Labor leader and Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) presidential candidate Leodegario ‘Ka Leody” De Guzman has once again slammed rival presidential bet Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s consistent absenteeism during presidential debates.
“Expected, kasi di naman sya dumadalo sa mga debate (because he doesn’t go to debates),” De Guzman said in a video statement sent to reporters before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) presidential debate on Sunday, April 3.
He explained that the debates are an opportunity to share a candidate’s platform to voters, an opportunity that is wasted by not attending.
“Pero sayang dahil ito yung pagkakataon para sa mga ating mamanood tsaka ang ating mga botante na marinig ng eksakto ano ba talaga ang kanyang plataporma, ano ba ang kanyang mga tindig sa mga isyu na pinag-uusapan (It’s a waste because this is a change for the audience and our voters to here exactly what his platforms are, what his stances are on issues),” De Guzman explained.
He further said that there are no laws obligating absentee candidates from attending debates.
“Maspinipili ngayon hindi dumating dahil sa tingin nya mataas na ang rating niya eh sa survey kaya ayaw na niya siguri i-risk, baka magkamali pa siya na sagot (He’d rather not attend because he thinks that his ratings are high, maybe he doesn’t want to risk it by giving a wrong answer),” the labor leader concluded.
De Guzman’s running mate and fellow PLM candidate Walden Bello similarly roasted the UniTeam tandem for absenteeism during debates, describing the act as undemocratic and asking that the two be penalized.
UniTeam tandem Marcos and running mate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte have both been consistently absent during presidential and vice presidential debates, though Marcos once attended the Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) presidential forum last Feb. 15.
For their part, Marcos was asked during an ambush interview on Friday, April 1 if he would attend the Comelec debate, to which he issued no response.
Duterte’s spokesperson previously clarified that the VP bet instead prefers barnstorming and ground campaigning to debates.