Team PNoy candidates continue to rise in poll surveys

MEYCAUAYAN CITY—Administration candidate Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV, President Aquino’s first cousin, must have somehow connected with voters despite his lofty campaign platform of entrepreneurship.

Aquino bolted to a statistical tie for the fourth and ninth places in the latest Pulse Asia poll survey in February. He previously ranked between 13th and 15th in January.

Many are asking why members of Team PNoy continue to rise in poll surveys.

“The reason is because the message is clear—the reforms that have been accomplished but that still need to be improved,” Aquino said.

“It’s really that simple,” he added.

Vote-rich Bulacan

Aquino joined reelectionists Loren Legarda and Antonio Trillanes IV and Aurora Rep. Juan Edgardo Angara during the team’s campaign through vote-rich Bulacan on Wednesday.

Bulacan had more than 1.5 million registered voters in 2010.

Aquino also denied the existence of an Oplan God Save the Prince that the opposition United Nationalist Alliance alleged was meant to junk certain Team PNoy candidates to prop up his candidacy.

“My rise in the latest survey of Pulse Asia was a result of perseverance and hard work. Working hard is a good strategy,” Aquino told reporters.

High approval rating

In a statement, Aquino said another key factor for the continuing rise in the SWS and Pulse Asia surveys of Team PNoy candidates was the endorsement of President Aquino, who continues to enjoy a high approval rating because of his program of good governance.

“Because of President Aquino’s endorsement, I believe the ratings of the members of Team PNoy, including Risa Hontiveros, Jamby Madrigal and Jun Magsaysay would continue to rise,” Aquino said.

The laggards among Team PNoy have been told to exert more efforts in pressing flesh and to make themselves more accessible to the media, Angara, one of those outside the Magic 12, told reporters Wednesday.

“We were told to increase our efforts and to make ourselves available for interview,” Angara said.

Additional TV spots with their strongest endorser, President Aquino, are also in the works, he said.

Special push

Angara, who slid a few notches below the top 12 in the past surveys, said he, Magsaysay, Madrigal and Hontiveros are now the subject of a special push by the Team PNoy coalition.

“We can feel the push. We were advised to come up with advertisements, complete with all the help. I would be coming out with an advertisement next week with the President. That’s a big help, the President’s endorsement,” he added.

The four candidates incidentally are the most consistent in attending Team PNoy’s campaign sorties in Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, Central Visayas, and Mindanao.

Exert extra effort

Angara said Team PNoy campaign manager Franklin Drilon had said the coalition would exert extra effort for the four candidates that have consistently landed outside the top 12 in the recent poll surveys by both the Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia.

“They will push three or four of us in striking distance in the media, and advocacy. They also promised advertising. All of us have an option to shoot with P-Noy and I was the first to do so,” Angara said.

Angara is also counting on celebrity endorsers, singer-actress Sarah Geronimo and actor Coco Martin, to help boost his candidacy.

Angara thanked consistent poll front-runner Legarda for mentioning in her campaign spiels the advocacy of each Team PNoy candidates instead of just their names.

“What [Legarda’s] doing is quite good,” Angara said.