Drop in GMA’s ratings attributed to Estrada supporters

Two pro-Estrada congressmen pounced yesterday on the steep drop of Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s popularity in a recent survey, and attributed it to Mr. Estrada supporters who dumped her for leading the political opposition.

"The Vice President has openly defied the unifying efforts of Estrada. This move has turned off a lot of people," Rep. Anthony Dequiña said in a statement.

In the same statement, House Assistant Majority Leader Rodolfo Albano III said Arroyo’s decision to lead calls for President Estrada’s resignation over the jueteng scandal backfired and painted her as "opportunistic and self-serving."

"Apparently, the Vice President has wised up and she is now projecting herself as more moderate. Now, she appears to be willing to abide by the constitutional process and wait for the results of the impeachment trial," Albano said.

They urged Arroyo and the political opposition to stop the clamor for Mr. Estrada’s ouster "not just to boost their popularity ratings, but for the good of all Filipinos."

In a survey of 454 Metro Manila residents taken on Nov. 7 by Pulse Asia Inc. and released last Thursday, Arroyo’s "trust rating" or the level of trust people have in her fell sharply to 27 percent from 49 percent in October.

In the same survey, the "trust" ratings of Mr. Estrada, his arch-critic Catholic Church Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, former presidents Corazon Aquino and Fidel Ramos suffered significant drops.

In stark contrast, only the rating of Mr. Estrada’s accuser, Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis Singson, remained unchanged at 16 percent. Mr. Estrada’s rating fell from 42 percent to 35 percent. Albano and Dequiña made no comment about the President’s popularity drop.

Political analyst Felipe Miranda, Pulse Asia president, explained that the survey results only meant that the people were fast losing trust in the nation’s leaders. Miranda said the decline began in October after Singson dropped his bombshell on the President.