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SWS discredited

MR. EXPOSE

Amb. Ernesto Maceda

10/16/2009

Several people called us yesterday from as far as Cebu and Cagayan de Oro to tell us that they don’t believe the recently released Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey putting Sen. Noynoy Aquino in first place with a super typhoon rating of 60 percent, the highest in Philippine political history for a presidential candidate.

My good friend Carmelo Santiago, who is a veteran political leader, pointed out that SWS top honcho, Mahar Mangahas went on TV on election day 2004 to project that GMA would win over FPJ in Metro Manila with a margin of plus 14, according to his exit poll.

The actual result: FPJ won in all the cities and towns of Metro Manila except Las Piñas. SWS suffered a total loss of credibility then. On its face value, the SWS result was a downer for NP Sen. Manny Villar who was dislodged from his usual No. 1 rating spot in previous SWS surveys.

The other questionable aspect of the SWS survey is the way the question to 1,800 respondents was framed, to wit: “Who do you think are good leaders who should succeed President Arroyo as President?”

Respondents were allowed to vote for three names.

Note that the survey was taken from Sept. 18 to 21 nationwide, or barely eight days after the 40th day of Cory’s death and the announcement of Noynoy Aquino at Club Filipino that he was accepting the LP offer to be its presidential bet.

Significantly, considering the margin of error, Villar, Erap and Chiz maintained their previous June rating. Lakas-Kampi bet Gilbert Teodoro improved from less than 1 percent to 4 percent.

Clearly, between SWS and ABS-CBN, there is an effort to create a bandwagon effect for Noynoy. There are six weeks to go before the Nov. 30 deadline for filing of certificates of candidacy. We should have a reliable survey only after that by January. It’s way too early for a bandwagon to start rolling. Whoever masterminded this survey has done Noynoy a great disservice.

It is significant that all the issues against Manny Villar and Erap have come out this early and will soon be forgotten. With Noynoy’s top placing, expect Malacañang’s dirty tricks and propaganda machinery to come out with guns blazing.

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Gross negligence. The Senate hearings clearly prove that Napocor and San Roque dam officials failed to give timely warnings to affected towns about the release of water from the dam. No early warnings worked.

It is also clear that the protocol or program for the release of water was not properly studied. The bulk of water released was done when the water level was at 287 meters above sea level, almost near the 290 meter overflow level.

Senators clearly pointed out that the release of water should have started when the water level reached 260 meters and done gradually.

Lawyer Howard Calleja said in an ABS-CBN interview that there are four Supreme Court decisions which decided cases against dam operators.

Reps. Mark Cojuangco, Jose de Venecia and Conrado Estrella should get together to file a class suit against Napocor and San Roque Dam operators. Justice must be done to the thousands of victims due to the gross negligence of incompetent Napocor officials.

The president of Napocor should resign. In Japan, he is expected to commit hara-kiri. He is a recent appointee recommended by the cronies of FG.

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Erap’s performance. Former PMS Chief Leonora de Jesus and Finance Secretary Jose “Titoy” Pardo give glimpses of Erap’s performance as President. Lenny de Jesus wrote:

“President Estrada worked full time on a daily basis. When he comes in the morning, he would start meetings without delay in the Palace and would follow-up on every proposed project. When the President has extra time, Boying and I present him some documents for signing like executive orders, contracts, and appointments. His schedule was always hectic that Boying and I only rest during break time when some people come in to see the President for courtesy calls. President Estrada was the only leader who remained as the champion of the poor with his generous love for the unfortunate Filipinos. His priority in helping the poor people gave them hope, and in return the President gained massive support from the masses. The solid support from the Payatas residents is one indicator that the poor is still seeking President Estrada’s leadership.”

Titoy Pardo wrote: “President Estrada does not give in to political favors. We thought it was just not appropriate to appoint anyone in BIR and in the Customs, so we created a mechanism by which applicants have to take a battery test to prove their qualification.

He did not give any special treatment to his families and friends. The media said that his “walang kumpa-kumpare” at “walang kamakamag-anak” lines were just his slogan for elections, but I really saw this in him. There were many cases like one contributor who helped finance his campaign, and who later asked for a huge favor after the election. President Estrada never gave in to the favors as he knew it was the right thing to do.

The Estrada administration gave food, shelter, security and infrastructure importance. Food was the top agenda among all priorities to lessen the increasing number of the hungry Filipinos. For infrastructure, we began a series of consultation to select industries we’d like to develop; in this case one example was the plan to improve the call center industry.”

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Tidbits. NP bet Manny Villar appears to have failed to convince Sen. Loren Legarda to become his VP. Earlier, he tried to get Sen. Jinggoy Estrada to run with him. It looks like he may have to settle with NP Sen. Pia Cayetano... Gov. Ito Ynares reported that all barangays of Rizal towns fronting Laguna de Bay are still flooded. They are continuing relief and rehabilitation work... After a one day sortie to Dagupan, Noynoy has gone back to the Visayas. Yesterday, he was in Bohol accompanied by Butch Abad. A crowd of 200 attended his lunch invitation... DND Secretary Gilbert Teodoro ordered 100 rubber boats for the use of NDCC in rescue efforts last March. After eight months, the boats have not been delivered. Something wrong here... The death toll from typhoons “Ondoy” and “Pepeng” have reached 720 with 380 due to Pepeng. The biggest number of Pepeng casualties is in Benguet with more than 140 dead... As we predicted months ago, Department of Finance Secretary Gary Teves now admits the national government deficit will reach P300 billion... Former Jaen Mayor Tony Esquivel reports that a recent survey gives him a six to three advantage over GMA favorite Rep. Rodolfo Antonino in the 4th district of Nueva Ecija... San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija Mayor Froilan Nagaño is doing an excellent job distributing relief to flood victims in his town...