SWS: Top officials get lowest satisfaction ratings

TOP GOVERNMENT officials’ public satisfaction ratings dropped to their lowest, according to the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

The nationwide poll conducted from Dec. 5 to 8 found 52 percent of 1,200 respondents satisfied with Vice President Jejomar Binay, while 28 percent were dissatisfied and 20 percent undecided, resulting in a record-low net satisfaction rating (satisfied minus dissatisfied) of a “moderate” +24.

The latest figure was 9 points lower than the +33 (58 percent satisfied and 25 percent dissatisfied) Binay obtained in the previous quarter, which SWS rated as “good.”

Net public satisfaction with Senate President Franklin Drilon was sharply “downgraded” to “neutral” +7 (38 percent satisfied and 31 percent dissatisfied) from his record-high “good” +42 (61 percent satisfied and 18 percent dissatisfied) in September.

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. also saw his satisfaction rating fall to -1 (31 percent satisfied and 32 percent dissatisfied) from +5 (34 percent satisfied and 29 percent dissatisfied), which SWS rated as both “neutral.”

Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno still posted a “neutral” net satisfaction rating of -1 (29 percent satisfied and 31 percent dissatisfied, correctly rounded) from +4 (33 percent satisfied and 29 percent dissatisfied).

Results of the survey released last week found that President Aquino’s net satisfaction rating also went down by 9 points to +32 (58 percent satisfied and 26 percent dissatisfied) from +41 in September (64 percent satisfied and 22 percent dissatisfied, correctly rounded).

The survey also showed that the Senate retained its “good” net satisfaction score but was lower by 14 points, from +44 (63 percent satisfied and 18 percent dissatisfied, correctly rounded) in September to +30 (52 percent satisfied and 22 percent dissatisfied).

Net satisfaction with the House of Representatives suffered a double-digit decline but remained “moderate,” from +26 (48 percent satisfied and 23 percent dissatisfied, correctly rounded) to +16 (42 percent satisfied and 26 percent dissatisfied).

Both the Supreme Court and the Cabinet posted a 5-point drop in their net satisfaction scores, from +27 (50 percent satisfied and 23 percent dissatisfied) to +22 (47 percent satisfied and 25 percent dissatisfied), and from +16 (40 percent satisfied and 23 percent dissatisfied) to +11 (38 percent satisfied and 27 percent dissatisfied), respectively.

The noncommissioned survey, the results of which were first published in BusinessWorld, had a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points. Inquirer Research