Lakas exec: SWS survey favoring Noynoy ‘questionable’

The ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD party on Monday laughed off a new Social Weather Stations survey showing Senator Benigno Simeon “Noynoy" Aquino III as the top presidential choice in next year's national elections with a 50-percent vote. Lakas vice president Prospero Pichay Jr., now head of the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA), said the survey came too early and was “questionable" as it covered a limited area. “Palagay ko questionable ang survey na yan. Kahit si Erap at the height of his popularity umabot ng 39 percent. Walang umaabot ng 50 percent unless it’s a two-party system. Ito multi-party system," said Pichay, a defeated senatorial candidate in 2007, in an interview on dzXL radio. (I find the survey questionable. Even former President Joseph Estrada at the height of his popularity never went beyond 39 percent. No one goes 50 percent unless we are in a two-party system, and now we are under a multi-party system.) Pichay also said it is unlikely that the results of a survey conducted September 5 to 6 could be revealed in two weeks’ time. “Baka nagte-trending lang sila (It is possible they are already engaged in trending)," he said.

Former Senate President Franklin Drilon, Aquino's party-mate in Liberal Party (LP), said Pichay should leave surveys to pollsters. Drilon also said it is possible Aquino’s share could even go higher, now that he announced his intention to run. He noted the survey was conducted before Aquino made his announcement. “Siguro tataas pa yan, above 50 percent (We will not be surprised if it goes above 50 percent)," he said in a separate interview. On the other hand, he told Pichay to back off from making comments on the surveys. “Mas marunong ang SWS sa survey kaysa kay Butch Pichay (SWS knows more about surveys than Pichay)," he said. The SWS survey showed Aquino getting 50 percent of the votes in Luzon in a five-cornered fight if the presidential election is held today. Senator Manuel Villar Jr. ranked second with 14 percent, followed by former President Joseph Estrada with 13 percent, Sen. Francis Escudero with 12 percent, and Vice President Manuel “Noli" de Castro Jr. with 7 percent. The survey, with 1,200 respondents, covered the National Capital Region, Pangasinan, Central Luzon and Southern Tagalog-A. An Aquino-Roxas tandem was the choice of 51 percent of the voters, followed by Estrada-Loren Legarda with 12 percent; Villar-Francis Pangilinan, 11 percent; Escudero-Jejomar Binay, 9 percent; and De Castro-Ronaldo Puno, 4 percent. In a four-cornered fight, Aquino got more than an absolute majority at 55 percent, Villar 17 percent, Estrada 15 percent and De Castro 8 percent. In a three-cornered fight, Aquino pulled away with 63 percent. Villar got 21 percent and De Castro 9 percent. Paired with any other vice presidential candidate, Aquino remained the top choice. With Escudero as running mate, he got 49 percent; with Legarda 47 percent; and with Pangilinan 43 percent. With Estrada as running mate, Aquino’s share dropped to 33 percent. - GMANews.TV