2 months ago
21
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
MANILA, Philippines — The Social Weather Stations (SWS) appeared at the House Tri-Committee’s fourth hearing to address lawmaker grievances over survey results, only for the lawmaker who requested their presence, Rep. Rodante Marcoleta, to be absent.
Marcoleta (Sagip Party-List) requested the committee on its first-ever hearing on February 4 to invite the survey firm to clarify why his name was missing from its third-quarter 2024 senatorial preference survey.
The survey was carried out before the filing of certificates of candidacy in October 2024. It presented respondents with a list of 40 names — some of whom may not be candidates but are still of public interest.
While this issue was unrelated to the disinformation inquiry, as it did not involve any supposed false information, the committee respected the request and invited the firm.
Rep. Johnny Ty Pimentel (Surigao del Sur, 2nd District), vice chair of the House committee on information and communications technology, asked present lawmakers if they had any questions for SWS, but none raised any.
“So I believe that there are no questions, but there was one congressman, I will not mention anymore, who requested you to be present, also Pulse Asia and then ‘yung ibang survey firms, but he’s not around,” he said.
“So the congressmen are not inclined to ask questions to you (SWS) unless you have a statement to make,” Pimentel said, to which the survey firm’s representative said it has no statement to make.
While he did not name the lawmaker directly, multiple news reports and the hearing’s recording confirm that Marcoleta had requested their invitation, a move that Tri-Comm Chair Rep. Dan Fernandez (Santa Rosa, Lone District) acknowledged as part of their “wide, comprehensive approach” to the issue.
His gripes over the survey
To Marcoleta’s credit, he raised the question during the first hearing on whether the inquiry would focus solely on misinformation on social media, noting that he also had concerns with broadsheets and survey firms.
Fernandez agreed that the hearings could cover more than just social media, despite objections from Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (Surigao del Norte, 2nd District), who insisted the scope should be limited to online platforms.
So when Marcoleta was given the chance, he explained his gripes with two newspapers and the survey firms, accusing them of spreading false information about him.
Regarding the survey, Marcoleta was irked by his exclusion from the list, especially since he pointed out that some senatorial candidates, who he claims are not widely known, were included.
Marcoleta questioned the inclusion of several Makabayan senatorial candidates—primarily grassroots leaders—arguing their lack of public recognition.
“Hindi ko naman po pinagpipilitan na isama nila ako rito. Ang problema, 'di ako kasama pero sa resulta, number 36 ako. Hindi po tama ito. Dapat po i-address ito,” Marcoleta said on February 4.
(I'm not insisting that they include me here. The problem is, I'm not included, yet the result shows I'm number 36. This isn't right. This should be addressed.)
Marcoleta speculated that his exclusion from the initial list may have influenced his low ranking among the 40 names in the survey.
“Ito po ‘yung klase ng mga manipulative surveys na pinaniniwalaan po ng mga tao. Sana po hindi na lang nila ako sinama,” the lawmaker said.
(This is the kind of manipulative survey that people believe in. I hope they hadn’t included me.)
Not the first time. This wasn’t Marcoleta’s first attempt to challenge others over alleged misinformation.
He had previously confronted Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela for allegedly calling him a “traitor” — a claim Tarriela denied, saying he never made such a statement concerning the West Philippine Sea dispute with China.
Currently gunning for a Senate seat, the lawmaker ranked 24th in the SWS survey conducted from March 15 to 20. He is running under Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP), the party of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
