Most Filipinos believe economy has ‘worsened’--survey - INQUIRER.net, Philippine News for Filipinos

MANILA, Philippines -- Two in three, or 66 percent, of Filipinos believe that the economy "worsened" over the last three years and a growing percentage of the population consider themselves poor and their quality of life worsening, according to an independent survey.

The Pulse Asia Inc. findings are in contrast with the rosy economic picture that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has painted, with the end-2007 gross domestic product growing by 7.3 percent.

The independent study was conducted nationwide from February 21 to March 8. It has a margin of error of +/-3 percent and a confidence level of 95 percent, Pulse Asia said in a statement.

Asked to compare the state of the economy now from 2005, 66 percent said the economy was "worse now," 23 percent said it was the "same," while 11 percent said it was "better now," according to the survey.

Of those who said that the economy was "worse now," 75 percent said they "strongly felt" the deterioration in the economy, 22 percent said they "felt [it] somewhat, while four percent said they "did not feel" the deterioration, according to the survey.

Of those who said that the economy was "better now," 20 percent said their "strongly felt" the growth, 56 percent said they "felt [it] somewhat," while 24 percent said they "did not feel" the growth, according to the survey.

Asked to rate their personal situation, 71 percent said they were "very poor or poor" up from 68 percent in October 2007 and 75 percent in July 2007, the survey showed.

Fourteen percent said were "on-the-line" while only 15 percent said they were "well off or wealthy." In October 2007, 18 percent said they were "on-the-line" while 14 percent said they were "well off or wealthy," the survey showed.

Asked about their quality of life, 10 percent said they were "better now," 31 percent said they were "same as then," while 59 percent said they were "worse now," according to the survey.

In October 2007, 14 percent said they were "better now," 40 percent said they were "same as then," while 46 percent said they were "worse now," according to the survey.

"Difficult times continue for most Filipinos, with a big majority of them -- 71 percent, or about 12.8 million households -- saying they are very poor/poor," Pulse Asia said.