Trillanes: More Filipinos now believe they got deceived by campaign promises

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV INQUIRER.net file photo

“Maraming mga kababayan tayo ngayon na feeling nila parang nabudol-budol sila.”

(We have a lot of countrymen today who feel as if they were scammed.)

This was how Senator Antonio Trillanes IV reacted to the recent Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showing a decline in the number of Filipinos expecting President Rodrigo Duterte to fulfill most, if not all, of his campaign promises.

“Yes, expected yan (decline) at sabi ko nga maraming mga kababayan tayo ngayon na feeling nila parang nabudol budol sila, nalinlang, kasi yung 3 to 6 months na susugpuin daw yung crime yung corruption ay talagang raket yun e parang swindle. Alam nya (Duterte) na ‘di kayang gawin yun,” Trillanes said in a press briefing on Tuesday.

(Yes, that’s expected [the decline] and as I was saying we have a lot of countrymen today who feel as if they were scammed, deceived, because the three to six months [promise] to fight crime, the corruption, is a raket, like swindling. He [Duterte] knows that this can’t be done.)

On Nov. 5, the SWS revealed its September survey results conducted among 1,500 Filipino adults nationwide.

The survey showed that 35 percent of the respondents believed that “all or nearly all” and “most” of Duterte’s promises would be fulfilled. This is a 17-point decrease compared to March’s 52 percent.

Fifty-seven percent answered “a few,” and 6 percent said “none or almost none” of the President’s promises would be fulfilled, SWS added.

READ: Number of Filipinos who believe Duterte can fulfill promises falls further

Reacting to the survey, Malacañang said there was nothing unusual in the drop of expectations as “the euphoria of the elections normally wears off after a year in office and people become more realistic on what the government can deliver.”

“This has been the trend in previous administrations.”

“What matters is Filipinos remain satisfied when they gave the current administration a ‘very good’ over-all performance rating at +58, as reflected in the same survey,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a statement last Sunday.

Regardless of the numbers, Roque said the President and the members of his Cabinet would “continue to work hard in bringing comfortable life for all where citizens feel safe and secure under a trustworthy government.” /jpv