Orendain calls ‘survey’ ridiculous: Results reveal flying voters in City Hall?
City Administrator Antonio Orendain Jr. yesterday branded the purported survey conducted in City Hall as outrageous and unbelievable as he cited numerous flaws in the results.
“This is unbelievable. This is plain and simple— part of black propaganda for the forthcoming 2010 elections,” the city administrator whose name appeared in the purported survey as number 3 in the names of people who the supposed respondents think should run for councilor in 2010.
Orendain said common sense will tell the people conducting any survey that the number of respondents voting for candidates in the various positions will never be constant all throughout.
Based on the survey, exactly 1,000 people voted for the different names for mayor, vice mayor, congress persons and councilors in both districts 1 and 2 including the names for the national positions.
“Does this mean to say that there are flying voters in City Hall? People who voted for the congressman and councilors in district 2 were the same as those who voted for the officials in district 1? That’s ridiculous!” the annoyed Orendain exclaimed.
Also, the city administrator said, if indeed the supposed survey was conducted by city government employees and officials, they should be aware who are the graduating councilors and who are not.
The names of Councilors Cesar Iturralde, Kim Elago and Roel Natividad, who are in their last term in the City Council, are included in the list of councilors voted during the supposed survey.
“If I am an employee of the city government I will not vote for people who are already in their last term. I should know who among the councilors are on their last term. And if you conduct such political surveys, you should know better,” Orendain further exclaimed.
The survey results, furnished to all local and some national media outfits through electronic mail were published as banner stories in local newspapers Monday. It however did not indicate the methodology of the survey, which is a must, to make it credible and reliable.
According to the purported survey, 688 city employees and officials voted for Mannix Dalipe; 247 for Celso Lobregat and 65 were undecided under the position of mayor—giving a total of 1,000 respondents. In the position for vice mayor, 412 voted for Monsi de la Cruz, 328 voted for Kim Elago, 72 voted for Cesar Iturralde, 84 voted for Elong Natividad while 104 were undecided—or a total of again, 1,000 votes.
The Zamboanga City Government Employees Association headed by Eduardo Vasquez has disowned the survey and described it as “fabricated by some people who are out to destroy the name of Mayor Celso Lobregat”.
Vasquez said the purported survey is clearly meant to condition the minds of the city employees and the public at large to sway support to Mayor Lobregat’s opponent in next year’s elections. (Sheila Covarrubias)