Vice President Jejomar Binay and Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines–An administration lawmaker on Tuesday was elated that it was Interior Secretary Mar Roxas who gained in the latest Pulse Asia survey on the public’s presidential preference for 2016.
In a press conference, Eastern Samar Representative Ben Evardone added that Vice President Jejomar Binay will need to hurdle the corruption allegations against him as his ratings dropped despite maintaining the lead among other purported presidential aspirants.
“Expected naman namin na bababa talaga si Binay because of the issues. Ang inaabangan naming sino ang mag-ga-gain? Obviously si Mar ang nag-gain,” Evardone, a member of Aquino’s Liberal Party (LP), said.
(We expected Binay’s rating to slide because of the issues. What we wanted to know was who would gain from it? Obviously, it’s Mar.)
Binay’s ratings dropped 10 points amid a Senate inquiry on the alleged overpricing of a Makati parking building constructed when Binay was mayor of Makati in 2007.
The inquiry is led by Senators Alan Peter Cayetano and Antonio Trillanes IV, who, like Binay, have expressed their intentions to run for a higher office in 2016.
Binay and his son Makati mayor Junjun Binay also face a plunder complaint before the Ombudsman in connection with the allegedly overpriced building.
Evardone said LP had feared that Roxas, seen as Aquino’s default presidential pick for 2016, may not be the one to benefit from Binay’s slump.
“Akala namin iba ang nag-gain. Baka hindi si Mar ang maging beneficiary ng pag-slide ni Vice President. Ngayon, siya ang lumabas na beneficiary,” Evardone said.
(We thought somebody else would gain from it. We thought that maybe Mar would not be the beneficiary of Binay’s slide. It turns out that he is indeed the beneficiary.)
Roxas was initially LP’s presidential pick in the 2010 elections. But he gave way to Aquino, then a senator, who rode the public support after the death of his mother, former President Corazon Aquino.
Evardone said Roxas gained in the latest survey despite not publicly campaigning ahead of the elections.
“Secretary Mar has an impressive showing without campaigning,” he said.
The survey conducted September 9 to 15 showed that preference for Binay dropped 10 points, from 41 percent in June to only 31 percent in early September. The Vice President, however, continued to lead the pack of presidential aspirants for 2016.
Roxas inched higher with 13 percent, landing him in second place. It was an improvement of six points compared to the earlier survey where he got only seven percent.
Trailing behind Binay and Roxas were Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago (11 percent), Senator Grace Poe (10 percent), former president and Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada (10 percent), Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero (5 percent), Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (4 percent), former vice president Noli De Castro (3 percent) and Philippine Red Cross (PRC) chairman Richard “Dick” Gordon.
Each receiving one percent of the survey votes were rehabilitation czar Secretary Panfilo Lacson, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, Camarines Sur Representative Leni Robredo, and Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., who is currently detained for his alleged involvement in the pork barrel scam.
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