'Bistek' way ahead of rivals for Quezon City's top post - SWS

MANILA, Philippines - If the elections were to be held today, Quezon City Vice Mayor Herbert “Bistek” Bautista of the Liberal Party (LP) stands to win by a landslide, according to the latest Quezon City mayoralty survey conducted by the Social Weather Station (SWS) covering Dec. 16 to 19 and released Dec. 29, 2009. 

Based on the most recent SWS poll, 75 percent of the respondents from the city’s four districts said they will vote for him against four other candidates, who garnered single-digit scores.

A distant second was Quezon City District 2 Rep. Annie Susano, with nine percent while Mike Defensor, President Arroyo’s former presidential chief of staff, occupied the third spot with six percent. 

Also in the same SWS survey, former mayor Ismael Mathay got five percent. Councilor Ariel Inton landed at the bottom with only three percent. In the poll figures, Susano, Defensor, Mathay and Inton only registered one-digit scores with a margin of error of four percent.

 The December survey was undertaken during a period when black propaganda was constantly being hurled at Bautista by his rivals.

Meanwhile, Bautista’s runningmate, LP vice mayoralty bet Joy Belmonte, earned the nod of 60 percent of respondents according to SWS. 

Her closest competitor, councilor Babes Malaya, received 19 percent, while actress-politician Aiko Melendez brought up the rear with 17 percent.

Bautista hits black propaganda

Bautista, in a statement released yesterday, denied rumors that city government workers have not yet received the cash gift promised by Mrs. Arroyo last year.

He said the city government released in December the “good governance bonus” and in amounts bigger than what Malacañang ordered given to local government employees.

Bautista suspects that his decision to join the Liberal Party (LP) is the root cause of what appears to be a deliberate attempt of those close to Mrs. Arroyo to smear his character and the LP in Quezon City.

“I appeal to those behind this callousness to spare employees of the Quezon City government. If I earned the ire of Malacañang for my transfer to LP, then by all means vent your anger on me but don’t let poor city workers and their families suffer as collateral damage,” he said.

Bautista also said his transfer to LP was not a betrayal of the administration but borne of his belief in the program and cause of the tandem of Senators Benigno Aquino III and Manuel Roxas II.

“I politely bid Lakas-CMD’s permission, I did not sneak off in the middle of the night. That’s why I am confused and saddened why there seems to be a political squeeze against me,” he said.

Bautista urged Quezon City residents to be more cautious in entertaining unverified reports. He said they should unite and protest the repressive political tactics of the administration against Quezon City candidates running under the banner of the LP.      – Perseus Echeminada