By DANNY O. SAGUN

TOMORROW night or Tuesday early morning, we will have known already our new officials. We’ll see if those surveys – scientific or otherwise – come close to the election results.

We can only laugh at those surveys coming out left and right. One side claims he is well ahead of the race having cornered 60 percent of the votes. The other side says 70 percent of the electorate will go with him come election time. One thing is obvious: nobody admits he is losing in his self-commissioned surveys.

As a research interviewer/supervisor ourself some years back for government-backed research surveys on government programs, we can say that surveys conducted honestly, accurately and in conformity with research rules will show or reveal the true sentiments of the people. Only when entries are manipulated do survey results show otherwise.

Those who are trailing or are tailenders speak against the ongoing surveys, while those faring well appear to be believers of surveys. Nakakatawa.

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Will the famous Agbayani clan stay in power or just become part of political history here? Can the Lims of Dagupan City realize their dream of toppling their battle-tested rivals?

These, we think, are the most watched, closely monitored, political battles in this part of the country.

Who would have thought, until this year, that finally a serious contender would come forward to challenge the veteran Joe de Venecia? It’s only in this election that the Pangasinan pride had to climb the boondocks (literally) to convince the voters that he is still the right person to represent the fourth district and not a “pretender” in Benjie Lim. It’s only now that he had to comb all the four corners of the district unlike before that he would just send his people around to do the campaigning.

Just look at his posters. They are everywhere covering almost every space. An overkill actually. Perhaps it is true what many are saying that he’s really very scared Benjie might snatch that coveted post from him so that he is leaving nothing to chance.

To the delight of the people. Maling, coffee with sugar, sardines, bread, wall clock, bag, etc. just land on their doors without even asking for these. What more can you ask for? Angapo met so bagyo o delap pero walay rasyon, we heard people comment. And they add, Komon eleksyon ya naynay.
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These past few days in the campaign homestretch, we heard over radio block time commentaries pitting the two close gubernatorial rivals, Jamie Agbayani and Amado Espino. We don’t really mind such commentaries-cum-propaganda as they appear to be regular fare every election time but what raised our eyebrows was that broadcasters in this part of the province themselves are doing the hatchet job for their patrons like these were personal fights for them. Whatever happened to professionalism in media?

And some members of the media, both boys and girls, here made a killing out of their politician-clients.

We’re just amused how such media colleagues would comport themselves once their clients lose and they soon come face to face with the person they had attacked just because of politics. Parang walang nangyari, ganun?

Small wonder many public and private personalities have such low regard for media, election season or not.