Comelec not involved in payment issues with hotel, debates organizer stresses
MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections was not involved in a contract to host presidential and vice-presidential debates at a Pasay City hotel that have had to be rescheduled due to payment issues, debate organizer Impact Hub Manila said Saturday.
It said it will discuss the issues privately with Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila and other stakeholders as it stressed the importance of candidate debates to help voters decide on the country's next leaders.
The Comelec debates will be held on April 30 and May 1 after payment issues between Vote Pilipinas, a voter information campaign led by Impact Hub Manila, and Sofitel.
The debates are the last leg of Comelec's events related to the May 9 elections.
"Unfortunately, the initiative between the two private companies encountered some misunderstandings," Impact Hub Manila said in a statement shared by lawyer Gideon dela Pena over Twitter.
"While there have been incomplete reports as to the cause of the miscommunication, Impact Hub Manila will refrain from publicly divulging these matters and will endeavor to discuss them with Sofitel and other stakeholders privately," it said.
'Venue of debates does not matter'
The start-up said it does not wish to sidetrack the public from what matters.
"It does not matter where the debates will be held. It only matters that debates [will] still be held. The public should have more opportunities to know the platform, background and credentials of those running for public office,"the group said.
On its website, Impact Hub Manila says it is an incubation hub for entrepreneurs, and that it is part of the largest network of entrepreneurs in the world whose global headquarters are in Vienna, Austria.
On Friday, Comelec Commissioner George Garcia said in a streamed conference that the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) offered its support to hold the debates on the new dates for free.
During the event, Comelec Commissioner Rey Bulay also apologized to other candidates for the suspension of the town hall debates, and promised that they will look into the incident. — Angelica Y. Yang
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