The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is eyeing the possibility of conducting a "hybrid" presidential debate in the May 2022 polls.
"Definitely there will be a presidential debate but then again the question is if it will be face to face or virtual," Comelec Commissioner Marlon Casquejo said in a virtual press briefing Friday, May 14.
"I think it would be better if it is hybrid so we could do the face to face but virtual audience," he added.
Casquejo said another option is to have the candidates attend virtually or physically while the audience will be allowed physically but on a limited scale.
He said this will be one of the things that will be discussed in their three in one conference next week.
During the May 2016 polls, the Comelec together with their media partners organized three presidential debates dubbed as #PiliPinasDebates2016.
Due to the successful conduct of the debates, then Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista said they want to make the debates a regular thing during elections.
"We want to make these debates a part of the fabric of Philippine elections that can successfully penetrate the political consciousness of many Filipinos for it is high time that our politics to veer away from popularity and personalities and move towards policy pronouncements, platforms, and performance,” he said at that time.