SWS: Only 1 in 4 Filipinos aware of federal government

MANILA, Philippines — Only one of four Filipinos knows about the proposed federal system of government, which President Rodrigo Duterte had promised to establish, according to the Social Weather Stations’ poll released Thursday.

SWS also found out that 75 percent of the 1,200 respondents only learned about the federal system during the conduct of the survey, which was fielded from March 23 to 27.  

Thirty-seven percent favored the federal system of government while 29 percent expressed opposition to it. Thirty-four percent were undecided about the matter.

This yielded a net agreement score of +7, classified by SWS as neutral.

The same survey also showed that 58 percent do not know the name of the “state” being promoted in their locality, while there were 31 percent who were able to provide names.

Awareness about the federal system of government was highest in Mindanao at 37 percent, followed by Metro Manila at 28 percent, Visayas at 22 percent and Balance Luzon at 20 percent.

Likewise, support for the federal set-up was highest in Mindanao with very strong +43, followed by Metro Manila with neutral +7, Visayas with neutral +2 and Balance Luzon with neutral -8.

The polling firm also noted that the “support for the federal system of government was directly related to people’s trust in Rodrigo Duterte, their satisfaction with his performance as president and their satisfaction with the overall Duterte administration.”

Duterte, the first president from Mindanao, championed the shift to federalism to topple the “Imperial Manila” in a bid to end conflicts and curb poverty in the countryside.

A separate Pulse Asia survey fielded from March 23 to 28, however, showed that 66 percent of Filipinos said they are not in favor of replacing the present unitary system of government with a federal one. Only 27 percent expressed support for the change to a federal system, while six percent were ambivalent on the matter.

READ: Most Filipinos oppose Charter change, federalism — Pulse Asia