Most Filipinos satisfied with Duterte admin’s anti-illegal drugs campaign — SWS

FILE: The Bureau of Customs – Port of NAIA, on Tuesday, February 12, turned over to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) a shipment declared as muffler parts after it was found to contain 13.1 kilograms of shabu. (Photo: Bureau of Customs PH/Facebook)

Most Filipinos said they are satisfied with the anti-illegal drugs campaign of President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration, the latest survey of Social Weather Stations (SWS) released on Sunday, September 22, showed.

The Second Quarter 2019 Social Weather Survey, conducted from June 22 to 26 using face-to-face interviews, revealed that 82 percent of its 1,200 respondents nationwide are satisfied with the anti-narcotics campaign, resulting to a net satisfaction rating of “excellent” +70.

According to the poll, the top five reasons behind their satisfaction are as follows: drug suspects have lessened (40 percent), drug suspects have been arrested (18 percent), crimes were lessened (13 percent), drug trade was diminished (eight percent), and peace and order was improved (five percent).

Those in Mindanao are the most satisfied with the anti-drug campaign, obtaining a net satisfaction of “excellent” +84. It was followed by “very good” levels in Balance Luzon at +69, Metro Manila at +64, and Visayas at +60.

But 12 percent of the respondents are dissatisfied, while six percent of them are undecided about the campaign against illegal drugs.

The SWS said most of them are dissatisfied because drug trade/drug suspects are still prevalent (42 percent). Others said they are dissatisfied because the campaign led to too many killings (31 percent), abuse of power and bias in the operations (12 percent), too many wrongful suspects/arrests/mistaken identity (nine percent), and drug suspects are being killed (two percent).

The pollster also found out that the net satisfaction with Duterte’s performance was “excellent” +76 among those satisfied with his anti-illegal drugs campaign.

This is 47 points higher than the “moderate” +29 among those dissatisfied, it noted.

Among those who are undecided, the President, meanwhile, received a net satisfaction of “good” +40.

Last June, United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said her office is monitoring the situation of human rights in the country “very closely” as the “extraordinary high number of deaths” and “persistent reports of extrajudicial killings” related to the government’s war on drugs continue.

[READ: OHCHR keeping eye on human rights situation in PH ‘very closely’ — Bachelet]