‘Poor’ candidates decry move to increase political ad time – Malaya 12.04.2006

Independent candidates and party-list groups are losing sleep over the move by the senators and congressmen crafting the latest automated elections law to increase the allotted airtime for television and radio for candidates in next year’s elections.

Bicameral leaders Sen. Richard Gordon and Rep. Teodoro Locsin Jr. said they are mulling to increase the allotted airtime for candidates from the current 120 minutes to 180 minutes.

But party-list groups led by Rep. Etta Rosales of Akbayan said the increase in allotted airtime would discriminate against small political parties and poor candidates who can not buy radio and TV airtime.

She said this would mean more cash for political advertising just to compete with their moneyed opponents.

"This is unfair to party-list groups. You know for a fact we don’t have the money to buy air time," Rosales, who sits in the bicameral panel, told senators and congressmen during last week’s final deliberations on the measure.

She added: "Even under the present set-up, we are already at a great disadvantage."

Party-list groups CIBAC and AN WARAY have also expressed reservations on increasing the media time for political advertisement. – Dennis Gadil