Senator Imee Marcos (left) and Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. (SENATE PRIB PHOTOS)
MANILA, Philippines— “Falsehoods and lies should have no place in our democratic processes.”
So said Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. as he backed a proposal to ban deepfakes and artificial intelligence (AI) technology in campaign materials.
The suggestion was proposed by Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin Garcia.
“Tama po yan. After all, technological advancement lang naman yan sa pagpapakalat ng kasinungalingan. Falsehoods and lies should have no place in our democratic processes,” Revilla said in a Viber message to reporters on Thursday when sought for comment.
“At malinaw na ang gagamit niyan ay walang magandang intensyon kundi pansariling interes lamang,” he added.
(And it’s clear that those who use it have no good intentions except for self-interest.)
Sen. Imee Marcos, who heads the Senate committee on electoral reforms and people’s participation, also welcomed the proposal.
She said such a Comelec ban would “encourage transparency throughout the campaign process.”
“However, I am not certain if the Comelec, or any government agency for that matter, presently has the capability to efficiently and timely detect the use of AI and deepfakes,” Marcos said.
Garcia formally requested to ban deepfakes and AI technology through a memorandum dated May 28.
Even heads of state, including our President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., have been victims of AI deep fake videos to deceive viewers, the poll chief lamented in the resolution.
He then warned that the abuse of AI technology and ‘deep fake’ videos would undermine the integrity of elections and the credibility of public officials, candidates, and election management authorities.
“The abuse of this technology in campaign materials such as videos, audios, or other media forms may amount to fraudulent misrepresentation of candidates,” Garcia said.
“This defeats the very purpose of a campaign, which is to fully and truthfully inform the voting public about the elections and the candidates,” he added.