SWS: Most Filipinos find Duterte’s actions in 3 events ‘vulgar’

FILE: President Rodrigo Roa Duterte delivers his speech during the 85th National Convention of the Philippine Public Health Association at the Grand Regal Hotel in Davao City on July 18, 2018. SIMEON CELI JR./PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

The latest survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) revealed that majority of Filipino adults found President Rodrigo Duterte’s behavior in three incidents “vulgar” — when he cursed officials of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council, criticized Catholic priests, and kissed a married Filipina in South Korea.

In the Second Quarter 2018 Social Weather Survey, 64 percent of survey respondents said it was “bastos” or “vulgar” for the President to curse the chief and members of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council and threaten to throw them to crocodiles. Thirty-one percent said it was not vulgar, while the remaining five percent were not sure.

When Duterte said Catholic priests are “no better” than him as he claimed that some of them have two wives, 55 percent of Filipinos agreed that his pronouncement was vulgar, while 39 percent believed it was not and six percent were uncertain.

The SWS poll also showed that 52 percent of respondents described his act of kissing a married overseas Filipino worker (OFW) on the lips during his trip in Seoul, South Korea as vulgar. Forty percent of the respondents believed it was not vulgar, while seven percent said they do not know whether it was vulgar or not.

Net satisfaction

Duterte’s net satisfaction rating was a “moderate” +28 among those who think that his cursing of the UN Human Rights officials was vulgar.

Meanwhile, among those who said his pronouncement against priests and his kiss to a married Filipina worker were vulgar, the President was rated a “moderate” +27 and +23, respectively.

“The SWS terminology for net satisfaction ratings: +70 and above, ‘excellent’; +50 to +69, ‘very good’; +30 to +49, ‘good’; +10 to +29, ‘moderate’, +9 to –9, ‘neutral’; –10 to –29, ‘poor’; –30 to –49, ‘bad’; –50 to –69, ‘very bad’; –70 and below, ‘execrable,'” the pollster said.

“SWS considers the movement from one classification to another as either an ‘upgrade’ or ‘downgrade,'” it added.

All areas except Mindanao

Half to majority in all areas, except Mindanao, viewed those three specific acts of Duterte as vulgar, according to the SWS.

Those who found Duterte’s swearing against officials of the UN Human Rights Council as vulgar were highest in Metro Manila and Balance Luzon with both at 71 percent. It was followed by the Visayas at 62 percent and Mindanao at 47 percent.

The Visayas recorded the highest percentage of those who said Duterte’s claim that priests are no better was vulgar at 62 percent, followed by Metro Manila and Balance Luzon at 57 percent, and Mindanao at 44 percent.

The Visayas also obtained the highest score of those who believed that Duterte’s kiss to a married Filipina worker was vulgar at 64 percent. Balance Luzon landed on the second spot with 55 percent, followed by Manila at 51 percent, and lastly, Mindanao at 37 percent.

The latest survey released on Sunday, July 22, was conducted from June 27 to 30, 2018, using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 Filipino adults with age ranging from 18 years old and above nationwide. It has sampling error margins of plus or minus three percent for national percentages, and plus or minus six percent each for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

“The Social Weather Survey items on people’s opinion on whether the specific actions of Pres. Rodrigo Duterte is vulgar or not vulgar were non-commissioned,” the SWS said.

“They were included on SWS’s own initiative and released as a public service,” it continued.