EDITORIAL

Weaving electoral magic

Whatever the administration’s Team Unity and the Genuine Opposition have to say on surveys on their winnability, the fact remains that people want change for the better. They are voting for the senatoriables they perceive as “cleaner” and “more honorable.”

Malacanang ignored the latest Pulse Asia survey which showed no improvement in the standing of administration senatorial bets against their counterparts in the political opposition. The GO meanwhile said their good rating showed the people wanted them as the next senators as compared to TU candidates.

Based on the latest Pulse Asia survey on preferences for the May 2007 senatorial elections, TU candidates still trailed their GO counterparts 8-5 on a list of 15 possible candidates who have a statistical chance of winning the 12 seats available in the Senate.

Surveys are a gauge on the final outcome. Perceptions can be manipulated but reality cannot be. The few days before the elections will determine the outcome of who will become the Lucky 12. If candidates are traveling from province to province, it is because they know that the crucial votes come from the provincial grassroots, not from Manila slums.

Now the opposition is saying the Commission on Elections is laying the groundwork for a TU win so that when the voting is done, the magic should have been weaved in favoring administration candidates.

They fear a repeat of the 2004 elections and don’t want a lot of Garci clones manipulating results of the elections. Whatever, the opposition should also do its work so that elections would be cleaner this time by laying the groundwork so that the perceived administration magicians would be foiled in their evil designs to rig electoral results.