Inflation, corruption most important issues – survey
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. PHOTO BY RENE H. DILAN
FILIPINO households see rising prices and inflation as the most important issues for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to address alongside strengthening the economy and curbing corruption, the results of a new nationwide survey released on Sunday showed.
In the Pahayag Second Quarter 2024 survey conducted by Publicus Asia from June 15 to 19, respondents said they believed that tackling inflation was crucial as it directly affects Filipinos' ability to afford basic needs.
At the same time, the Pahayag survey showed that while the economic and financial outlooks show a slight improvement from the previous quarter, they remain low.
The same survey indicated that a growing number of Filipinos remain undecided on their stance toward both the current administration of President Marcos and the political opposition, with 43 percent and 52 percent saying they remain undecided, respectively.
The Pahayag survey also showed that positive views on the country's state and direction remain at an all-time low, with increasing indecision among Filipinos who are polarized when it comes to their overall positive sentiments about the country.
Those that held a negative presentiment about the state of the government heading to the next quarter were nearly equal to those that had a positive outlook.
Despite this, the survey showed that the majority of Filipinos were generally happy, with over half of the respondents feeling "somewhat happy."
About 40 percent of the respondents felt they were close to their best possible life during the second quarter of the year, while 20 percent believed they were already there.
Universal social pension for seniors and enhanced cybersecurity for government agencies received the highest support, the survey showed.
The arrest of controversial Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KoJ) founder Pastor Apollo Quiboloy for human trafficking was the second most supported issue for Filipinos.
Other issues of interest include moving the school calendar back to June-March, adjusting the working hours of LGUs in Metro Manila to ease traffic, and consolidating government aid programs into a National Stipend Program.
The least approved issues, as indicated in the survey, were Charter change, West Philippine Sea disputes and International Criminal Court actions against former president Rodrigo Duterte.
On the other hand, over half of Filipinos believed in being neutral when dealing with China and the United States. However, between the two, a third of Filipinos preferred the US over China.
Dissatisfaction with the weak performance of President Marcos is not enough reason for him to resign, according to six out of 10 survey respondents.
Meanwhile, awareness of the Bagong Pilipinas Hymn and Pledge is high with mixed sentiments on its recitation during weekly flag ceremonies.
Pahayag 2024 used a purposive sampling of 1,507 respondents randomly drawn from the market research panel of over 200,000 registered Filipino voters maintained by the Singapore office of PureSpectrum, a United States-based panel marketplace with a multinational presence.