Pay hike, inflation top concerns of Filipinos – Pulse Asia

Increasing the pay of workers and controlling inflation are the two top most urgent national concerns of Filipinos, according to a Pulse Asia survey. (Photo by Brian Evans/Flickr, CC BY-ND 2.0)

Increasing the pay of workers and controlling inflation are the two topmost urgent national concerns of Filipinos, according to a Pulse Asia survey.

The March 2018 Ulat ng Bayan survey released on Tuesday, April 24, showed that 50 percent of Filipinos think workers’ pay hike was the most urgent concern, while 45 percent believe it was inflation.

Aside from these, Filipinos also think that the Duterte administration should focus on poverty reduction (35 percent) and job creation (32 percent).

These were followed by fighting criminality (27 percent), fighting graft and corruption in government (22 percent), and promoting peace (22 percent).

The least concerns of most Filipinos, the Pulse Asia said, were national territorial defense (six percent), terrorism, (four percent), and Charter change (three percent).

This nationwide survey, conducted from March 23 to 28 this year, was based on a sample of 1,200 representative adults 18 years old and above and has an error margin of plus-minus three percent at the 95 percent confidence level.

Subnational estimates for each of the geographic areas covered in the said survey — including Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao — have an error margin of plus-minus six percent also at 95 percent confidence level.

Among the issues that preoccupied the Filipinos during the conduct of the survey were the filing of a quo warranto petition seeking to remove Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno from her post; the order of former Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II to cancel the resolution by Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecutors to dismiss the drug charges against Peter Lim, Rolando Espinosa, Jr., and Peter Co; and the announcement of the Philippines’ withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Ratings of administration

Meanwhile, the Pulse Asia said, “The Duterte administration enjoys majority approval ratings on 11 of the 12 selected national issues.”

It showed that Filipinos were most appreciative of the current administration’s efforts to respond to the need of areas affected by calamities (86 percent), protecting the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (84 percent), and fighting criminality (82 percent).

It added that the Duterte administration also got majority approval scores for its work in the areas of promoting peace (71 percent), enforcing the rule of law (71 percent), protecting the environment (71 percent), fighting corruption in government (70 percent), increasing the pay or workers (68 percent), creating more jobs (67 percent), defending national territorial integrity (67 percent), and reducing poverty (53%).

The only non-majority approval rating of the incumbent administration, according to the survey, was on the issue of inflation where it received a 39 percent approval rating, a 33 percent disapproval score, and a 28 percent indecision figure.