Jamora camp confident of victory; “UP” survey debunked in forums
The camp of candidate for city mayor, Undersecretary Lorenzo “Larry” Jamora remains confident of victory despite allegedly trailing in the surveys, particularly in the so-called “UP survey” which has been thrashed by experts as misleading, inaccurate, and rigged to favor certain candidates.
In a series of mock elections currently being conducted by the Jamora camp to verify the validity of the so-called UP Survey being touted by another candidate, Jamora emerged comfortably ahead of his two rivals. In fact, Jamora enjoyed overwhelming numbers in the City Proper, Lapuz-Bo. Obrero, Lapaz, and Arevalo districts where the Jamora camp has established impregnable strongholds.
Rafael Palmares, Jr., punong barangay of Magsaysay, Lapaz District, said the mock elections were conducted to test the validity of the various surveys. “We had our doubts after we received reports that the surveyors of the so called UP survey were biased,” said Palmares who has had substantial experience in electoral campaigns from the time of his father, the late Iloilo Governor and Assemblyman Rafael Palmares, Sr., to the presidential campaign of the late Senator Raul Roco and other national candidates.
Palmares admits the process was not scientific. “It was just our way of feeling the pulse of the people and finding out whether our leaders were doing their jobs,” he said.
Apparently, they were: In 14 of 25 barangays in Lapaz district, Jamora polled a total of 4,950 against 2,033 and 1,373 for his two main opponents. In 6 of 11 Barangays in the Lapuz-Bo. Obrero area, Jamora tallied 1398 against 216 and 167 while in 5 of 13 barangays in Arevalo, Jamora garnered 2274 against 1,754 for his two opponents combined.
At the City Proper District which is fast turning into a Jamora bailiwick, Jamora got a total 1756 votes in 22 of 46 barangays. His two opponents got 1221 and 1351. The results for Molo and Mandurriao has yet to be finalized as of presstime while the process is still on going in Jaro.
This proves that the so-called UP survey is inaccurate at the very least and that the Jamora campaign is on track on to eventual victory, Palmares said.
Meanwhile, the UP community stressed that the institution is not in any way involved in any political survey. At the candidates forum sponsored by the UP College of Mass Communication, a UP student forced one mayoralty candidate to admit that the survey he was flaunting was not actually conducted by UP. At the RMN Candidates Forum in St. Paul’s University of Iloilo the other night, RMN anchorman Novi Guazo also revealed that they were among the first surveyors of that group of former UP Professors. He said the survey results can easily be influenced or manufactured by the surveyors. (By Willy Sotto)
