Senator Grace Poe with Partidong Galing at Puso political rally in Plaza Miranda Angeles Pampanga. Photo by Jay Morales
The recent Social Weather Station (SWS) survey where three in five Filipinos or about 66 percent agree with the Supreme Court ruling allowing Senator Grace Poe to run for President is “a great anomaly” and “mockery of the survey process,” complainants pushing for the lady senator’s disqualification said Thursday.
The survey, which was commissioned by TV5 and conducted on March 8-11, also showed that 15 percent of respondents opposed the high court’s ruling. About 16 percent said that they were undecided while four percent said that they “don’t know.”
READ: SWS: 3 in 5 Filipinos back SC go-ahead on Poe presidential bid
Political Law professor Antonio Contreras questioned the conduct of the survey.
He pointed out that the survey was conducted from March 8 to 11 when the high court has not even posted its decision.
The high court only released a copy of the decision on Poe’s case on March 11.
Contreras questioned how the public could have come up with an opinion on a court decision that was not even released at the time of the survey.
“They are making a mockery of the survey process itself,” Contreras said at a press conference.
Atty. Manuelito Luna, counsel of former Senator Francisco Tatad, said the survey “is a great anomaly.”
“Hindi ito popularity contest. You cannot legalize infirmity,” Luna said, adding that “this will not have any bearing on the case.”
Contreras said Poe’s case is not about popularity.
“We are not talking about popularity. We are talking about the law. Ang ibig bang sabihin nito (na) objectively, hindi ka maganda pero maraming naniniwalang maganda ka eh maganda ka na,” he said.
Contreras, Tatad, Atty. Estrella Elamparo, and former UE Law Dean Amado Valdez will appeal the high court’s ruling. JE