EDITORIAL - The opposite effect

There is definite sense in regulating the manner in which candidates campaign. But overly restrictive laws and the impossibility of complete enforcement make for a disappointing mix that only results in achieving the opposite effect.

For example, there is sense in disallowing the wanton display of campaign materials everywhere. It makes for a cleaner and safer environment. And it prevents those who have more campaign materials from swamping those who have less.

But cleanliness is both temporary and relative, especially in a country that is not exactly known to be clean. And safety is a matter that can be addressed in other ways. In other words, cleanliness and safety are small prices to pay for an important exercise as an election.

An election is the only means by which people can exercise their great democratic right to choose their leaders in a peaceful way. Any other way in unimaginable. And it does not happen everyday but once every three years. It must not be hampered by minor concerns or flimsy excuses.

The problem with our election laws is that they are not rooted in pragmatism and common sense. They were crafted in a manner not unlike burning the house down to get rid of a rat. There are always problems with elections. Which election does not? But we didn't have to overdo things.

Consider the common poster areas invented by lawmakers to "level the playing field" kuno. No matter how faulty the system and how substandard the leadership pool, electing leaders is still too important a function for people to be constrained in making an informed choice.

In Cebu City, for instance, a metropolis of about a million people, how many common poster areas are there? Two? Three? Five? Ten? How many of those million people do you think will go to common poster areas on purpose, or get to pass by them by chance? It is plainly ridiculous.

On the other hand, swamping the city with campaign materials may be unsightly, dirty and unsafe. But that is only for three months, once in three years, in a city that is already dirty, unsightly, and unsafe anyway.

Again, safety can be assured in other ways, and we can clean after.

And if leveling the playing field is the name of the game, common poster areas actually doom those who have less by nailing them to that single place. Those who have more have other means to promote themselves even without campaign materials.