As the May 9, 2022 nears, the Commission on Elections will finally stage their own debate series via PiliPinas Debates: The Turning Point.
In early March, the COMELEC finally bared their plans for the revival of PiliPinas Debates, which last happened during the 2016 Presidential elections. This time, the commission elected to not just host 3 rounds of Presidential debates, but they will also be pushing forward by including 2 rounds of Vice Presidential debates.
As for the format, it is understood that there will be 2 classic-type of debates (one for the VP bets), with the last one for both groups being configured as a town hall debate. Topics have also been predetermined, with the questions coming from various sectors. These, however, will not be given to the candidates. People will have 90 seconds to answer questions.
Schedules are also out and here how everything will play out. The “classic” Presidential debates will be held across three Saturdays: March 19 and April 2 at 7:00 pm. Serving as moderators will be Luchi Cruz Valdez of News5 (for March 19) and Ces Oreña-Drilon who was formerly from ABS-CBN (for April 2). The Presidential town hall will take place on the 23rd of April, with the pair of moderators yet to be revealed.
Nine out of the ten Presidential candidates have confirmed their attendance to the first night of debates. Only Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. declined the invitation, citing that they’d rather connect to their supporters via their “preferred mode of communication.”
Meanwhile, VP debates will take place on March 20, also at 7:00 pm, and will be moderated by CNN Philippines’ anchor Ruth Cabal. The moderators for the Vice Presidential Town Hall debate on April 24 will also be named in due course.
Seven out of the nine candidates in the VP race have also confirmed. Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte and Rep. Lito Atienza both declined to participate, with the former saying that she will no longer engage in such events until election day. Atienza, on the other hand, is still recuperating from his medical emergency last month.
Broadcast of the debates will be livestreamed on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. The following major television channels will also simulcast the debates: TV5, CNN Philippines, GMA DepEd TV, ANC, TeleRadyo, One News, One PH. Several AM and FM radio stations across the country are also expected to hook-up with the audio feed of the debates.
The PiliPinas Debates 2022 series will be the third in-person debates during the campaign season, with the SMNI and CNN Philippines-hosted events being the first two, respectively. The Kapisanan ng mga Broadkaster sa Pilipinas (KBP) also held a virtual forum prior to the February 8 kick-off.
In related news, GMA Network has also greenlighted its own special debate which will be aired on the last week of April. Further details are yet to be announced.