Most Pinoys satisfied with how Philippine democracy works — survey

MANILA, Philippines – Satisfaction with the way democracy works in the country hit a new record-high at 86 percent in the third quarter, according to the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey. 

The poll, conducted from Sept. 24 to 27, also found 62 percent of respondents who prefer democracy than any other form of government.

The SWS September survey showed 86 percent of Filipino adults saying they are satisfied with the way democracy works, above the 79 percent recorded last June and 80 percent registered in June 2013.

Satisfaction with the way democracy works has been above 60 percent since June 2010, the SWS noted.

It fell to 44 percent in June 2004, following the presidential election of that year, where Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was declared winner amid allegations of cheating. 

The latest SWS survey also found a majority or 62 percent saying “democracy is always preferable to any other kind of government,” compared to 19 percent saying “under some circumstances, an authoritarian government can be preferable to a democratic one.” 

The remaining 18 percent of respondents claimed “it does not matter whether we have a democratic or a non-democratic regime.” 

SWS said preference for democracy has been above 50 percent since February 2009, reaching a record-high of 65 percent in June 2013. 

The proportion of those saying “under some circumstances, an authoritarian government can be preferable to a democratic one,” meanwhile, went up by two points to 19 percent in September. 

The survey used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults, 18 years old and above, nationwide. 

The question on “satisfaction in the way democracy works” originated in the Eurobarometer surveys and is also in standard use in Latin American and Asian barometer projects, the SWS said.