Aquino renews service vow to ‘bosses’ as his ratings fall

President Benigno Aquino III. MALACANANG PHOTO BUREAU

MANILA, Philippines–Malacañang has renewed its pledge to serve its “bosses,” the people, in the remaining 14 months of President Aquino’s term in the wake of the administration’s lowest net satisfaction rating since 2010.

“(W)e need to continually ascertain the sentiments of our bosses,” the Palace said, reacting to the findings of a recent Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

The survey found the administration’s net satisfaction rating dropping to a record-low “moderate” +19 percent, a 15-point drop from the “good” +34 rating in December 2014.

The Aquino administration enjoyed a “very good” +64 net satisfaction rating in September 2010, when it was rated for the first time, and a “good” +45 score in March last year.

Satisfaction with the administration was “very good” in 10 out of 19 surveys since 2010. It scored good 7 times and moderate twice.

In a statement, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said the administration was “fully determined to carry on and complete the priority programs in all five pillars of the Philippine Development Plan.”

He said the need to “ensure that reforms will be sustained by strengthened public institutions and tread the righteous path and ensure that good governance becomes the norm at all levels of government.”

Changing mind-sets

Coloma, also head of the Presidential Communications Operations Office, maintained that “gains from the transformation of mind-sets and institutions will be sustained and made permanent.”

In its nationwide poll of 1,200 adults, taken from March 20 to 23, the SWS found that 48 percent were satisfied with the administration’s performance while 29 percent were dissatisfied.

This resulted in a net score (satisfied minus dissatisfied) of +19, down 15 points from +34 (58 percent minus 24 percent) in December last year.

The percentage of those who were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied increased from 17 percent at the end of 2014 to 23 percent in March.

The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points for national numbers and plus or minus 6 percentage points for Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.

For the SWS, net satisfaction scores of +70 and above are considered “excellent”; +50 to +69 “very good”; +30 to +49 “good”; +10 to +29 “moderate”; +9 to -9 “neutral”; -10 to -29, “poor”; -30 to -49 “bad”; -50 to -69 “very bad”; and -70 and below “execrable.”

Mirrored falling ratings

The decline in the rating of the current administration mirrored the fall in Aquino’s net satisfaction rating, which was released earlier this month.

From a “good” +39 (63 percent satisfied minus 24 percent dissatisfied), the President’s score was down to “moderate” +11 (47 percent satisfied minus 36 percent dissatisfied).

Across socioeconomic classes, satisfaction with the administration fell from “good” to “moderate.” In Class ABC, it was a 22-point drop from +41 to +19. In Class D, it fell by 14 points from +32 to +18. In Class E, it was a 16-point drop from +40 to +24.

The survey also showed that in the Visayas, the net satisfaction rating stayed “good,” up 3 points from +31 in the previous quarter to +34.

In Metro Manila, the rating stayed unchanged from +21 in December 2014.

On the other hand, net satisfaction in the rest of Luzon went down from “good” to “neutral,” falling to as much as 27 points from +35 to +8.

In Mindanao, it fell from “good” to “moderate,” a drop of 17 points from +43 to +26.

Maguindanao massacre

Among 20 issues, the administration got a “very bad” rating in resolving the Maguindanao massacre, scoring -50.

It scored “poor” in ensuring that no family will ever be hungry (-11) and making sure oil firms do not take advantage of oil prices (-13).

In five issues, it was rated “good”: Helping victims of disasters, +42; helping the poor, +34; promoting the welfare of overseas Filipino workers, +34; protecting the environment, +32; and foreign relations, +30.

The administration received a “moderate” rating in the following issues: Preparing for climate change, +29; defending the country’s territorial rights, +22; telling the truth to the people, +15; restoring peace in Mindanao, +12, and providing jobs, +11.

It got a “neutral” rating in seven issues: Fighting crime, +9; rehabilitation of Mindanao areas hit by conflict, +7; fighting terrorism, +6; eradicating graft and corruption, +2; reconciliation with communist rebels, -3; reconciliation with Muslim rebels, -3 and fighting inflation, -8.–With a report from Ana Roa, Inquirer Research