I've read a lot of posts ranting about the Political ads running on TV like the one above of Manny Villar, and the one on this blog, of Mar Roxas. Bloggers like Adaphobic are lashing out at the audacity of using money for TV ads instead of for helping the poor...
Here's my 2 cents...
It's like Affiliate Marketing
Sure you, and me, and a lot of the bloggers are, as you say, "cringing every time we watch these ads", but let's keep in mind, even though we are part of the voting population, these ads are not meant for us - it is meant more so for the majority of the voting population, i.e. the people with nary a dime but have talking boxes in their 2x2 meter living rooms (which also double as a bedroom at night).
They are the people who will go, "ay, talagang para sa mahirap itong si Manny Villar!" every time they watch these ads.
And THEY have the power to put a President in office.
Now, my intention is not to demean poor people (or even those who claim to represent them), I am no way saying they are ignorant or incapable. My point is, simply, that these politicians are marketing themselves - and their target audience is the voting majority. They are using the most powerful tools at their disposal to "sell their product", and from a marketing perspective, they are doing quite well.
We could probably guess Manny Villar is NOT the type who goes around (in full make-up) helping people on the streets, or riding pedicabs (ibang candidate yata yun?). But you would probably say, I know he is a good leader, a good man - and so let's do whatever is necessary to help get him to the Palace.
And this is it, my friend. This is it.
Imagine if your were Manny Villar or Mar Roxas' Public Relations agent or Campaign Manager - how far would you go to promote him to the public at large?
And one final disclaimer, I am NOT for Manny Villar nor Mar Roxas nor any other candidate for the moment. I'll reserve my judgment for later.
But what do YOU think?
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This procession, along the main highway through Bauan, Batangas, held us prisoners for a little more than an hour. The 1.5 hour trip to Tagaytay was extended to almost 3 hours! Good thing Balai Indang was not difficult to find, save for the initial it's-dark-and-are-we-going-in-the-right-direction/is-this-a-horror-movie feeling.
When we arrived, we were quite hungry. Good thing there was a program for "getting-to-know-each-other-in-the-entourage" before dinner, so there was still a lot of food when we arrived. At dinner, we got to sit with Dean's high school teacher, and she kept us entertained with Dean's childhood stories while we ate dinner...
