PNS — The Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino revealed yesterday that presidential bet Sen. Manny Villar is now in the third place in a recent independent survey commissioned by a presidential candidate.
Former Senate Pres. Ernesto Maceda, campaign manager of the PMP, claimed results of the survey are being being withheld from the public and was conducted among 5,500 respondents
He said Liberal Party (LP) standard bearer Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III remained in the top position with 25 percent while Estrada, PMP standard bearer, who is always in the number three position is now in the second place with 21.5 percent.
Villar got 17 percent and is now in third place. “The latest survey I saw which is commissioned by one of our opponent came out with this the result –Villar was already in number three with 17 percent. To complete the result, Noynoy got 25 percent and 21. percent for Erap,” Maceda told reporters.
Maceda refused to identify the presidential candidate who commissioned the survey and the firm who conducted the survey saying it was only “internal survey” of the candidate. “I cannot tell you, masusunog ang ating source,” he stressed. He believes that the survey results will never be disclosed to the public as it does not favor of the candidate who commissioned the survey. Another probable reason is that it is the first time that Estrada landed second, overtaking Villar.
Estrada had always been in the far third in the surveys.
For his part, Estrada bared in a press conference that based on experience in the 1998 presidential derby, he had always been No. 3 in the surveys.
“Pero nung election ako ‘yung nag-number one,” he stressed.