You saw their names in the paid advertisements. You saw their faces in meetings and rallies and on the streets distributing leaflets.
They are the campaign volunteers who, unlike the supporters paid by candidates, did not receive a centavo or did not expect any personal benefit in return, but they did their share, financial and otherwise, because they believed in a person who to them should be elected to public office.
They came out in the open with their names and signatures in manifestos of support to a candidate; they paid or contributed to the payment of the advertising space in the newspapers.
Past elections saw such political ads with the generic term in fine print at the bottom stating “Paid for by supporters” of so-and-so candidate. This time, there were private individuals like doctors, professionals and retirees who did not hesitate to link their names and signatures to a particular bet.
As one volunteer, a retiree, said, he put out his own advertisement in support of a bet to recognize the past good deed of the candidate and to tell other voters that this person deserves to be in government. He saw tomorrow’s elections as a chance to get rid of bad people in government.
He wasn’t asked and he didn’t even inform the candidate until he sent the material to a newspaper for publication. He used his own money, maybe even his pension, and he didn’t expect anything in return.
Then there were the professionals who put out and paid for several ad placements in support of a candidate. There were those who never attended rallies even in their college days and much more in their professional years but they marched, wore colored shirts, distributed leaflets and waved banners.
They were not like the entertainers who were paid in millions of pesos to stand in rallies. They were not like the public officials who made known their choice because they had to repay someone or show loyalty.
They expressed support in public with little prodding and without promise of return because it was the right thing to do. And it was the first time for many of them to use their own money, to join rallies, to put out political ads.
They are the volunteers. Partisan and rightfully believing they have a stake in the results of the elections.
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Sample ballots to tomorrow’s exercise are available on the Sun.Star website at www.sunstar.com.ph. Look for the election icon on the left of the homepage, click and follow the appropriate text link.
As of yesterday, Saturday, the sample ballot for the national elections was already posted. Keep checking on the site to get the localized sample ballots.
The Sun.Star website will hold a 24-hour online chat with Comelec Commissioner James Jimenez from 6 a.m. of May 10 to 6 a.m. of May 11. I guess even Jimenez would not be able to sleep in those 24 hours.
To post questions or complaints to the poll body, go to chat.sunstar. com.ph/comelec-chat-hotline. The chat is part of Sun.Star’s service to voters.
(ninicab@sunstar.com.ph)