I HAD expected a debate that would require each candidate to speak on the topics scheduled for February 21, all rehearsed and prepared for sure, but at least all ready to go into the nitty-gritty of what they plan for the country and the programs they have in mind, how doable these programs are and, as Miriam Defensor-Santiago had raised, where the money to implement these programs would come from.

But alas, this Commission On Elections (Comelec), GMA News and Public Affairs and Philippine Daily Inquirer-organized affair was far from being anything close to a debate. It was less than a non-debate – it was like a platform for the candidates to do what they might to win the election: crack jokes, mouth statistics, allude to one’s competition, and throw around some accusations for good measure.

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