ABS-CBN, the country's largest and most widely-watched team of media stations and talents, teams up with various well-known organizations and institutions and personnel to chronicle events surrounding the Philippine National Election Day-May 14 this year. This is the day the entire global Filipino community makes the decision for its future as it elects to the 12 seats of Philippine Senate and 18,000 seats of the local Philippine government via direct vote the people who will serve the populace for the next 3-6 years. The broadcast, the latest installation of ABS-CBN's series of coverages of the elections, has the title: Halalan 2007-Boto Mo I-Patrol Mo!
ABS-CBN has been at the forefront of covering the major news events in the Philippines-among them the Philippine National Elections. Being the Philippine TV network to have Philippine TV's first marathon broadcast of the elections via Halalan 1969, the network has set the trend of holding marathon broadcasts of the elections and continues on the tradition of holding the most reliable, integrated, in-depth, comprehensive and credible broadcast of the national elections among all other media networks.
ABS-CBN's media channels have begun covering the election-related events since January of this year-specifically the filing of candidacies and the election campaigns of the aspirants to the Philippine Senate and local offices nationwide. On January 15, it launched the Halalan 2007 Website and the Boto Mo I-Patrol Mo Campaign-two projects to be maintained by ABS-CBN Interactive. The coverage will continue on to the official tally of votes and the proclamation and inaguration of newly-elected officials.
For the election coverage, ABS-CBN got a lot of partners: Philippine Star, Business World, Business Mirror, Globe, Bayantel, STI, Pulse Asia, Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), Institute for Popular Democracy (IPD) and COMELEC-the government institution that manages the Philippine national elections.
Three of the country's newspaper organizations--the Philippine Star, Business World, and Business Mirror--will join ABS-CBN together with IPD to give the public the most comprehensive information before, during and after Election Day. IPD is a Philippine not-for-profit research and advocacy centre with a multi-disciplinary team of activist-scholars engaged with civil society groups, reform-minded government officials and government agencies. The organization at times specializes in the study of Philippine national elections, of which it has a database, the broadest in the country.
Globe and Bayantel-two of the country's leading telecommunications companies-will add up to ABS-CBN's unmatched nationwide technical might, as it will service the technological needs of the network's marathon Election Day broadcast.
For the marathon broadcast's operations (including the patrolling of votes) volunteers will come from IPD, Pulse Asia, PPCRV and STI. STI is an the educational institution of schools specializing in electronic/information/communication college education which will help in the network's marathon broadcast, specifically in the quick vote count report segments. PPCRV is a bona-fide, non-partisan, parish-based association organized and composed of civic-minded citizens drawn from various sectors of Philippine society that is the Catholic Church 's support for the elections. Pulse Asia will do the broadcast's other operations like the exit poll reports and other survey reports.
Starting 4:00am (Manila Time) on May 14, Halalan 2007 will be broadcast on a marathon basis on ABS-CBN Manila TV, ABS-CBN Regional TV, ABS-CBN Now, ABS-CBN International (The Filipino Channel and other global ABS-CBN channels), and the ABS-CBN News Channel. About 80 ABS-CBN TV channels nationwide (including Channel 2-the network's flagship Manila TV station and the 70+ ABS-CBN Regional TV Stations and Affiliates) will beam the coverage to make sure everyone will tune in to keep guard of their votes, and of course be informed and entertained on the events of Election Day. Halalan 2007 can be also seen on Channel 51, ABS-CBN's new digital channel in Mega Manila. One can check for the ABS-CBN TV channel/affiliate in his/her locality by clicking here.
Special broadcasts of Halalan 2007 will be on other media channels under ABS-CBN like Studio 23 (ABS-CBN's Manila-based UHF TV station), its nationwide Radio Patrol network (DZMM-AM 630 KHZ in Manila, DYAB-AM in Cebu, DXAB-AM in Davao and other AM radio stations and affiliates nationwide) and its nationwide My Only Radio For Life network (DWRR 101.9 MHZ in Manila and other FM radio stations nationwide). One can click here to check if he/she is tuned in to an ABS-CBN radio station/affiliate.
On Election Day, the comprehensive ABS-CBN's Halalan 2007 Website will improve to answer the election-related information needs of the visitors-voters and will run as smoothly as possible to give information to almost everyone on the Internet.
Viewers to the marathon broadcast on the main ABS-CBN channel will get glimpses of ABS-CBN Manila people anchoring the broadcasts. Anchoring the broadcast are Bandila's Korina Sanchez, Henry Omaga Diaz and Ces Orena-Drilon, TV Patrol World's Ted Failon, Karen Davila and Bernadette Sembrano, and Magandang Umaga Pilipinas' Julius Babao and Tintin Bersola, backed up by Gus Abelgas, Sol Aragones, Adrian Ayalin, Katherine de Castro, Mario Dumawal, Rose Eclarinal and Nadia Trinidad. Anchoring the Radio Patrol-Manila DZMM Coverage (also heard nationwide) are Winnie Cordero, Cheryl Cosim, Alvin Elchico, Vic Lima, Alex Santos, Anthony Taberna, Ariel Ureta, Ricky Velasco and Pinky Webb. The Studio 23 Coverage will have Atom Araullo, JC Cuadrado, Mari Kaimo, Patty Laurel, TJ Manotoc, Marieton Pacheco, Jay Ruiz and Ria Tanjuakio-Trillo. The ANC Coverage will have Ricky Carandang, Angelo Castro Jr, RG Cruz, Pia Hontiveros, Cheche Lazaro, Twink Macaraig (formerly of Media Corp Singapore-Channel News Asia), Tina Monzon-Palma and Tony Velasquez, including ABS-CBN news executives Maria Ressa (formerly of CNN), Charie Villa (formerly of Reuters International) and Luchi Cruz Valdez. Various talents and personalities of ABS-CBN's various media channels will be appearing at any rate in the broadcast when deemed necessary.
The broadcast will feature election-related reports from more than 50 live points stationed throughout Mega Manila, nationwide and worldwide. ABS-CBN will get every nook and cranny of the nation (and parts of the world) covered for the broadcast-from the COMELEC office in Manila, the election centers from Caloocan and Quezon City to Paranaque and Las Pinas, and the quick vote count centers in Makati to the election precincts in key nationwide cities such as Baguio, Cebu, and Davao and in worldwide regions in the Asia-Pacific (Singapore, China's Hong Kong and Australia), the Middle East, Europe and America.
Among the members of the Manila-based Patrol ng Pilipino who will report from various points in and out of Mega Manila for the broadcast are Dominic Alfelor, Kristel Aliño, Zyann Ambrosio, Niko Baua, Jorge Cariño, Jing Castañeda, Doland Castro, Willard Cheng, Miranda De Quiros, Zen Hernandez, Wheng Hidalgo, Paul Henson, Apples Jalandoni, Lynda Jumilla, Cecille Lardizabal, Charo Logarta, Maan Macapagal, Israel Malasa, Sheryl Mundo, Timi Nubla, Ana Puod, Ina Reformina, Liza Reyes, Dong Robles and Joey Villarama.
Among the members of the Patrol ng Pilipino based outside Mega Manila reporting for the broadcast are Dindo Amparo (Middle East), Victor Andal (Ilocandia), Terry Aquino (North Central Luzon/Dagupan), Nony Basco (Iloilo), Danny Buenafe (European Region), Dhobbie de Guzman (Northern Luzon/Baguio), Queenie Casimiro (Central Mindanao), Dexter Ganibe (Socsargen), Gigi Grande (Asia-Pacific/Australia), Leo Lastimosa (Cebu), Rico Lucena (Central Visayas), Stephen Manangan (Davao), Chito Maniago (North Central Luzon/Pampanga), Maja Moralde (South Cotabato), Stanley Palisada (North Mindanao), Yasmin Pascual Dormido (West Visayas), Aireen Perol (Bicolandia), Ging Reyes (American Region), Michelle Robin (South Mindanao), David Santos (West Mindanao), Kharren Serra (South Mindanao) and Jenny Villanueva (Zamboanga).
The marathon broadcast will cover the events before, during and after the operations of the Filipino voting precincts nationwide and worldwide. It will also feature interviews (live/studio-based) of people involved in the electoral exercise and reports on the network-sponsored election day surveys, exit polls and quick vote counts. Further, it will feature election-related news events covered by the viewers, the voters, the citizens, almost everyone who send in their reports (text-based/e-mail sent/multimedia-based/3G-based) to ABS-CBN's text number 2366 and its email mms@abs-cbn.com via the most important segment of Halalan 2007--Boto Mo I-Patrol Mo! The reports on Boto Mo I-Patrol Mo, as collected by ABS-CBN Interactive, will be featured on all media channels of ABS-CBN.
For Boto Mo I-Patrol Mo, one can report on any election-related event in their area (a campaign promise not kept/a problem not given a solution by an official elected in the past poll/a case of election fraud or irregularity/a well-done job of an official elected in the past poll/a good election-related event before, during or after Election Day).
- Anyone can join-he/she can use his/her cellphone (MMS-capable/3G-capable/just a simple cellphone) to send information to Boto Mo I-Patrol Mo hotline 2366, ABS-CBN's short messaging system center. Those with cellphones can text the reports in the following format IREPORT<space><YOUR NAME><space><YOUR ADDRESS><space><YOUR CONTACT NUMBER><space><YOUR REPORT> (with the picture/video/sound accompaniment-for the MMS/3G phones) to 2366.
- For those with Internet-connected computers, they can e-mail reports with the accompanied pictures/sounds/videos (or even the links of those) to mms@abs-cbn.com - a special multimedia e-mail for Halalan 2007.
- For people with only a telephone, they can call up ABS-CBN Manila: (02 for provincial callers/632 for international callers + 9244101). They can also try to call any ABS-CBN station/affiliate in the Philippines or TFC center anywhere in the world.
Lastly, ABS-CBN continuously educates and informs the people to go out and vote to make the people's voices heard. Without the global Filipino voter, there will be no Halalan 2007.
With such information that will make me tuned in to ABS-CBN on Election Day, I'll say Deal.
