FILES
MANILA, Philippines — At least two lawmakers criticized a recent Pulse Asia survey indicating that over 70 percent of Filipinos do not believe that the 1987 Constitution should be amended.
In a statement on Saturday, House Majority Leader and Zamboanga City 2nd District Rep. Manuel Jose “Mannix” Dalipe suspected the survey might be part of a campaign to undermine efforts to amend the restrictive economic provisions in the current constitution.
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According to the Pulse Asia survey results, 74 percent of respondents believe the 1987 Constitution should not be amended now or at any other time.
Dalipe lamented about the “irrelevant” questions included in the survey, such as those about the term extension for national and local elective officials, changing the presidential system to a parliamentary system of government, shifting from a bicameral to a unicameral legislature, and allowing foreigners to exploit the country’s natural resources.
“Why include questions that people don’t want and are not related to the ongoing process in Congress? Is this black propaganda?” Dalipe asked, as quoted in the statement.
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“Including unrelated questions in the survey only serves to confuse and mislead the public,” Dalipe asserted.
He then called for a “more objective” approach in future surveys, adding that “surveys should reflect the real concerns of the people, not push a particular agenda.”
Deputy Speaker and Quezon 2nd District Rep. David “Jay-jay” Suarez echoed Dalipe’s concerns, noting that the survey questions appeared to “blur” different aspects of constitutional reform that may have caused confusion among respondents.
“The phrasing of the questions by Pulse Asia seemed crafted to steer respondents towards a specific viewpoint on Charter amendments,” Suarez said in a separate statement.
According to the lawmaker, efforts to amend the Constitution mainly target economic provisions and not political provisions.
“The wording of survey questions should accurately reflect the actual provisions being proposed for amendment,” he said.
“Surveys play a crucial role in gauging public opinion, but they must be conducted in a fair and unbiased manner,” he added.
Suarez further asserted that “biased survey questions can distort public perception and hinder meaningful dialogue on constitutional reform,” hence, urging all survey firms to adopt a more precise and transparent approach to designing questionnaires.
“It is essential for survey firms to ensure that questions are clear, specific, and free from bias to obtain accurate results,” he said.