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NewsTranscript
00:00Welcome to the 45-day campaign period of those running for local elections.
00:06We are talking to Attorney Ona Carritos, Executive Director of Legal Network for Truthful Elections, or LENTE.
00:13Good morning and welcome to Balitang Hali.
00:16Good morning, Ms. Cohen. Good morning to all of our viewers.
00:21Ma'am, what is your initial assessment of the start of the local campaign period today?
00:27So far, in our initial assessment of the start of the campaign period for local candidates today,
00:33we haven't received any violations or reports of violations,
00:38especially on the posters that are in the wrong places.
00:44So, we are expecting that in the following days, we will receive more reports.
00:48Right now, it's just the beginning. So far, so good.
00:51There haven't been any untoward incidents reported to us in LENTE.
00:55Yes, but in history, it's usually more heated, right?
00:59The dismissal of candidates for local positions.
01:03Why is that? So that our viewers can understand better.
01:07Well, in history, Ms. Connie, the local elections are more heated
01:11because more people feel that this is really the politics
01:16and this is the government that we can rely on every day.
01:19So, it's more heated, especially since more people are fighting.
01:23The issues and problems faced by the locals are closer to our voters.
01:29That's why, historically, the local elections are more heated compared to the national elections.
01:33Yes, and what are the things that are usually a hindrance to the campaign
01:37of those who run for local positions?
01:39And maybe it's been added, according to the Vote Report PH,
01:43an election watchdog for midterm elections,
01:45the leading candidates are also the leading campaign violators.
01:50What can you say about that?
01:52Well, the number one violation that we always see when it comes to local candidates
01:57is the misplacing of posters in the wrong places,
02:02the misuse of the size of the posters,
02:05the excess of 2x3 feet.
02:07But in the last two elections that we monitored,
02:10one of the things that we are monitoring is the use of government resources,
02:15the use of vehicles, the use of so-called UVNOs
02:18for the campaign of the incumbents
02:20or the relatives of the incumbents who are no longer running for their positions.
02:25That's what we call ASR.
02:27And that's another thing that we monitor
02:29and we expect that we will receive reports on that.
02:33Now, in the digital age, of course, there is also digital campaigning.
02:38The only question is, is the power of the public enough
02:42to answer the election violators online?
02:46Well, it's enough for now,
02:48because what the public is doing is being creative about it.
02:51They are using the laws for our elections
02:54when the law was passed,
02:57such as the Omnibus Election Code, our Fair Election Act.
03:00It's not like that yet.
03:01Actually, there was no internet when the Omnibus Election Code was passed in 1985.
03:06In the Fair Election Act,
03:08the usage and penetration of the internet in our country is not yet that massive.
03:14Because there is no change in our law regarding online campaigning,
03:18they are trying to stretch the laws that I mentioned
03:23so that they can regulate the campaigns of our candidates
03:28on various online platforms.
03:30When it comes to election-related violence,
03:32what is the trend that you see as the election of 2025 approaches?
03:36In Sinawing Palat, we already have election-related incidents in Maguindanao.
03:42Well, that's what we expect.
03:45But I hope that our expectations won't happen.
03:48And as far as I know,
03:49there are still a lot of incidents that we see as election-related violence.
03:53Especially in the BORM,
03:55because we remember that in October this year,
03:58there will be the first BORM parliamentary elections.
04:01So the candidates and supporters in the BORM
04:05are not just looking at the May National and Local Elections.
04:09They are also looking at the BORM parliamentary elections in October.
04:13And of course, now they are preparing
04:15because the elections in the region are still hot.
04:18Okay. And if there are election violations,
04:21what should our countrymen do?
04:24Well, the first thing that our countrymen should do is to document.
04:28Don't think about how to report this.
04:30The most important thing is evidence.
04:32So you need to take pictures, take videos.
04:36Of course, the first thing to think about is security.
04:40Let's not make the situation dangerous,
04:44especially when it comes to taking pictures and videos.
04:46So the first thing to do,
04:47if you see a violation,
04:48document it.
04:49And next, after the proper documentation,
04:52report it to the public.
04:53Or you can report it to us in Lente.
04:56We can help you,
04:57especially with the case build-up or in the documentation.
05:01Thank you very much for the time you gave to Balitang Hali, Attorney.
05:06Thank you too.
05:07That was Attorney Onna Caritos of Lente.