Drilon regains approval after pork probe debacle

MANILA, Philippines – Senate President Franklin Drilon turned out to be the biggest winner at a time that presidential hopefuls were posturing for the 2016 elections, a newly released survey by Pulse Asia shows. 

Drilon’s approval rating made a “very significant” jump of 15 percentage points to 58% in March from 43% in December.

Drilon did not figure prominently in the news during the survey period, March 19-26, even as the Senate held marathon hearings on the multi-billion-peso pork barrel scam. The Senate also passed the freedom of information bill on third and final reading.

 

Pulse Asia chief research fellow Ana Tabunda said Drilon is only retrieving points he lost in the last survey, where he dropped 7 percentage points to 43% in December, from 50% in September, purportedly because of his hesitation to call alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Napoles to a Senate investigation. (READ: Drilon ratings drop after PDAF scam)

“He went down in the last survey. We were thinking it had to do with the Priority Development Assistance Fund. He was delaying on putting Napoles on the stand. By the time he did, typhoon Yolanda hit,” Tabunda said.

“It’s (Drilon’s ratings) back up,” Tabunda said. 

Pulse Asia noted that the survey period coincided with news on Vice President Jejomar Binay, Senator Alan Cayetano, and Interior Secretary Mar Roxas posturing for the 2016 presidential elections.

Binay’s rating also jumped 7 percentage points. There was no survey released to measure the performances of Cayetano and Roxas.

Exception: Metro Manila

With the exception of Metro Manila, where his 5-percentage-point improvement was within the survey’s error margin, Drilon enjoyed double-digit improvement across geographical areas and socio-economic classes. 

He jumped 14 percentage points in Luzon (except Metro Manila), 16 in the Visayas, and 20 in Mindanao. Across socio-economic class, he also jumped 11 percentage points among the ABC, 16 among the D, and 12 among the E.

The Senate President’s trust ratings also jumped 15 percentage points to 55% in March, from 40% in December. Again, except in Metro Manila, his trust ratings registered double-digit improvements across areas and classes. 

The survey has a 3% error margin for the nationwide results and 6% for the regional aggregates. It has 1,200 respondents.

Drilon acknowledged that the pork barrel scam controversy was his biggest challenge as Senate President. 

“My previous ratings were affected by political attacks against me, and as well as the understandable wave of public disaffection to their leaders during the outbreak of the pork barrel scam. But as we can see here, the public knows who are working with them and for their cause,” Drilon said in a statement.

Senate is down

While Drilon’s ratings dramatically improved, the Senate suffered a drop of 4 percentage points in its approval rating – 41% in March, from 45% in December. It is significant considering the 3% error margin. 

The Senate’s disapproval rating dropped 10 percentage points, however, to 14% in March, from 24% in December. The bulk moved to the undecided bloc, which increased to 42% in March, from 29% in December. 

Holmes noted that, in the case of Drilon, a bulk of the undecided bloc shifted to become more approving of Drilon’s performance.

“The improvements in Senator Drilon’s approval and trust [ratings] could be accounted for by shifts in indecision. Disapproval for the Senate also declined from December to March 2014.  This may possibly result from issues that the Senate investigated and that had significant media coverage,” Holmes told Rappler.

Aquino, Binay enjoy majority approval

The same survey shows that President Benigno Aquino III and Vice President Jejomar Binay continue to enjoy majority approval with 70% and 87% approval ratings, respectively. 

The President dropped 3 percentage points, which is within the error margin. He recorded significant changes in Metro Manila (-12), Visayas (-10) and among the ABC (-9) and E (-9). (READ: Aquino’s long political honeymoon is over)

Binay improved 7 percentage points. He recorded the biggeset jump in Balance Luzon (+12) and among the ABC (+11) and D (+10). Vice presidents historically enjoy higher approval ratings.

“This is to be considered as a reminder for the national leadership to intensify its efforts to deliver the reforms that were promised because we are aware that our people have high expectations,” said Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr when asked if the steady ratings of the President is a vindication against Malacañang’s critics.

Binay is worried smear campaigns against him will intensify. “It is my hope that the same trust and support extended by the President and the people will not be used as an excuse to intensify the smear campaign against me and my family,” he said in a statement. 

House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr and Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno both recorded lower performance ratings of 36% and 40%, respectively. The two officials have lower awareness ratings, too.

The House of Representatives as an institution also suffered a 4-point drop in its approval rating, from 42% in December to 38% in March. The survey was conducted during the time charter change was approved by a House committee.

The Supreme Court maintained its approval rating – 53% in March, from 52% in December. – Rappler.com