Strong Initiative Must Be Launched to Combat Vote-Buying during PH Elections
Vote-buying is one of the dirtiest practices during elections in the Philippines and must be countered with a strong, serious move.
Truth be told that countless Filipinos will agree that a lot of politicians and election candidates in the Philippines spend a lot of money during the campaign period. They are doing it to win positions that bear huge societal responsibilities and small salaries.
The campaign expenses of politicians visibly includes the printing of flyers, tarpaulins, posters, and other materials to convince voters and win more votes. Some election candidates also conduct programs like feeding programs as part of campaigning for the upcoming poll.
However, it is a painful reality that dirty practices persist in Philippine elections for decades now. One of them is “vote-buying”. The said dirty tactic continues to be part of the polls as the initiatives done to prevent it may not have the full capacity to address the problem.
In PH, almost everything is set for the upcoming Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) Elections 2023. The poll is set on Monday, October 30, 2023.
The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) will impose a “money ban” which prevents the transport, carrying, and possession of at least Php 500,000 cash starting two (2) days prior to the election day.
However, I believe such move can really be combatted with a more planned strategy by those who are determined to win the polls by hook or by crook. It is my humble belief that there is a need for a much stronger move that will stop vote-buying right on the end of the target recipients of the money.
Why not put a huge reward for solid and proven reports about such dirty election tactic? Possibly, it can stop dirty players in the fear that one of the recipients will put them down. On the end of the voters, the reward will be from a good action compared to selling votes — making money in a legal way, at least.
There are a lot of things that keep going on for years now as they are not seriously addressed. I believe a clean and honest election is one of the things that could greatly contribute to the betterment of the country we are living in.
Disclaimer: The content of the article posted above is an opinion of the writer. Also, the citations provided are based on the information deemed as facts by the different legit sources that contribute to the basis of the making of the whole viewpoint. The writer does not, in any form, intend to create inaccurate understanding of the topic or influence the readers instead, express one’s viewpoint in a formal manner.