Press Release
April 12, 2018

Koko proposes lower ad rates for candidates

Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III on Thursday called on media companies to lower rates for candidates' advertisements.

Pimentel filed Senate Bill No. 1777 on April 4, 2018, which seeks to lower political advertisements by 50% for television, 30% for radio, and 20% for print ads, compared to the average rates charged to their most favored advertisers during the first three quarters of the two calendar years preceding the elections.

"Article II, Section 26 of our Constitution provides that the State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service. In this day and age, an undeniable feature of running a successful election campaign involves media exposure. Unfortunately, many qualified but financially disadvantaged candidates are unable to compete in this regard because of prohibitive rates charged by media entities", said Pimentel.

The Senate chief said that media entities have always been willing to lower rates for certain parties, and therefore there should be no issue with lowering prices in the interest of democratizing public service.

Pimentel said that money was never a qualification for public office under the Constitution, but only rich people or those backed by wealthy financiers are able to run due to the costs of campaigning.

The Senate President said, "The reason we have campaign spending limits is due to the temptation for corruption generated by excessive expenses during a campaign. Some politicians think it entitles them to 'recoup' their 'investment' using public funds."

Pimentel said that reining in runaway campaign spending will allow more candidates to run, giving people more choices during the election.

"This proposal complements our campaign against political dynasties - voters won't have to put up with the same old tired faces if they have more options to choose from", he said.

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