Many nationalists and political analysts in the Philippines, and even the public, are asking why the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) has partnered with Rappler. This media entity, for many Filipinos, is perceived to be devoid of credibility, integrity, and most importantly, is the least trusted media entity in the country.Based on the PUBLiCUS Asia Inc.

The official campaign period for the 9 May, 2022 Philippine elections started last Tuesday (8 February, 2022), though, as early as the last quarter of 2021, hopefuls for national elective posts have already been campaigning.

The son and namesake of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos cleared a major obstacle Thursday in his bid to become the next Philippine president when the government's election body refused to disqualify him over a decades-old tax conviction.The ruling by the Commission on Elections came two days after candidates hit the campaign trail with polls showing Ferdinand Marcos Jr, popularly known as Bongbong, headed for a landslide victory in the 9 May vote.Opposition figures and torture victims d

Philippine election candidates will hit the hustings Tuesday for the official start of campaigning, with the son and namesake of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos leading the presidential race as he seeks the ultimate revival of the family brand.Political scions, celebrities and ex-convicts are among the contenders vying for more than 18,000 posts in the 9 May polls, with most interest on the contest to succeed authoritarian firebrand Rodrigo Duterte, whose six-year presidency has been marked

The son and namesake of the Philippines' former dictator Ferdinand Marcos said Tuesday he took a cocaine test after President Rodrigo Duterte accused an unnamed presidential candidate of using the illegal drug.Marcos Jr, who is among the frontrunners seeking to succeed Duterte in 2022, said in a statement he was tested Monday and had submitted the result to three police agencies.He told a local broadcaster he had tested negative."I really don't feel that I am the one being allu

The son and namesake of the Philippines' former dictator Ferdinand Marcos said Tuesday he will run for president in the 2022 election, as the controversial clan seeks the ultimate political revival.Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr – who has defended President Rodrigo Duterte's controversial drug war and supported the death penalty for traffickers – declared his candidacy in a video broadcast on Facebook."I will bring...

Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo will decide this week if she will run for president, her spokesman said Sunday, after her arch-rival and incumbent Rodrigo Duterte declared he was retiring from politics.Robredo, a vocal critic of Duterte's controversial drug war, would likely be the only opposition candidate in a crowded field in the May 2022 elections.Her spokesperson Barry Gutierrez said she has not yet accepted the opposition coalition's nomination, and will announce her de

The Philippines' election season kicked off Friday with TV celebrities, political scions and at least one inmate expected to be among thousands of candidates vying for posts from president to town councillor.A week-long registration process launches a typically noisy and deadly seven months of campaigning for more than 18,000 positions – but the raging pandemic and economic misery caused by COVID lockdowns could dampen the party atmosphere.A successor to President Rodrigo Duterte, who is

"This is not a coup," said Major General Zaw Min Tun from a gilded hall in Myanmar's purpose-built capital Naypyidaw, the city where his comrades recently ousted an elected government, detained the country's leadership, and installed a military junta.During an hour-long conversation with CNN, the military spokesperson was steadfast in upholding the junta's official narrative: that the generals are merely "safeguarding" the country while they investigate a &q

2019 proved to be a tumultuous year for the region. Some ASEAN countries faced major challenges. For example, Indonesia was, yet again, struck by disasters multiple times. But it was also a time when several countries were navigating their respective democratic paths.