Public satisfaction with Duterte administration declines – SWS

MANILA, Philippines – From a record-high “excellent” rating in December 2017, the net satisfaction of Filipinos with the performance of the Duterte administration has declined to “very good,” according to a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey released on Thursday, May 10.

Based on the results of the survey conducted from March 23 to 27, the Duterte administration scored a “very good” net satisfaction rating of +58,  a 12-point decline from its record-high “excellent” rating of +70 in December 2017.

The March survey noted that 69% of adult Filipinos are satisfied with the general performance of the current administration, while 18% are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, and 11% are dissatisfied, for a net rating of +58.

“The 12-point decline in the Duterte administration’s general net satisfaction rating between December 2017 and March 2018 was due to declines in the net satisfaction scores in Balance Luzon, Mindanao, and Metro Manila, combined with a steady score in the Visayas,” SWS said in a statement Thursday.

While the administration’s net satisfaction rating in Visayas has been at a “very good” +57 from September 2017 to March 2018, it went down in Balance Luzon, Mindanao, and Metro Manila:

• Balance Luzon: +50 (very good), down by 17 points from +67 (very good) 
• Metro Manila: +58 (very good), down by 13 points from +71 (excellent)
• Mindanao: +72 (excellent), down by 15 points from +87 (excellent)

Ratings on issues

Out of 20 issues, the Duterte administration received the highest net score in helping victims of disasters (“excellent” +75), and the lowest net rating in fighting inflation, where the government suffered its biggest plunge in public satisfaction. 

Net public satisfaction in govenrment efforts to fight inflation fell to a “neutral” +6 in March from a “moderate” +24 in December 2017.

Among issues included in the survey, the Duterte administration got the second to the lowest marks in its bid to ensure that that no family will ever be hungry, where it got a net satisfaction rating of a “moderate” +22, from a “good” +33 in December 2017.

The administration obtained a “very good” rating on 6 issues: helping the poor (+68), reconstructing Marawi City (+63), building and maintenance of public works (+62), promoting the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (+59), fighting terrorism (+58), and protecting human rights (+54).

Meanwhile, Filipinos rated government performance on the following 11 issues as “good”:

• Eradicating graft and corruption (+46)
• Ensuring an efficient public transportation system (+41)
• Telling the truth to the people (+41)
• Reconciling with Muslim rebels (+41)
• Fulfilling commitments in international treaties (+40)
• Fighting crimes (+40)
• Having good relations with the UN and other important international organizations (+37)
• Reconciling with communist rebels (+37)
• Foreign relations (+36)
• Defending the country’s territorial rights (+36)
• Defending Philippine sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea (+34)

Satisfaction declines among ‘masa’

According to the survey, Filipinos’ net satisfaction with the government stayed “very good” in the well-off class ABC (+56) and the poorest class E (+54), although both groups saw a decline in ratings from December 2017, when classes ABC and E rated the government +62 and +66, respectively.

“However, it fell by one grade from ‘excellent’ to ‘very good’ in class D or the masa, at +58 in March 2018, down by 13 points from the record-high +71 in December 2017,” SWS said.

The SWS terminology for net satisfaction ratings are as follows: +70 and above, “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”; –70 and below, “execrable”.

The SWS’ March 2018 survey used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults (18 years old and above) nationwide: 300 each in Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The sampling error margins are ±3% for national percentages, and ±6% each for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. – Rappler.com