Aquino rating 8 points down vs graft

President Benigno Aquino III. AP FILE PHOTO

Amid controversies surrounding the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP), more Filipinos disapprove of the administration’s efforts in fighting graft and corruption in government, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey.

Carried out from June 24 to July 2, the survey showed an 8-point decrease in the proportion of Filipinos approving of the administration’s anticorruption efforts—from 50 percent in March to 42 percent in June.

Those who disapproved of the administration’s performance increased by 8 points, from 19 percent to 27 percent.

(Results of a separate Pulse Asia survey released last week showed that Mr. Aquino’s approval and trust ratings had plunged to their lowest levels since he took office in 2010, with double-digit drops between March and June.

(That survey, also conducted from June 24 to July 2, showed that overall, 56 percent approved of Mr. Aquino’s performance, down 14 points from 70 percent in March.

(It found that the proportion of those who expressed big trust in Mr. Aquino dropped 16 points, from 69 percent in March to 53 percent in June.)

Disapproval on 3 issues

“Perhaps due in part to the continuing controversies regarding the alleged misuse of the PDAF of some lawmakers and the DAP, there is a significant decline in the level of approval for the Aquino administration’s anticorruption initiatives, and an increase in the level of disapproval for the same,” Pulse Asia said in a statement on Friday.

It said disapproval for the administration’s work on three issues—improving workers’ pay, reducing poverty and controlling inflation—also increased by 7 points.

Approval rating on one issue

The proportion of Filipinos disapproving of the administration’s performance in increasing the pay of workers rose from 23 percent in March to 30 percent in June.

Those who disapproved of its poverty reduction efforts also increased from 26 percent to 33 percent.

As for inflation—an issue cited by majority of Filipinos (52 percent) as an urgent concern—disapproval of government performance increased from 34 to 41 percent.

Only 26 percent approved of the administration’s efforts in curbing inflation, putting the government’s net approval rating at minus 15, lowest among 11 issues included in the survey.

The administration recorded a majority approval rating on only one issue—fighting criminality (54 percent), while 14 percent disapproved, for a net approval rating of plus 40.

Territorial rows

The administration scored a net approval rating of plus 33 on the issue of increasing peace in the country (50 percent approve, 17 percent disapprove).

It scored plus 31 in defending the integrity of Philippine territory against foreigners (47 percent approve, 16 percent disapprove).

On stopping the destruction and abuse of the environment, the administration scored a net approval rating of plus 29 (46 percent approve, 17 percent disapprove).

It scored plus 26 on the issue of enforcing the law on all (44 percent approve, 18 percent disapprove).

The administration recorded a plus-16 net rating (39 percent approve, 23 percent disapprove) on the issue of controlling the population.

With the decrease in approval ratings, the administration’s net rating on combating graft and corruption is at plus 15 (42 percent approve, 27 percent disapprove).

It scored plus 11 (37 percent approve, 26 percent disapprove) on creating more jobs.

With 36 percent approving and 30 percent disapproving, the government scored a net approval rating of plus 6 on improving workers’ pay.

Top concern: inflation

Overall, the most urgent national concern is inflation (52 percent)—a sentiment shared by 46 percent in the Visayas, 50 percent in Luzon outside Metro Manila, 56 percent in Metro Manila and 58 percent in Mindanao, as well as 51 percent in Class D, 53 percent in Class E and 55 percent in Classes A, B and C.

As the country’s population neared the 100-million mark, the survey showed Filipinos were least concerned about population growth, an issue cited as urgent by only 9 percent of respondents nationwide.

Forty-nine percent cited improving workers’ pay as an urgent concern—a sentiment shared by proportions ranging from 41 percent in Mindanao to 54 percent in the Visayas, and from 43 percent among Classes A, B and C to 51 percent among Class E.

Corruption urgent concern

Fighting graft and corruption was deemed an urgent concern by 47 percent of Filipinos.

This was considered an urgent concern across areas and classes, from 42 percent in Metro Manila and in the Visayas to 53 percent in Mindanao, and from 39 percent in Class E to 51 percent in Classes A, B and C.

Other issues cited as urgent were: creating more jobs (38 percent), reducing poverty (34 percent), fighting criminality (20 percent), enforcing the law on all (17 percent), stopping environment abuse (16 percent) and increasing peace in the country (16 percent).

While the level of concern for job creation increased by 7 points from 31 percent in March to 38 percent in June, Pulse Asia said there were no other notable changes during this period.

“However, year-on-year, public concern [on] the need to fight corruption in government becomes more notable (up 16 percentage points, from 31 percent in June 2013 to 47 percent in June 2014) while concern for the need to control inflation becomes less marked (down 9 percentage points, from 61 percent in June last year to 52 percent in June this year),” Pulse Asia said.

The survey used face-to-face interviews with 1,200 adults, and had a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points.

Issues at the time of the survey included the filing of plunder charges against Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Bong Revilla and Jinggoy Estrada; the Supreme Court decision declaring parts of the DAP unconstitutional; tension between China and the Philippines over disputed territories; Mr. Aquino’s call for the police to resolve crime incidents; his decision to reject the nomination of Nora Aunor as a national artist, and the increase in oil prices and in the prices of rice, garlic and sugar. Inquirer Research

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