Those ‘permit to
campaign’ fees

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor CHERYL CRUZ Desk Editor PATRICK PANGILINAN Busines Editor NIDA A. BUENAFE Sports Editor RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

Now that election time is upon us and candidates are moving all over the country to solicit the votes that will place them in the positions they are aspiring for, the same problems that have been hounding us everytime we get to this point, is the issue of the “fees” charged by rebels to those who would campaign in their so-called territories.

All these years, we can only suspect that many of those candidates, especially those whose territories include the countrysides and the hinterlands where police and military protection are not always available, have to comply with the demands, or they will not be able to penetrate the areas they need to reach, or suffer some form of penalty.

Naturally, none of those who comply will admit having done so, since they know that their act of succumbing to the demands for money will also be considered treasonous by the legitimate government as it is, in effect, giving aid and comfort to the enemy. And they could be charged criminally for it.

The police and the military are, of course, privy to this extortion business, but it is only recently that they have come out warning the candidates in no uncertain language, that giving in to the demand for what has been dubbed as the “Permit to campaign fee” is against the law, and they could be prosecuted for it if proven.

It can be said that it is easy for them to say that because they do not have to contend with the lawless elements who may also threaten them and their families with harm for their failure to comply.

What therefore should the candidates do but also demand from the police and the military that they back their warnings with adequate protection and, better still, to ensure that such harmful elements are driven off from the areas they occupy to ensure that the democratic process, which is the election, can go on unhampered by unjust demands and threats. As it is, such candidates are caught in a most undesirable position where they are, as the saying goes, “Damned if they do, and damned if they don’t.*