padua, PhD
As am stitching this piece, there is barely one day left before campaigning for the May 12, 2025 formally ends. It is 2 days to go before election day.
The 2025 election campaign is probably the most expensive one ever for a number of national candidates-senators and Party Lists. Tarpaulins of these aspirants have sprouted along highways in Luzon, in Visayas, and in Mindanao as early as October last year. Saw this myself as I travelled around.
It was yet months before the allowed campaign period was to begin. This is one thing that COMELEC must properly address in the next elections. It should be curbed, to minimize spending.
There were also TV ads by some aspirant senators by then. The cost of TV ads certainly is huge. If there is somebody monitoring the ads on TV from the beginning, then a number of the current senatorial candidates could be found over the allowable campaign budget limit already.
A candidate who spends so much during the campaign will certainly be doing things that will allow them to recoup their “investments”, with interest even greater than a pyramid scam.
So, if we saw that a candidate spent that much in their campaign-on TV, radio, print media, social media, and other means then it is for us to shun such candidate. Otherwise, we will be treated to spectacle of non-performance and hands dipping into our collected taxes.
The party list system should be re-evaluated pronto seeing the names of the party lists and the names leading those parties-they are mostly belonging to prominent political clans or vested businesses. Their platforms cut across every sector of the society. They do not represent the marginalized sector of the society as envisioned in the 1987 constitution. They run empty election slogans that is so general in nature, they are even encroaching on the domain of different agencies. Legislative work seems not to be their priority.
In short, the party list system as it is being implemented now, is just another tool to hoodwink the poor, instead of them being helped as intended. Maybe a people’s initiative to change the color of the system should be resorted to. We can not wait for Congress to make such initiative. For who wants to snuff out the life of a golden goose if you are benefitting from it?
I would like to believe that Pinoy voters are now smarter. But this may be true only to 50%, or at most 60%, of our voting population; the other half could still be struggling to reach such level. Based on surveys of various private research groups for the senatorial candidates, some important issues such as the West Philippine Sea, human rights violations, possible meddling of countries in our national affairs, appear to be non-issues. That’s not a sign of maturity.
Further, celebrities and social media personalities are high up in the ranking although they are not prepared to do legislative work (as some of them admit) but they could just serve the poor, give them medicines, and other charity works. These are jobs that can be better done by local executives, or by themselves in their private capacity. Such candidates could have then vied for the office of a mayor or governor, not a senator.
This is a free country but I think the number of senatorial candidates (66 for this election) and party list groups (156 in all) should be limited. For instance, a senatorial candidate who has no machinery, not well known outside of his/her town, has very limited experience, has no financial capacity to maintain a nationwide campaign should not be allowed to pursue a senatorial candidacy.
Look at this. In this election, there are sectors that are represented by multiple party list groups such as Senior citizens (3); women (3); agriculture (4); teacher (3), and others. There are also regions that are represented by 2 or more groups. If all of them will gain two seats each, then the sector or region could be “over-represented” in Congress. A total of 156 party list groups is simply too much.
The higher the number of candidates, the greater is the cost of printing the ballots, the longer it takes for someone to vote, the more confused a voter is, and the higher is the total cost of election.
Obviously, something has to be done. The phrase, “this is a democracy”, should be interpreted and applied with limitations in our election exercises.
I already have a “codigo” of candidates to vote for, but the day before this piece is written, I accidentally heard an interview of a gubernatorial candidate in Benguet over my car radio. I have seen his campaign leaflet but I was not impressed, so he was not my candidate. When I heard him speak clearly about his knowledge of what is going on in the province, and his concomitant plan of action if given the mandate, that gave me something to think about.
This is an example of why it is not enough to rely on the printed matter to choose a candidate. You have to listen to what they have to say, and will do. With limited time, you can’t do this with so many candidates. That’s why the number of candidates must be pruned down to a manageable number to have better assessment of their capabilities, especially for national candidates.
Let’s exercise our right. Let us go out and vote-wisely!**
