Even my grandson wants Gibo to be president!

There is no question that the surveys from the Campaigns & Images Group has stirred a hornets nest as what we’ve pointed out already, this is collated by people without any political agenda. So here is the 3rd survey from this group. This sampling was taken from respondents coming from Luzon: 2,958, Mindanao: 1,581 and the Visayas: 561 and it is broken into sectors: Services-2,764; Industry-1,575; Agriculture-761 and broken further to age brackets of 18-28 years old - 2,499: 29-39 years old - 1,530, 40-51 years old - 612, 52-75 years old and above at 459 respondents.

The question asked was, “Who among the 10 Presidential candidates do you think is capable of governing the Philippines and for whom you will be voting for the Presidency?” Sen. Villar was first at 31%, followed by Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro at 24%, while Noynoy Aquino got 20% was 3rd; Erap was 4th with 13%, while Sen. Gordon was 5th at 5%. This survey was collated from Jan. 7, 2010 to March 7, 2010. It would be interesting to know what the surveys would reveal by the end of March. Clearly Gibo is rising, while Noynoy Aquino continues to slide, while Sen. Villar is the survey leader.

There is no question that the 2010 May elections is crucial to the growth and development of our country because if we make the wrong choice for President, we will wallow for another six years as Asia’s laggard. So should we allow this to happen? In Cebu a lot of the youth have already awaken to the realities that their votes can indeed count in this coming elections. When I visit a school campus I see a lot of them so fired up because their future depends on who would be the next President of this country. I was in a Presidential forum at the Cebu Doctors University (CDU) last week, however amongst the three representatives of the Presidential candidates requested to speak, only Engr. Rex Carampatana, a spokesman for the Green Team of Gibo showed up and Talisay City Mayor Soc Fernandez showed up to speak on behalf of Sen. Manny Villar, while Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes failed to appear to represent Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino. That disappointed the students rooting for Noynoy who decorated the campus grounds with yellow ribbons.

 Mayor Soc (he’s a good friend and a fellow Apologist, a defender of the Catholic Faith) spoke first to praise Manny Villar, however after his speech, he had to leave for another engagement. So only Engr. Carampatana was left alone on the stage and when the Q&A session began, only the queries about Gibo could be entertained and all questions answered. At the end of the forum, the entire quadrangle of CDU reverberated with the loud cries of the students shouting cries Sulong Gibo!

I’d like to emphasize that since the Presidentiables themselves cannot be around, it is important that they have speakers always available to speak on their behalf. No doubt CDU students embraced Gibo simply because the others were not around to speak for their candidates. You can say that the “No-Show” by Sen. Villar and Sen. Noynoy at the Kingdom of Jesus Christ Sect in Davao headed by Pastor Apollo Quiboloy cost them a lot in votes.

At the CDU, I took the opportunity to talk to some students and asked them why they are choosing Gibo over the other candidates. The common reply is, “This country needs a man with the intelligence and political will to fix our problems.” Indeed, Gibo’s “Galing at Talino” advertisement is paying off because he associates himself with smart people.

In my own household, I never discussed politics with my kids so that I’d be able to see whom they would be voting for. Even my son, Jesus Valeriano (JV) who is still in USC College suddenly told me that he is rooting for Gibo. He just turned 21 years old and will be voting for the first time. Hence without influencing my kids, we are one in believing that Gibo is the Presidential candidate who can give our nation that bright future.

My eldest daughter Dr. Fara Avila Tequillo is rooting for Noynoy, however Mico, my 9-year old grandson amazed his parents a few days ago when he told them “If I can vote, I will vote for GIBO because he is smart!” Now what does a 9-year old boy know about politics huh? But I guess that’s because he watches TV. Mico is a grade school student at the Child Development Center in Cebu and a Gold awardee for the Advance Student Honor Roll from Kumon Philippines. He is No. 6 out of 2,828 all over the country. Just imagine that if a 9-year old kid could know that Gibo is the right choice for our country, it would be a shame if you cannot choose the right person who should be our President.

On the other hand, my 4-year old granddaughter Keena told her mom that if she can vote, she would vote for Manny Villar because she saw his TV ads helping the poor children. My grandkids have limited TV time because of their studies, but so early in their lives, they are already immersed in politics.

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For e-mail responses to this article, write to [email protected] or vsbobita@ gmail.com. His columns can be accessed through www.philstar.com.