MANILA, Philippines?But look who?s talking.

Senate President Manuel Villar Tuesday said the chamber should come up with guidelines to police the growing number of its members doing product endorsements for extra income and free publicity.

Villar warned that the Senate?s image would be compromised if the products endorsed by the senators failed to pass health standards.

?This is a matter that should be studied very seriously. We have to be careful. I agree that there should be rules,? he said in Filipino.

Villar conceded that the Senate ethics committee?s rules on senators endorsing commercial products were not helpful.

?We?re not saying it?s illegal because the rules are not clear. So it?s up to the people to make the final judgment,? he said.

Villar himself once endorsed the toothpaste brand Hapee. But he pointed out that this happened a long time ago, and that the toothpaste was Philippine-made, not a multinational product. He said part of his advocacy was promoting local products.

Lately, Villar has been appearing in a TV advertisement calling for the protection of the rights and welfare of overseas Filipino workers.

Again he insisted that this was not a product endorsement but a form of public service to help OFWs in need?another advocacy, he said.

According to Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, senators should exercise self-restraint.

She said it was ?certainly unethical? for senators, particularly those seeking higher public office, to do product endorsements this early.

?It?s a form of premature campaigning, which is illegal under the election code,? Santiago said.

?With respect to its legality, I think it?s a way of circumventing the law. In effect, it?s a way of violating the law and at the same time evading criminal punishment. And that?s not the example we expect from our national leaders. The solution should be self-restraint,? she said.

Sen. Manuel ?Mar? Roxas II, who once pushed the detergent brand Tide, denied doing any product endorsements: ?But I didn?t endorse. I didn?t say that the public should buy a product, nor did I hold any product. And I did not say that it was better than the others. It?s a public service announcement saying that all product sellers should be true to consumers.?