Campaign Day 51: GO wallops TU anew in survey

The 12-0 sweep predicted by candidates of Team Unity appeared a long shot if the latest survey result of the Social Weather Stations (SWS) will be used as basis. Outcome of the SWS survey released Wednesday, Campaign Day 51, showed that TU candidates stand to get only four to five senatorial seats in the May 14 midterm elections. The SWS said registered voters interviewed in its first quarter 2007 survey, also showed that a plurality of 36 percent will vote for opposition candidates. While a minority of 28 percent will vote for administration bets for local posts. It said the Senate race scores are consistently 8-2-2 in favor of Genuine Opposition (GO) candidates. Among those who will vote for administration candidates, the score will be 6 or 7 for GO, 4 or 5 for TU, and 1 for independent candidates. Among those who prefer independent candidates, the score would be 7 or 8 for GO, 3 for TU, and 1 or 2 for independents. The SWS also said opposition candidates get 28 to 36 percent of votes for congressman, governor, and mayor. For congressman, 36 percent will vote for an opposition candidate, 28 percent will vote for administration bets, and 26 percent for independent candidates. For governor, 28 percent will vote for an opposition, 25 percent for administration, and 21 percent for an independent candidate. The remaining 25 percent consists of 12 percent with no answer and 13 percent who responded that the query was not applicable. For mayor, 35 percent will vote for an opposition candidate, an almost equal 33 percent will vote for administration bets, and 23 percent for independent candidates, with 10 percent having no answer. For congressman, opposition candidates dominate in Metro Manila, with 50 percent of potential votes, and in the rest of Luzon, with 39 percent. They scored 30 percent in Mindanao and 24 percent in the Visayas. Administration candidates for congressman, on the other hand, lead in the Visayas, with 41 percent and in Mindanao, with 34 percent. They get 24 percent in the rest of Luzon, and 13 percent in Metro Manila. Independent candidates for congressman get 26 percent in both Luzon outside the National Capital Region (NCR) and the Visayas, and 24 percent in both Metro Manila and Mindanao. For governor, opposition candidates lead in Luzon outside NCR, with 40 percent of potential votes, while they get 27 percent in the Visayas and 23 percent in Mindanao. Administration candidates for governor lead in the Visayas, with 39 percent, and in Mindanao, with 33 percent. They get 23 percent of potential votes in Luzon outside NCR. Independent candidates for governor scored 26 percent in the Visayas, 25 percent in the balance of Luzon, and 22 percent in Mindanao. For mayor, opposition candidates lead in Metro Manila, with 46 percent of potential votes, and in the rest of Luzon, with 39 percent. They get 28 percent in Mindanao and 26 percent in the Visayas. Administration candidates for mayor dominate in the Visayas, with 42 percent, and in Mindanao, with 41 percent. They get 28 percent in Luzon outside NCR, and 19 percent in Metro Manila. Independent candidates for mayor get 25 percent of potential votes in Metro Manila, 24 percent in both the Visayas and the rest of Luzon, and 19 percent in Mindanao. The survey, conducted from February 24 to 27, used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults divided into random samples of 300 each in Metro Manila, the balance of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Area estimates were weighted by National Statistics Office medium-population projections for 2007 to obtain the national estimates. Palace: TU’s 12-0 sweep only a battle cry Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said Wednesday the administration party’s political machinery cannot guarantee the victory of its candidates as he clarified that the 12-0 forecast by TU is only a “battle cry." “It is dangerous to depend only on the local leaders. Dapat magsumikap sila (They should strive to win votes)… they should not depend too much on the party machinery," Ermita said. Ermita said the 12-0 victory battle cry is part of TU’s “political strategy" to challenge administration leaders to work hard to get the most votes in the May 14 elections. The executive secretary, meanwhile, said Malacañang has conveyed to the Armed Forces, the PNP, and other law enforcement units to ensure that guns, goons and gold would not rule the May 14 elections. He said the elections must be clean, peaceful and orderly so as not to undermine the integrity of the election process. He said this is the reason the Commission on Elections is given power over all government agencies during the election period. He said the PNP, upon President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s orders, is monitoring the reported 40 partisan armed groups to ensure that they do not cause any trouble during the elections. He said there is “always a possibility" that a candidate is behind an armed group. “We cannot say that it won’t happen 100 percent. There are others who are desperate, the only way they can win the elections is by terrorizing people," he said. But he assured that the elections would be orderly and credible because Mrs Arroyo has strict orders that the May 14 polls should go down in history as a peaceful election. Pagdanganan is Lakas gov bet in Bulacan On the local front also Wednesday, Ermita said former Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC) president Roberto Pagdanganan is Lakas-CMD's official candidate for Bulacan governor. Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said Pagdanganan, former Bulacan governor and president of the League of Governors of the Philippines, is “a Lakas party mate and a senior one." “He is the official candidate of the majority party, Lakas," he said. Ermita, who is the Lakas regional chairman for Southern Tagalog, said he is not in a position to declare Bulacan as a “free zone." But he said the brother of outgoing Bulacan Gov. Josefina de la Cruz, who is seeking the gubernatorial post under the Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi), has all the right to run in the May 14 polls. “Nothing can prevent Kampi from fielding its own candidate," he said. He said the conflict between Lakas and Kampi is “not in the sense [split the] coalition." Several Lakas officials have called the attention of the party leadership about Kampi’s raiding of Lakas ranks and fielding of candidates in local positions. GO’s gift to Arroyo: Poor man’s noodle Opposition stalwarts know that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is getting older Thursday, and it will be a fitting occasion for them to remind her she is not growing up--governance-wise, that is. GO spokesman Adel Tamano said Wednesday the best gift they could give Mrs Arroyo, who will be turning 60, is a bowl of instant noodle. The noodle is supposed to symbolize the plight of the poor who have yet to feel the trickle down effect of the so-called economic gains of the administration, he said. "We go back to the message that the people are going hungry and that the economic gains are not being felt by the people," Tamano said. The bowl of instant noodle that would be given to Mrs Arroyo was presented on Tuesday during the religious recollection of the GO senatorial candidates at Club Filipino, Greenhills, San Juan City. GO deputy campaign manager San Juan Mayor Joseph Victor Ejercito said they are presenting the instant noodle to her because "this is the food of the ordinary people" and “we want her to have a taste of what they are eating everyday just to survive." Despite the political principles and agenda of GO and the administration’s Team Unity senatorial candidates, Tamano said the opposition remains a “true friend" of the President, supporting her call for a reconciliation and unity. "We support that call but it should be a principled unity and we call on [Mrs Arroyo] to acknowledge and address the issue of poverty and corruption. We are always [at] her side addressing these problems," he said. The opposition’s role, Tamano added, is to be a check-and-balance entity and to raise legitimate issues to the administration. "She should also consider and stop listening to the yes-men around her," he said. Meanwhile, GO senatorial candidate Francis Escudero’s birthday wish to Mrs Arroyo is a renewed strength and to discern what is right and proper and what is legal. "I hope she would find time to look back at her beginnings and the position she has now she owes not only to a few and those who are influential and in power but also to the people who put her there. I hope the people would her priority," Escudero said. - GMANews.TV