Poe dominates presidential debate in Cebu – survey

MANILA, Philippines – Sen. Grace Poe “came out the best” in the second leg of the presidential debates held in Cebu City last Sunday, according to the Bilang Pilipino Social Weather Stations (SWS) Mobile Survey commissioned by TV5.

To the question, “Who came out the best during the presidential debate last March 20, 2016?” 39 percent of respondents who watched the debate chose Poe, an independent candidate.

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte came in second with 31 percent; followed by administration candidate Manuel Roxas II with 17 percent, while Vice President Jejomar Binay of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) got only eight percent.

Four percent of the respondents did not provide an answer.

Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago of the People’s Reform Party did not attend the second debate.

The survey had 1,200 original respondents; however, only 794 or 66 percent responded to the March 21 Bilang Pilipino SWS Mobile Survey.

The proportion of voter-respondents who watched the second presidential debate was 52 percent in Metro Manila, 54 percent in balance Luzon, 51 percent in the Visayas and 47 percent in Mindanao.

The second leg of Pilipinas 2016 debate under the Commission on Elections (Comelec) was held at the University of the Philippines campus in Cebu City and was sponsored by TV5, The STAR and BusinessWorld.

Poe was the most cited candidate in balance Luzon and the Visayas as the debate’s best, while Duterte led in Mindanao.

In Metro Manila, Duterte and Poe topped the list, with 36 percent and 35 percent, respectively.

Roxas obtained 18 percent and Binay nine percent. Three percent did not give an answer.

In balance Luzon, Poe scored 46 percent, followed by Duterte with 25 percent, Roxas with 18 percent and Binay with eight percent. Four percent did not give an answer.

In the Visayas, Poe obtained 36 percent, followed by Roxas with 29 percent, Duterte with 21 percent and Binay with nine percent. Five percent did not give an answer.

In Mindanao, Duterte received 53 percent, followed by Poe with 32 percent, Binay with seven percent and Roxas with three percent. Five percent did not give an answer.

Duterte emerged as the best candidate among men, while Poe was the top choice among women.

Among men, Duterte scored 36 percent, followed by Poe with 29 percent, Roxas with 23 percent and Binay with seven percent. Five percent did not give an answer.

Among women, Poe got 51 percent, followed by Duterte with 26 percent, Roxas with 10 percent and Binay with nine percent. Four percent did not give an answer.

Binay’s camp, however, disagreed with the survey results.

UNA president Navotas City Rep. Tobias Tiangco said Binay “did so well during the debate.”

“We were more than satisfied with his performance. He was able to show that he is the most prepared to govern and he is the one with concrete program for the poor,” Tiangco said.

“More important is that Duterte said that the Vice President is more qualified than him,” he said.

“That’s a direct testimony and admittance from his rival for the presidency,” Tiangco stressed.

Poe’s runningmate Sen. Francis Escudero, meanwhile, pushed for the construction of a bridge connecting Luzon to the Visayas to improve trade and commerce and hasten the delivery of government aid during calamities.

Escudero said the infrastructure project connecting Allen, Northern Samar to Matnog, Sorsogon is part of the agenda of Poe’s Gobyernong may Puso. – With Christina Mendez