The price tag of an image

(originally published in the August 2009 issue of The LaSallian, the Official Student Publication of De La Salle University)

Photo taken from tonyocruz.com

“Anak, itabi mo”

Roughly translated to “son, pull over”, these are the now-famous words of Senator Mar Roxas in one of his TV commercials. It would seem like the campaign period started early for the May 2010 elections, as the Filipino public is already being bombarded with political ads since October 2008. Disguised as infomercials, those who have announced their plans to run for office next year can be seen everywhere – in TV, in print, on the radio, even on the web. Of course, judging by how long their faces are shown in these commercials, no one would think these are to “promote advocacies”.

In Mar Roxas’ commercials, it is very clear that he is trying to say that he cares about the poor. The senator even talks to them about the communities’ problems, and how no other politician seemed to care except for Roxas. In Senator Manny Villar’s case, the commercials would make it clear that his family used to be poor, and because of that, he’s more likely to help other poverty-stricken Filipinos. Another presidential hopeful, Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay’s commercial shows how life is in Makati – free education, higher wages for government employees, free health care. A logo states that the ad is for the foundation anniversary of the city, but the line at the end of the commercial reveals its true intentions: “Ganito kami sa Makati, ganito sana sa buong bayan” (This is how we are in Makati. I wish that this is how we will be for the whole country).

While political advertising is perfectly legal thanks to the Fair Elections Act of 2001, it should be done during the campaign period or ninety days before the polls open. Advertising spending also has a limit, to somehow ensure fairness and prevent politicians from staling public funds. These early “advocacy” campaigns clearly undermine the purpose of the law, making it hard for other candidates who are not as wealthy to get the same amount of recognition from the public.

No one is being fooled, except maybe for the Commission on Elections, which has taken no action against these ads. The public, however, is probably sick of these repetitive ads. A more immediate concern is how much these commercials cost. Production of a high-quality commercial could easily reach seven figures, and airing them on national television costs another several hundred thousands of pesos, multiplied by how many times it would air. Villar and Roxas have already spent close to 400 million pesos on these commercials. While they were apparently paid for by either themselves or their friends, it is still a massive waste of money, especially in a country which desperately needs it.

What’s so wrong about Philippine politics is that the personalities are overemphasized. Very little has been said about candidates’ platforms. Instead, they take the role of products being advertised, establishing a strong unique selling point to the voters. That is why a lot of celebrities and media personalities successfully transition into politics. Filipinos are more interested in who they are voting, not what the candidates will do when they get elected. In turn, hundreds of millions of pesos are being spent on advertising: money which could have gone to actually helping the poor instead of trying to publicize themselves and the values they supposedly hold.

Filipino voters are getting smarter. The effects of these ads are waning, according to surveys by the Social Weather Station (SWS). If politicians want votes, they need to take actual action, and not just after they announce their intentions to run after the elections. If they already have a position in the government, they should make the most of what they have before aspiring for a higher position. They should take advantage of their terms and do good for the people, instead of trying to put up an image that is obviously contrived. Moreover, they should stop wasting resources on advertisements. Voting shouldn’t be about choosing who has the best image, but determining who is most qualified. Expressing good intentions through advertisements is alright, but actually living up to that image that was created by these ads is infinitely better.