Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
Malacañang and the Liberal Party were elated with the rise in the rating of former Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II in the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey, saying it was an affirmation of the Filipinos’ trust for the administration bet as the country’s next president.
In the SWS survey, preference for Roxas jumped to 39 percent from only 21 percent in June. He lags behind poll frontrunner Senator Grace Poe and is ahead of Vice President Jejomar Binay.
Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said that the endorsement of President Benigno Aquino has galvanized support for Roxas.
“Ang pagtaas sa dami ng bumanggit ng preference kay Sec. Roxas ay repleksyon ng ibayong pagtitiwala ng mga mamamayan sa kanyang kakayahang mamuno sa bansa pagkatapos siyang endorsohin ni Pangulong Aquino bilang Liberal Party standard bearer,” Coloma said on Monday.
(The increase in the number of respondents who expressed their preference for Sec. Roxas [as the next president] is a reflection of the trust of the people in his ability to lead the country after he was endorsed by President Aquino as the Liberal Party’s standard bearer.)
Meanwhile, Liberal Party stalwart Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone said that Roxas’ current position in the survey was “just right” at this point.
“He doesn’t have to lead the pack this early. I think the major factor of the jump of his rating was the endorsement of PNoy,” Evardone said.
The lawmaker said that once Aquino starts campaigning for Roxas nationwide, support for Roxas would further increase.
“We should be able to maintain this position before the homestretch of the campaign period,” he said.