Think Bits
With only six days to go before the May 9 elections, it’s still Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte leading the other four candidates in the latest survey by more than 10 percent over the nearest rival, Sen. Grace Poe, followed by Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer Mar Roxas.
The bandwagon effect has taken hold of local leaders like the Remullas of Cavite province who left Vice President Jejomar Binay for Duterte and other LP leaders who shifted their support to either Duterte or Poe.
The Andayas of Bicol have withdrawn their support of Mar Roxas to Mayor Duterte. In Bicol, Gov. Joey Salceda, who used to support Roxas, shifted his allegiance to Poe.
It was no surprise when Duterte found himself the target of a hatchet or demolition job, and this time, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV claimed that the mayor has a secret account at the Bank of the Philippines Islands (BPI) Julio Vargas branch worth P211 million, not P2.1 billion as earlier reported.
Duterte of course denied this and Roxas joined the fray by claiming that Duterte has a dollar account which he saw after he deposited US $10 in Duterte’s account.
The way I look at it, it just shows that these candidates are now so desperate that they’re doing this last-minute demolition job on Duterte whose camp is now working overtime to do damage control and minimize the negative publicity on their candidate.
But as seen in the controversy over Duterte’s remarks on the rape and murder of a female Australian missionary, the bank account expose had done little to affect his survey lead while his supporters continue to stick by him.
In the vice-presidential race, Sen. Bongbong Marcos is still leading the survey followed by LP bet and Camarines Rep. Leni Robredo. But I reckon the Solid North will play a crucial role in ensuring Marcos’s victory.
Despite everything the anti-Marcos groups did to persuade voters not to support Marcos, they forgot that Bongbong Marcos is not Ferdinand Marcos the dictator but the son of the late president.
The sins of the father could not be attributed to the son, as the saying goes, and Bongbong Marcos has not been answering the bashing done to him by the anti-Marcos groups.
Back to Duterte, many are wondering where the Davao City mayor is receiving financial support.
At least based on surveys, Duterte is amassing support from the National Capital Region, some parts of Luzon and some parts of the Visayas which is considered the bailiwick of Roxas. Duterte’s solid support from Mindanao is to be expected since he is a Mindanaoan.
What is astonishing is how Duterte managed to become a survey leader despite the resources and machinery at the disposal of his rivals. His campaign style has captured the imagination of ordinary people who identified with him.
These include the professionals in Cebu like the doctors and nurses. His call for change and vow to end crime and corruption appeal to those who felt let down by the Aquino administration.
What about Roxas’s chances of winning? It’s been political tradition and belief that the administration bet can rely on the political machinery and funds to carry him or her to victory, but only if it’s a close race.
Based on the surveys, it’s not even close as Duterte holds a double-digit lead over Roxas.
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