During a press briefing today at the Sofitel Hotel in Pasay City, after signing the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the institution and Vote Pilipinas, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) urged candidates not to skip debates so that they would be allowed to use their e-rally platform.

COMELEC spokesperson James Jimenez discussed the importance of attending debates of the bets running for president and vice president, reiterating that the penalty will be valid until the end of the campaign period. 

Chairperson Socorro, the acting COMELEC chairperson, expressed that he wants all nine presidential aspirants and 10 vice-presidential candidates to be present in the debate, which is set to happen on March 19 and 20. 

Socorro said, “I really hope all the candidates will participate in the debates sponsored by COMELEC. One who refuses or skips the debate will not be allowed to join the e-rallies.” 

Candidates used the e-rally platform since the start of the campaign on February 8, which they can air online their rallies and sorties across the country. 

Jimenez mentioned that aside from the sanctions prohibiting the candidates who will not show up to debates to use e-rally, the podium of aspirants will be left empty. However, a spokesperson responded limitedly when asking about the written commitments of candidates during their meeting last week. 

According to a spokesperson, “We are still going to brief them on the fine points of the format that is actually all of the candidates are interested in. So we are going to hold that under wraps for now. The agreement with the candidates so that there will still be room for us to adjust in case they want for example a holding room for example.”

Meanwhile, Jimenez has not yet revealed the moderator of the debate but stated that it will be revealed before March 19. “Yes, we have but again we are holding that under reserve. The actual moderator for the debate will be announced in close proximity to the debate itself. This will protect all the parties involved.”