Months before the Supreme Court decision ordering the release of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo from hospital detention, results of a poll recently released by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed that nearly three of five Filipinos said the administration of former President Benigno Aquino III had treated her “fairly.”
The poll done on March 30-April 2 found that 57 percent of 1,500 adult respondents nationwide said the Aquino administration treated Arroyo fairly while 21 percent either said her successor had been “too harsh” or “too lenient” to her.
On Tuesday, the high court voted 11-4 to dismiss plunder charges against Arroyo. It was filed by the Ombudsman in 2012 in the Sandiganbayan in connection with alleged misuse of Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office intelligence funds.
Meanwhile, 58 percent said Arroyo should have been detained in a regular jail while 42 percent said she should have been held under house arrest.
The survey, results of which were released yesterday, had a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points.
SWS also found that Arroyo’s net trust ratings (much trust minus little trust) had been at “bad” to “very bad” levels since September 2010, reaching as low as -68 in June 2014.
Her latest net trust score is a “very bad” -52 (14 percent much trust, 66 percent little trust), which she also obtained in March and June 2015.
By area, class, sex, locale, age group and educational attainment, majority said Aquino’s government had treated the incumbent Pampanga representative fairly and that she should have stayed in a regular prison.
Sentiments that Arroyo had been treated fairly by her successor ranged from 53 percent in the Visayas to 60 percent in the rest of Luzon; from 52 percent among Class ABC to 58 percent among Class D; from 56 percent among males to 58 percent among females; from 57 percent among rural residents to 58 percent among urban residents; from 54 percent among those aged 25-34 to 62 percent among those aged 18-24; and from 55 percent among elementary graduates and high school undergraduates to 59 percent among high school graduates and college undergraduates.