National Electons: Gloria Arroyo in the lead
Manila (AsiaNews) - From 7 in the morning till 3 in the afternoon today, more than 43 million Filipinos will vote for 32 candidates of their choice, to fill government positions including the highest: the presidency and vice-presidency.A recent survey showed that incumbent President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is in the lead over movie actor Fernando Poe Junior, followed by Senator (former Police General, and former Department of Education Secretary) Raul Roco, and Brother Eddie Villanueva, a charismatic group leader who is said to have 8 million followers.Without a doubt, the President has an advantage over the other candidates, since government agencies backed her program throughout the 70-day campaign period. For the past two months, she has been giving away free hospitalization cards, land to the poor and water in villages. Although these are part of the government's program, they strengthened the President's presence among the poor communities throughout the country. Fernando Poe Junior, a popular action star, led the polls at the beginning of the year, when his candidacy was announced. But his popularity waned after he could not reveal his platform of governance to the public: he has often cited to media that the program was posted on his website. Only two weeks ago he briefly mentioned, via television clips, the three major points of his running platform: to end war with the rebels, eliminate graft and corruption, and find work for the unemployed. The survey shows that 24 percent of the electorate are still undecided on whom to vote for. The influence of this group of voters is vital for the candidates' victory.Media has been one of the best avenues for candidates to reach the voters. A recent survey showed that votes get 40 percent of candidate information from television, radio and newspapers [with television and radio usually getting their information from print media.] This has been an advantage for the two vice-presidential candidates, Noli de Castro and Loren Legarda who were television personalities before they entered politics. It is a known fact that many ask media personalities for help when the local government is not able to assist them. People perceive those who have appeared in the media as "intelligent" because of their constant exposure.The country has been filled with violence for months before the Election Day. By May 6, 118 deaths and 168 injuries were counted. Yesterday, a bomb was hurled at the office of a mayoral candidate in Metro Manila, where two people were immediately killed. As early as 9 in the morning, several voters complained that their names were not in the voters' list issued by the Commission on Elections (Comelec). "We received several complaints this morning," coordinator of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) Henry Arroyo told AsiaNews. "There are also cases wherein their names are not in the Comelec list but are in our list." Arroyo is himself confused since Comelec gave their copy to them.Arroyo is one of the numerous volunteers of PPCRV who are poll watchers and will monitor the ballot boxes, and ballot counting, until they are delivered to the Comelec office. He belongs to the Our Lady of Remedies in Malate which has about 38,000 voters. The National Secretariat for Social Action (NASSA), the social outreach of the Bishop's Conference, has coordinated with various Diocesan Social Action Centers to monitor the elections, sending the latest reports around the country every two hours. NASSA has reported and denounced the removal of voters' names from voters' lists as well as the physical violence in the Pampanga province, north of Manila. In Talaingod, Davao del Norte in the Mindanao island, a bomb exploded in a school which was being used as a voter's precinct. The Comelec has declared this area as one of the country's "hotspots". (S.E.)
.png)
