Gabriela strongly condemned Mayor Rammy Parayno and Vice Mayor Jimmy Parayno of Urdaneta City, Pangasinan, for their degrading treatment of an elderly woman during their campaign rally last May 3.

In the campaign rally, an elderly woman was called to the stage and told that she would be awarded a few thousand pesos as prize in exchange for kissing Vice Mayor Parayno. They started a “bidding war” at ₱1,000 until the prize reached ₱5,000.

“We are outraged by this reprehensible display where local officials essentially ‘auctioned off’ an elderly woman’s dignity for their entertainment and the crowd’s amusement,” Gabriela secretary general Clarice Palce said.

The officials’ claimed it was supposedly a form of assistance.

But according to Palce, “genuine assistance and concern are unconditional. Making a grandmother kiss in exchange for financial aid is exploitation.”

She said the incident is alarming because it is similar to the congressional candidate’s single mom joke in Pasig City, indicating a pattern of politicians using women as sexualized objects of humor in election campaigns.

Gabriela called for accountability from the officials involved in the incident and urged the COMELEC to take appropriate action.

“Government officials and candidates must be held to the highest standards of respecting women. This kind of disrespectful and exploitative treatment of women is infuriating, instead of presenting solutions to the poverty experienced by many Filipinos,” Palce added.

Gabriela emphasized that these incidents show the need for stronger women’s representation in politics and governance, and for officials who will truly champion women’s rights.