Campaign branding
The Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) found a clever way to justify using “Type O” to sidestep election rules on oversized and out-of-place posters and streamers.
The group managed to produce someone who laid claim to the slogan.
A lawyer who used to belong to the select cricle of City Hall management trainees under former mayor Tomas Osmeña, says she had the logo registered as a brand name for a retail clothing line she plans to mount with a business partner.
According to Estrella Menchavez, using “Type O” would be early promotion for her clothes and could be used beyond the election period.
For fashion – really? Aside from streamers and posters, the only products so far seen marked “Type O” have been mineral water bottles and boxes of hopia (Chinese pastry) distributed to city residents and BO-PK followers.
It remains to be seen how many Gen Y customers would think it’s cool to be hanging out in T-shirts branded with a sign associated with traditional power politics and wooing the masa vote in barangays.
It also remains to be seen on May 13 whether the exercise in political branding achieved its objective.
The underground campaign was all over town.
No translation was needed.
That Menchavez happens to be a “friend” of Rep. Tomas Osmeña, who’s out to regain City Hall and replace Mayor Michael Rama, only confirmed whose real interest was being pushed and that election rules can be skirted with the right gimmick.
“Type O” was registered as a business name with the Department of Trade and Industry and declared valid on March 22, 2013, or a week before the March 29 start of the campaign period.
Before March 29, no one could run after premature political promotion because of a quirk of law that says the violation applies only to a candidate during the actual campaign period.
The Cebu City Comelec office played blind to the Type O posters festooned around the city.
Now that the campaign period is on, can the Comelec still ignore the stray posters that hang wider than the prescribed size of 2 feet by 3 feet in sites outside authorized poster areas?
"Type O" is a cheaper, scaled down campaign tactic of the TV “guestings” of administration candidates who have their life histories portrayed in drama serials.
Team Rama could file a complaint with the DTI but given the short 45-day campaign period, why bother?
The incumbent isn’t above trying a similar tack with posters which carry Rama’s motto: “Together we make things happen.”
In the end Cebu City voters, who have minds of their own will decide, whether the product behind the catchy brand names is worth their trust.
Originally Posted by epoy73
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