Inquirer, GMA 7 join forces for clean polls

WITH “great power” comes responsibility.

GMA Network CEO and chair Felipe Gozon called on Filipinos to  vote wisely and choose leaders worthy of “the great power and opportunity to lead our nation.”

Gozon issued the call on Thursday at the signing of GMA’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) with election partners, including the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Inquirer.net. This will be the fifth election that GMA will be partnering with the Inquirer group.

Inquirer president and CEO Sandy Prieto-Romualdez said the partnership involved content sharing and spearheading the advocacy for clean elections.

Romualdez said media should fulfill its role in informing voters on candidates’ platforms and stand on issues instead of focusing on personalities.

“This partnership … will be able to give the voters a good sense of who their candidates are so they can make a good choice,” she said after the MOU signing at the GMA compound in Quezon City.

‘Most credible’

She said there would also be a sharing of “thought leaders” or resource persons, as well as a concerted effort to protect the Filipino vote.

In the presentation of the election partners at GMA 7’s Studio 6, Inquirer was introduced as “undeniably the country’s most credible and most influential newspaper.”

Host Mike Enriquez said he was looking forward to working again with Inquirer.

“When a network like GMA partners with a group like Inquirer, you can’t get any bigger, you can’t get more comprehensive,” he told Inquirer.net.

“It is the hope of this partnership that GMA and Inquirer can make the people more aware, the voters more educated, more involved, more active, more vigilant. And all of this for a better Philippines,” he said.

PARTNERS FOR CLEAN ELECTIONS Top executives of the Inquirer, GMA 7 and other partners link arms after signing the memorandum of understanding for clean elections in 2016. From left front row: Mike C. Enriquez; Napoleon Nazareno, PLDT/Smart president and CEO; Felipe L. Gozon, GMA Network chair and CEO; Marissa Flores; Alexandra Prieto-Romualdez, Inquirer president and CEO; Henrietta de Villa, PPCRV chair; Jessica Soho; Alfredo E. Pascual, UP president; Jaime Hofileña, Ateneo de Manila University VP for social development. LEO M. SABANGAN II

New landscape

Gozon acknowledged that the media landscape and the nature of the election campaign had changed.

“We see an election coverage that is online, on social media, mobile, quick up close and personal. In addition, of course, to traditional media,” he said.

However, Gozon said the people were still looking for the same things: good governance, and honest, credible and peaceful elections.

“In the midst of this change there are things that remain constant and timeless: that is the people’s clamor for good governance, the need for honest, credible and peaceful elections and our commitment to cover the election with no spins, no personal agenda, truthfully, accurately, comprehensively and written only by the calling toward public service,” he said.

Empowerment

Commission on Elections Chair Andres Bautista, one of the speakers at the event, said, “Credible elections are fundamental to the ethos of democracy.”

“Elections are at the heart of people empowerment,” he said, adding that the voice of the voter is also important.

Bautista said the Comelec was working with GMA, Inquirer and other media organizations for the debates among presidential candidates.

“We want to create institutionalized venues that can improve the candidate-voter interaction and deepen public discourse on present-day issues,” he said.

Other partners

Other GMA partners are the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting, National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., Smart Communications, University of the Philippines, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, University of Santo Tomas, AMA Education System, Waze Mobile, Viber Philippines, PEP, Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands, Catholic Media Network, Youth Vote Philippines, Philippine Bar Association and Integrated Bar of the Philippines.

Romualdez and Inquirer.net president Paolo Prieto signed the MOU.

After the MOU was signed by the heads of all election partners, Enriquez said, “After this signing, no more turning back, no leaving anyone behind.”