Poll: GMA still enjoys majority support but rating down

President Arroyo continues to earn the trust and support of the majority of Filipinos as the leader most capable of improving their lives, receiving a yearend approval rating of 57 percent, independent research and polling firm Pulse Asia said yesterday.

In a nationwide survey of Filipino public perceptions conducted Dec. 2-19, respondents also said they felt worse off in year 2001 than the previous year, but were optimistic about improvement in the quality of life in 2002.

Most respondents said they believe peace and order takes priority over national economic recovery, which had been the top concern for almost two years running.

In a performance survey for the country’s top national officials, 57 percent of respondents approved of the President’s record in government while 20 percent disapproved, for a net approval rating (NAR) of 37.

It was a slight drop from her October NAR of 46 (63 percent approval, 17 percent disapproval).

"Despite some depreciation, President Arroyo continues to earn majority approval across all geographic areas including Mindanao and most socio-economic classes, including the poorest class E," the polling firm said in its 2001 "Ulat ng Bayan."

Pulse Asia said the most notable decline in her majority public endorsement was gleaned in Metro Manila among the A-B-C classes. Mrs. Arroyo’s NAR in Metro Manila dropped from 47 to 29.

People’s trust in the President continues to hold with a slim majority (52 percent) expressing their confidence in her.

Her net trust rating of 33 was second among 12 prominent personalities, including three former presidents. Supreme Court Justice Hilario Davide led all personalities with a net trust rating of 34.

Deposed leader Joseph Estrada received a rating of -9 while another former president, Fidel Ramos, received 0. Jailed Muslim leader Nur Misuari had the lowest rating at -71.

Poor quality of life

Already difficult times continued to worsen for most Filipinos as those who experienced deterioration in year 2001 outnumbered those reporting an improvement by a ratio of 4 to 1, according to the Pulsa Asia survey of 1,200 adult respondents.

Net loser status, or the proportion wherein "losers" exceed the proportion of "gainers," was most severely reflected in strife-torn Mindanao (-54).

"The material quality of life worsened for all socio-economic classes – from the better-off class ABC to the poorest class E. Urban and rural people (-38 and 36 respectively) almost equally suffered worsening conditions in life," Pulse Asia said.

Despite the poor quality of life, there has been a change in overall optimism of Filipinos for the new year, improving from -2 in October to +6 last December.

The survey revealed that a change in life for the better was most noticeable in Luzon (45 percent), the ABC class (40 percent) and the very young 18 to 24 years old (49 percent).

Pulse Asia said survey respondents revealed a tendency to give a more severe reading of the nation’s condition relative to one’s personal situation when asked to assess the quality of life in the past 12 months.

"The idea that most of their fellow Filipinos are in far more serious straits than they are probably explains why the respondents are able to be more optimistic," the Ulat ng Bayan stated.

Longing for peace

Amidst persistent rumors of coups and other destabilization plots as well as the lingering effects of the Sept. 11 terror attacks on the US, people now say that peace in the country (40 percent) is the most urgent national concern.

Falling to second in priority for the first time in almost two years was national economic recovery (37 percent).

The enduring hard times and persistent mass poverty are also apparent in the other ranking concerns of the public. Poverty of many Filipinos (36 percent), high prices of basic goods (35 percent) and low pay of workers (33 percent) were among the top five concerns.

Graft and corruption (22 percent) and criminality (21 percent) also scored fairly high as problems needing urgent attention.

Political backing

Despite some erosion in overall support for the nation’s highest public officials, Filipinos continued to provide substantial political backing for their leaders.

Vice President and Foreign Affairs Secretary Teofisto Guingona gained a NAR of 28, Senate President Franklin Drilon ,45; Speaker Jose de Venecia, 24; and Davide, 42.

In Congress, Sen. Noli de Castro remained the highest rated senator with 73.

The rest of senators and their corresponding NAR are as follows: Loren Legarda, 65; Juan Flavier 62; Edgardo Angara, 53; Aquilino Pimentel Jr., 53; Ramon Magsaysay Jr., 53; Renato Cayetano, 50; Sergio Osmeña III, 49; Francisco Pangilinan, 48; Rodolfo Biazon, 47; Manuel Villar Jr. 45; Joker Arroyo, 44; Ralph Recto, 40; Robert Barbers, 39; Vicente Sotto III, 34; Blas Ople, 34; John Osmeña, 32; Luisa Ejercito, 26; Gregorio Honasan, 24; Ramon Revilla, 21, Robert Jaworski, 11; Panfilo Lacson, 9; and Teresa Aquino-Oreta, -2.

Performance-wise, several department secretaries scored near to big majority approval ratings with Education Secretary Raul Roco receiving the highest at 65. Others include Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit, 41; Trade Secretary Manuel Roxas II, 36; Interior and Local Government Secretary Jose Lina, 29; and Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo, 25; and Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon 25.

Among non-Cabinet officials, the best rated are Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council chairman Michael Defensor, 27; Social Security System president Corazon de la Paz, 19; Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr., 17; Armed Forces chief Gen. Diomedio Villanueva, 17; and Philippine National Police chief Director General Leandro Mendoza, 16.