'Epal' politics

They’re at it again.

We're referring to the politicians already engaged in promoting themselves on television and other media this early.

The filing of certificates of candidacy is supposed to be held in October yet, while the actual campaign period for national positions starts 90 days before the actual voting in May, if we're not mistaken.

So why are we treated to less-than-subtle campaign pitches by certain politicians at this early stage of the game?

The trouble is that there is no law prohibiting potential candidates from premature self-promotion.

Why? Because the Supreme Court had ruled in 2009 that there is no such thing as premature campaigning if the campaign period has not yet started.

That has left our politicians—the rich ones, or those robbing the treasury blind—grinning from ear-to-ear and making a headstart in image-building and self-promotion.

What these politicians are saying is that they did not spend a single centavo for the TV ads as these were all donated by "friends" and "supporters" without their knowledge nor concurrence. This is arrant nonsense, as we all know.

But we voters should not simply sit idly and allow these politicians to rudely interrupt our downtime watching our favorite TV programs, not to mention assault our sensibilities with their brazen self-promotion.

An election lawyer has suggested that since there is no law that would punish prospective candidates for engaging in premature campaigning for 2016,  the electorate could still hold them accountable by demanding an audit of the funds used to pay for their early advertisements.

Or else, by filing graft cases against them.

After all, the Commission on Audit  and the Office of the Ombudsman could pursue criminal action against epal politicians through Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, for “entering into contracts or transactions that are manifestly and grossly disadvantageous to the government.”

Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista also does not want to turn a blind eye to premature campaigning, and urges civil society and poll watchdog groups to make the premature campaigners aware that what they are doing is unmistakable proof of evident bad faith and a mockery of our electoral process. 

In short, we should not allow ourselves to be totally helpless against the epal  politicians.

On the day of reckoning next year, we can simply not vote for them at all.

        

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