Wanted: A better campaign
Calling all candidates for public office and their campaign teams: Make the May 2013 polls truly democratic, kindly go beyond propaganda.
As the campaign goes full throttle please agonize to think out of the box and refrain from churning out no-brainer messages.
Stop insulting the intelligence of voters.
Do not assume that they will vote for the candidate with the greatest number of posters.
You can put to better use the money allotted for posters or stickers or leaflets that lack substance.
Better use does not translate to funding for campaign jingles cribbed from the tired refrains of pop hits like “Oppa, Gangnam Style.”
In your sorties, have mercy on your people: Chuck the song, dance and do stand-up comedy routines. You are not trying out for a television show.
Since you or your donors have money, please take time to let your speech writers rid your orations of motherhood statements.
You all claim to advocate progress. For starters, implement a modicum of development in your speeches. Give your prospective constituents the details (time frames, processes, etc) of your platforms.
If you sue your opponents, be determined to see your case through whether or not you win or lose on election day, whether or not you and your opponents become allies.
Do not use the courts as a convenient tool in a publicity stunt against your opponents.
According to the Commission on Elections, you have 120 minutes of airtime for television and radio advertisement.
Give the electorate something more pithy than slick music videos, celebrity endorsements or catchy slogans to judge you on.
The ball is in your court. Politics in this land must be weaned from entertainment and the world of show. Raise the quality of discussion in the campaign period.
If you do so, the nation will take one giant step to maturing as a democracy.
