Labor bets question latest Pulse Asia survey, say workers not represented

Senatorial candidates from the LaborWin slate on Monday questioned the result of the recent senatorial survey of pollster Pulse Asia Research Inc.

At a press conference, labor leader Leodigario "Leody" De Guzman claimed that the survey was some sort of "mind conditioning," noting that most of those who made it to the Top 12 were from the administration slate Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) as well as from the ruling party PDP-Laban.

"Tingin ko mind conditioning kasi ang target ni Pangulong [Rodrigo] Duterte ay kopohin ang Senado para tiyakin na 'yung kaniyang mga planong legislations tulad ng pederalismo ay pumasok lahat... para maging legal ang lahat ng ilegal na iniisip nila," De Guzman said.

Federation of Free Workers (FFW) vice president Julius Cainglet, who represented senatorial bet Sonny Matula, said it seemed that workers were not represented during the conduct of the survey.

"Kinukuwestiyon ko rin, ano, 'yung extent na na-involve ang manggagawa diyan? Kasi ang manggagawa kulang otso oras sa trabaho 'yan at overtime. So I think hindi sila represented sa survey," Cainglet said.

Incumbent senators Grace Poe and Cynthia Villar topped the list in the recent Pulse Asia. They were followed by another reelectionist Sonny Angara, former special assistant to the president Christopher "Bong" Go, and Taguig Representative Pia Cayetano.

No member of the LaborWin slate made it to the Top 12.

Despite this, Bayan Muna chairman Neri Colmenares, wh ranked 22nd to 24th in the Pulse Asia survey,  still expressed confidence that laborers would elect them in the May 13 elections.

"Whether or not the survey is true, ang punto doon 42 million ang manggagawa. Kaya kakayurin ng LaborWin ang manggagawa," Colmenares said.

"Kayang-kaya kasi nilang i-elect ang boses ng manggagawa sa Senado kahit kalahati lang sa kanila ang bumoto," he added.

Ernesto Arellano, for his part, questioned if the respondents of the survey really reflected the preferences of the voters.

"Ang principal question sa survey ay reliability. You have 1,800 respondents sa latest survey. You have 60 million registered voters... the answers of the 1,800 respondents ay representation ba ng sentiment ng 60 million?" Arellano said.

"Was the survey conducted to condition the mind of the people? Ang dami pang variables ang iconsider mo to determine the reliability of the survey," he added.

Pulse Asia: They're entitled to their own opinion

Asked for reaction, Pulse Asia president Ronald Holmes told GMA News Online that respondents of the survey included randomly-selected adult Filipinos who are working in various sectors.

Holmes also said the senatorial candidates are entitled to their opinion about the alleged "mind conditioning." He, however, said this was not supported in studies on the bandwagon or snowball effect of surveys in a number of countries.

The survey covered March 23 to 27, involving 1,800 respondents aged 18-years-old and above. —KBK, GMA News