Gonzales most trusted among Pampanga execs

SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, Philippines – Eight out of 10 voters in the third district of Pampanga with about 300,000 registered voters say Rep. Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr. is the most trusted among the top elected officials of the province, according to a recent survey by Pulse Asia.

Gonzales, who is seeking a second term, got a trust rating of 79 percent, which was three times higher the trust rating of Gov. Eddie Panlilio who only garnered 26 percent and nearly twice as high as that of Lakas-Kampi-CMD gubernatorial bet and former board member Lilia Pineda with 49 percent.

Gonzales also edged Vice Gov. Joseller Guiao who had a trust rating of 47 percent, and  City Mayor Oscar Rodriguez with 58 percent.

The lawmaker is a member of the Lakas executive committee and is its district chairman.

Pulse Asia conducted the poll from April 7 to 9 involving 900 respondents in the towns of Mexico, Arayat, Sta. Ana and Bacolor and the component city of San Fernando. It had a margin of error of three percent. Gonzales commissioned it.

In terms of approval and performance, Gonzales had a high of 85 percent overall rating in the third district, which went up to as high as 95 percent in the towns of Mexico and Sta. Ana.

In comparison, Panlilio got a low 25 percent approval rating throughout the district while Guiao chalked up a respectable 46 percent.

Gonzales also had a higher 83 approval rating in the City of San Fernando against Rodriguez’s 75 percent.

Gonzales scored high in the two categories of achievements and good governance, and won huge voters’ approval through his various socio-economic, infrastructure and other development projects in the district. 

As a lawmaker, Gonzales is highly favored, especially by voters from Bacolor town and nearby San Fernando, for sponsoring two laws: Republic Act 9506, otherwise known as the Bacolor Rehabilitation Act with initial funding of P1 billion, and RA 9832 which created the Don Honorio Ventura Technological State University, the first state university in Pampanga. The university is formerly the Don Honorio Ventura School of Arts and Trade.