Critics: Cha-cha pulled Marcos, Romualdez ratings down

ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro PHOTO FROM HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MANILA, Philippines — The declining trust and approval ratings of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Speaker Martin Romualdez could be attributed to their continued push for Charter change (Cha-cha), something that three out of four Filipinos still reject.

This was how opposition leaders viewed the recently released results of a Pulse Asia survey showing Marcos’ trust rating dropping by 16 points—from 73 percent in December 2023 to 57 percent in March 2024.

His approval rating also dropped by 13 percentage points from 68 percent to 55 percent in the same period.

READ: Approval, trust ratings for Marcos, Duterte fall – Pulse Asia

Take them as signs

The survey also saw Romualdez, a cousin of the President, earn a trust rating of 31 percent from 40 percent after the three-month interval. His approval rating went down to 31 percent from 39 percent.

The survey was conducted from March 6 to March 10, at the height of House deliberations on a resolution pushing for amendments in key economic provisions of the Constitution to lift the limits on foreign ownership in three sectors—public utilities, education and advertising.

In separate statements on Wednesday, ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro and Bayan secretary general Mong Palatino said the President and the Speaker should take these numbers as a sign that their drive to amend the 1987 Constitution hardly enjoyed public support.

“It just goes to show that an overwhelming majority of Filipinos are against Cha-cha in whatever form,” Castro said, referring to a separate Pulse Asia survey released in March showing that 88 percent of Filipinos do not support Cha-cha.

“So, it would be best for the Marcos Jr. administration to stop wasting time and resources on it and drop it now, so that it can concentrate more on what the Filipino people truly need,” Castro said.

“Marcos has been promoting the interest of foreign powers instead of focusing on improving the conditions of the working classes,’’ Palatino added. “He has been in five foreign lavish trips and he endorsed the so-called economic Charter Change that will allow foreigners to expand their control and ownership of land and domestic industries.”

Sara slides, too; Migz up

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte also saw a seven-point decrease in her approval rating— from 74 percent to 67 percent; and also in her trust rating—rating from 78 percent to 71 percent.

Senate President Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri scored a 52-percent approval rating in March 2024 from 49 percent in December 2023 for a three-point gain, and a 53-percent trust rating from 51 percent for a two-point increase.

In Castro’s view, Zubiri’s numbers improved apparently because he was “not rushing Charter change.”

“However, this may also lead to a decline when the Senate approves Cha-cha,” she said. WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH