May 28, 2012
Campaign for your Dreams
“If you are running for elections only because you consider
this as a job and this has been a business for your family, then
politics is not for you. You are a politician because you have
a certain ideal and you want to carry out your dream for your
country,” said Dutch communications expert Pam Evenhuis
who facilitated a campaign management workshop for 30 governors,
city and municipal mayors on 28 May 2012 in Taguig City.
Dutch communications expert Pam Evenhuis
|
The workshop entitled
On the Road to Victory allowed
heads of local government units to discuss campaign woes and share
effective strategies. The need for a coordinated campaign team was
emphasized, especially the crucial roles of campaign managers and
media directors. The relationship between candidates and the party,
funding, handling traditional and social media and recruitment of
volunteers were extensively discussed in working groups.
Tagudin, Ilocos Sur Mayor Roque Verzosa, Jr.,
who is on his third term as mayor, admitted that he thought his
campaign was ‘almost perfect.’ “There were new
ideas that I learned here that could help me move forward, to
build a campaign platform that really addresses people’s
needs,” said Versoza.
“What we had hoped to offer was a new perspective in campaigning.
Candidates cannot be on auto-pilot or their opponents will know
where best to attack them. If we play our cards right and win the
elections, we have a greater chance to galvanize good governance,
which the liberal administration of President Aquino has already
laid the foundation for,” said
Jules Maaten,
Country Director of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom
(FNF) who organized the workshop. FNF is a German liberal foundation
that promotes participatory democracy, human rights and free trade.
