Upbeat supporters of  presidential candidate Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and Liberal Party senatorial bets who gathered at their Bacolod headquarters yesterday remained confident of his victory in May, despite recent surveys showing Nacionalista Party standard bearer Manuel Villar catching up.

The voice of the volunteers all over the country will bring the survey ratings of Noynoy up and ensure his victory in May, Judy Araneta Roxas, mother of his runningmate Senator Mar Roxas, said.

Mrs. Roxas spoke at the inauguration of the Aquino-Roxas headquarters of volunteers at the Lopue’s Mandalagan Annex Building in Bacolod City yesterday morning.

The volunteers at the inauguration were from the Friends of Noy and Mar, Tuloy pNoy, Pamila Montilla, Yo!Noy, Yellow Army, N4NM, Pamilya Araneta, ReformAR and Noy Pi Ako.

Volunteer Millie Kilayo said the headquarters is open to other Aquino-Roxas volunteers who wish to join them.

The volunteers held a Yellow Bazaar of yellow Noynoy merchandize, Yellow Food Fair and a party at their headquarters to mark the birthday of Aquino yesterday.

When a giant yellow ribbon was lighted in front of the  headquarters last night the crowd sang Bayan Ko flashing the Laban sigh as yellow confetti fell.

The people in the crowd were festive as they chanted “Noynoy, Mar” as yellow banners and flaglets were waved.

Mrs. Roxas said she was very, very grateful that the Aquino-Roxas campaign has many volunteers in Bacolod and Negros Occidental, which is also happening all over the country.

“In any campaign you have to work hard no matter what the surveys say. In the case of Noynoy I’m very sure the voice of volunteers will be heard,” she said.

Mrs. Roxas said she really believes the Aquino-Roxas team is the best and what the country needs.

“I assure you if they win you will not be sorry, we will have a government you will be proud of,” she said.

She said the LP bets will kick off their  national campaign in Tarlac today and visit Capiz, Iloilo and come to Negros Occidental soon.

Yesterday three of the LP senatorial candidates – Alex Lacson, Neric Acosta and Martin Bautista, who were in Bacolod City, stressed that Aquino is the president the country needs today to achieve change.

They blamed the recent surge of Villar in the surveys to his spending millions of pesos in advertisements, which the Aquino campaign cannot match.

Bautista cited a Philippine Center for Investigative report that showed that Villar’s camp spent P72 million from Jan 18 to 21 in media buys, not counting endorsements, three days before a survey, to ensure an increase in his  ratings.

Villar is a billionaire in US dollars, in five months he has spent on commercial advertising alone P1.5 billion, and the law allows that a candidate  only spends P5 per voter, Bautista said.

Bautista said Villar has used his position as House speaker and senate president to curry favors and make a lot of money.

“I agree with him (Villar), he’s a great businessman but no businessman worth his salt will not try to recover what he spent,” Bautista said.

“We must fight so that we do not lose by default,” Bautista said, of the campaign for Aquino’s victory.

He said the country today requires a president who  more than being a board topnotcher or being the most industrious person in the Philippines, is “somebody with a clean heart and a clear mind who will be able to set a clean example for our citizens to follow.”

Lacson said there are so many residents of Camella Homes built by Villar complaining because these subdivisions have bad facilities.

“If he (Villar) becomes president, what will happen to the country? If he cannot attend to the problems of residents in the villages that he built, what more if he becomes president with so much power in his hands. Can we make him accountable?” Lacson asked.

“His peers in the Senate could not even make him accountable. How can ordinary citizens make him accountable if he becomes president?” Lacson asked.

Lacson said the recent rise of Villar in the surveys is the victory of money, “We should not allow the presidency to be won by TV ads.”

Acosta said the people should not get lost in the tyranny of surveys that trends people and lose sight of Aquino’s message for change.

In Manila, Villar told reporters he was using his own money for his political advertisements because he had no popular relatives to help his candidacy.

"Wala naman akong nanay na presidente, wala akong kapatid na artista, kailangan ihalal ay yung mga mahihirap naman ang pinagsimulan na kagaya ko (I don’t have a mother who’s a president, a sister who’s an artist. There is a need to elect someone who started poor like me)," said Villar at the first presidential debate organized by the Philippine Daily Inquirer at the University of the Philippines Theater in Diliman Quezon City yesterday.*CPG

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