Palace opens digital gate for the people

Have you ever wondered why President Aquino bought a Porsche or how he’s doing on the dating scene?

Well, starting this weekend, you can go and ask him yourself and, if you’re lucky, he may just give the answer personally on live broadcast for the entire world to see and hear.

Aquino will be the first head of state in Asia to participate in the World View interview sponsored by Google-owned video streaming site, Youtube.com.

“Filipinos can directly ask their most pressing questions to His Excellency … for his upcoming November 4 World View interview,” Google said in a statement over the weekend.

Users who have questions on their minds can submit videos at www.youtube.com/worldview.

Users who want to join in on the action but have no time to record their own videos can also vote on their favorite questions to increase the chances of their getting answered.

Any Filipino, or even foreigners for that matter, is encouraged to join. About 10 percent of Filipinos are currently living abroad to earn higher wages, and the easiest and most affordable way for them to stay in touch with their families is through the Internet.

Past World View participants include US President Barack Obama, UK Prime Minister David Cameron and Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.

“Our government recognizes the significant impact of the Internet on the quality of life of 30 million Filipino users,” Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Secretary of Communications Development Ricky Carandang said.

“The Presidential Channel provides a powerful, relevant way to demonstrate good governance and transparency—the cornerstone of this administration—and its contribution to poverty alleviation and sustainable economic growth,” Carandang added.

Submissions and voting on questions will close on October 28. The interview—produced in partnership with ABS-CBN—will be available as live broadcast from www.youtube.com/worldview on November 4.