Speaker: High survey ratings mean Marcos Jr. on right track

MANILA, Philippines — The high public approval ratings of the administration in Pulse Asia’s performance survey are an indication that President Marcos is on the “right track of governance,” Speaker Martin Romualdez said yesterday.

Romualdez noted that Marcos “started on the right foot by convincing the best and the brightest and most capable among Filipinos to serve the people by joining his economic team and his Cabinet.”

He added that Filipinos were happy with the Marcos administration’s response to recent destructive typhoons, particularly Super Typhoon Karding as evidenced by its 78-percent approval rating in Pulse Asia’s survey in September.

According to the lawmaker, the government’s decision to continue reopening the economy while making sure that COVID-19 does not spread has resulted in more mobility, more economic activities, more jobs and increased income for the people.

The survey also showed that the Marcos administration received high marks ranging from 52 percent to 69 percent in the areas of promoting peace, protecting the welfare of overseas Filipinos, fighting criminality, enforcing the law, creating jobs, increasing workers’ pay, fight graft and corruption, protecting the environment and defending the country’s territorial integrity.

Regarding the high cost of basic necessities, Romualdez said the uptick in inflation could be traced largely to external factors, including the strength of the US dollar against the Philippine peso, increasing price of crude oil in the world market and supply chain disruptions because of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Singly, each of these events already puts pressure on inflation. Their confluence makes matters worse for all consumers throughout the world,” he added, giving assurance that the government is taking measures to mitigate the impact of these external factors on domestic prices.

“Let us be patient. With the cooperation of everyone, we will get there. President Bongbong has said he would not let even a single Filipino added to the ranks of the poor,” he said.

Not impressed

At the Senate, Sen. Risa Hontiveros was not impressed by President Marcos’ performance in his first 100 days in office, saying he apparently does not fully hold the reins of government.

Hontiveros said a president is meant to set the tone of bold leadership and management in the midst of crisis “just as we are facing now.”

“To this day, that tone has not been assumed. When he should have taken on the reins of governance, President Marcos seems to have taken only a slack hold. Is the President really at the helm? Or does he expect the ship to sail itself?” she asked.

“The President’s lack of management skills and a topsy-turvy bureaucracy are blockages in government functions, as shown by the non-handling of the sugar import fiasco in the middle of the recession,” Hontiveros said.

She said many government agencies continue to be saddled with leadership issues even as two Cabinet officials and Commission on Audit chairman Jose Calida have resigned and two key agencies – the Departments of Health and of Agriculture – have yet to have permanent heads.

The most recent Pulse Asia survey revealed that 42 percent of Filipinos disapprove of the President’s lack of urgency when it comes to controlling inflation, which Filipinos believe is the most pressing issue, the senator said. –  Paolo Romero