Press Release
March 20, 2016

Statement of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano on the delay in the March-20 presidential debates

Vice Presidential bet and Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano took a swipe at Vice President Jejomar Binay Sr. for allegedly delaying the presidential debates on Sunday (March 20).

The second round of the debates, which was held at the University of the Philippines (UP) campus in Cebu City, was supposed to start at 4:30 in the afternoon but started more than an hour later due to unforeseen circumstances.

The delay was reportedly caused by some candidates seeking last minute modifications on the rules of the debate. Several reports claimed that Vice President Jejomar Binay, in particular, wanted to bring notes with him, but debate organizers would not allow it. The Binay camp also reportedly wanted to remove corruption among the issues to be tackled.

Cayetano, for his part, lambasted Binay for trying to alter the rules of the debate, which he said shows clear proof that the Vice President would do anything to evade corruption allegations being thrown against him and his family.

"He is running for president but he can't even debate without notes? How can the vice president present himself as this country's next president if he cannot even participate in a debate where corruption is among the most important issues?" the senator stressed.

"The mechanics have been clear since day one. The Comelec rule since the first debate was that there should be no notes. But with what transpired today, we just saw a glimpse of what a Binay leadership will bring to the country - a total disregard for established rules," Cayetano added.

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