Too early to celebrate: Evasco
By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.
The camp of presidential bet Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte will not be complacent despite Duterte’s topping the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) presidential survey.
Duterte got 27 percent of the 1,500 respondents nationwide in the SWS survey which was conducted last March 30 to April 2.
Duterte was followed by Sen. Grace Poe with 23 percent, Vice President Jejomar Binay with 20 percent, former Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas 18 percent and Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago 3 percent.
Duterte’s chief campaign strategist Leoncio Evasco Jr. said it is still too early to celebrate since the Election Day is still a month away.
“While we are elated with the results of the recent surveys of SWS, Pulse Asia and Manila Standard, we believe the final arbiter of election is the voters on Election Day,” Evasco said.
Evasco said that the real thing will be known this coming May 9.
He said the lead over other candidates “is still very tenuous and there is much work to do.”
“It is not over until it is over,” he said
For his part, local party Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod secretary general J. Melchor V. Quitain said Duterte’s ratings surge only shows that the government platform on peace and order is appreciated by the people.
Quitain said many people believe that if criminality will be controlled, development will follow.
He said the many people really want change and they want it to start by fighting criminality and corruption.
Duterte has repeatedly said he does not mind being at the bottom, middle or top of the surveys as he has been quoted as being unmindful of surveys.
He said the survey that counts is the result of the election itself.
It is the first time that Duterte has taken the lead in all three major poll surveys since the election campaign started on February 9.
The latest SWS survey also noted 3 percent of the total respondent were undecided.
The April 2016 survey used face-to-face interviews with 300 people each in Metro Manila, North Luzon, South Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.
Of the 1,500 sample adults, 1,377 or 92% are validated voters, 268 in Metro Manila, 278 in North Luzon, 272 in South Luzon, 280 in Visayas and 279 in Mindanao.
The survey has a margin of error of ±3 percent.
