Philippines

The Philippine Debate Union called out presidential candidate Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos and his running mate Sara Duterte for their refusal to participate in debates sponsored by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC).

A debate moderator emphasized the opportunity lost by a presidential candidate who did not attend the Commission on Elections presidential debates on Saturday, March 19.

Several viewers of the first presidential debate hosted by the Commission on Elections lamented the absence of the debate timer on the livestream and the telecast.

Presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said he would rather campaign on the ground than have the same thing be repeated in the debates.

Of the 10 presidential candidates, six have submitted their written commitments to participate in the PiliPinas Debates organized by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) while three others have committed their attendance verbally.

Vice Presidential aspirant Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte said on Saturday, March 12, that it’s final: she won’t be joining any debates ahead of election day.

Presidential aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has said he’s unsure if he could attend the presidential debates initiated by the Commission on Elections as he would still be studying the format.

Imagine an audience of rabid supporters – drowning their voices in a sea of inaudible names and celebratory remarks.

The camp of presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will finalize this week whether he will attend the debates sponsored by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on March 19.

Skip the Commission on Elections (Comelec)-sponsored debates and the candidate loses the privilege to use the poll body’s free livestreaming of their e-rallies platform until the end of the campaign period.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) should not provide candidates the topics and questions for the presidential debates this month in advance so candidates could be as truthful as possible during discussions, presidential candidate Sen. Manny Pacquiao said yesterday.

It’s official: the Commission on Elections (Comelec) will organize three presidential debates and two vice presidential debates in the run-up to the 2022 Philippine elections.