“GUSTO po natin baguhin yung politika sa Pilipinas, dahil marami sa ating mga kababayan ang nafu-frustrate na sa klase ng politika na mayroon tayo; yung mga politiko, maraming sinungaling, ninanakawan tayo.”
This was the clamor of “Models of Manila TV” YouTube vlogger Marc Gambao as he filed his certificate of candidacy for senator. While it has long been normal in the Philippines for celebrities to venture into politics, now, influencers and vloggers are doing the same.
He is not alone, either.
Content creators in politics
Eli San Fernando, a TikToker and political commentator with over 820, 000 followers has joined the Kamanggagawa party-list.
In his speech, he said: “‘Di pa ba tayo sawa sa klase ng politikang meron tayo ngayon? Magkakapatid, mag-aama, mag-iina, pami-pamilya ang namumuno sa atin, mga partylist na pinamumunuan ng mga oligarko. Paano natin aasahan na magkakaroon ng makabuluhan, maayos na mga batas at polisiya kung yung mga namumuno sa atin ay hindi naman danas yung buhay ng isang ordinaryong Piilpino?”
He also stated that, if he were to get a House seat, he would want to scrap the provincial rate for regional workers as this is supposedly lower as compared to those in Metro Manila.
Gamboa, on the other hand, wants to provide content creators with money to grow their businesses, as well as to create a “fake news monitoring office” so that people have a place they can report to.
Another vlogger who hopes to join the House of Representatives is Norris John Okamoto, who is under the Liga ng Nagkakaisang Mahihirap or Lingap party-list. On his YouTube channel, he has 315, 000 subscribers.
He stated that if he were to be elected as a House member, he would use his platform to fight for a justice system for the poor.
Another popular internet personality who filed their COC is TikToker and entrepreneur Rosemarie Tan Pmaulaklakin, otherwise known online as Rosmar Tan. On TikTok, she currently has 21.2 million followers.
She is currently the CEO of her own skincare brand, and has several different business ventures. She’s become so successful, in fact, that she’s now a multimillionaire.
In an interview, she explained that she didn’t originally intend to run given how stressful politics can be, but received encouragement and support from many of her friends to do so.
“Tumakbo ka kasi kailangan ka ng tao, kasi kailangan nila ng tunay na pagbabago,” they’d said to her.
In the past, she’d also been a part of Manila’s fourth district councilor race back in 2022 but placed 20th as she hadn’t been able to campaign effectively while pregnant.
One of her projects if ever she were to win is to provide maintenance medicines to senior citizens who are unable to afford them.
Again, seeing celebrities partake in politics is nothing new in the Philippines. While it cannot be stopped, one can only hope that those throwing their hats in the race will fulfill their promises in prioritizing the masses if ever they are to be elected.
