Palace not surprised by survey showing life worsened

FILE: An apparel store in Baclaran in Parañaque City reopens on Monday (June 1, 2020). (PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan)

MANILA – Malacañang on Thursday said it was not surprised by the results of a survey which showed that more Filipinos have felt their quality of life worsened in the past 12 months amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque made this remark after the second quarter survey results of the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed that 83 percent of Filipinos said their quality of life got worse, termed by the pollster as “losers.”

Ten percent said life was “unchanged” and only 6 percent claimed it got better (gainers) compared to last year.

“It should be a 100 percent because there is Covid and the economy was closed. Hindi po kami naso-sorpresa diyan (That doesn’t surprise us),” he said in a virtual presser.

Roque said the community quarantines across the country to contain the spread of Covid-19 has affected the quality of life of everyone.

“It should in fact be 100 percent dahil minimum two months tayo complete lockdown. Lahat po talaga tayo nahihirapan at kinikilala po ‘yan ng ating Presidente (because we have been under a complete lockdown for a minimum of two months. All of us are having a hard time and the President recognizes that),” he said.

The SWS said the 83 percent proportion of losers in May 2020 is a “new peak” in the 37-year series of 135 SWS surveys, breaking the previous record 62 percent losers in June 2008.

The 6 percent proportion of gainers, on the other hand, is a new “all-time low”, breaking the previous record of 9 percent gainers in July 1985.

The SWS added that the net gainers score of -78 is the “worst in survey history”, breaking the previous record low –50 in June 2008. It plummeted from a very high +18 in December 2019.

The low score of -78 of nationwide net gainers score was attributed by SWS to the very low (–30 and below) scores in all areas. The score is lowest in the Visayas at –82, followed by Mindanao at –80, Metro Manila at –77, and Balance Luzon at –75

Scores in all areas dropped to all-time low figures when compared to previous SWS surveys of adults.

The SWS said that the net gainers score is “equally bad” in enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and general community quarantine (GCQ) areas at –77 and –78, respectively

Among non-elementary graduates, the net gainers score is lowest at –89, followed by elementary graduates at –82, junior high school graduates at –78, and college graduates at –65.

The net gainers score among working-age Filipinos whose families experienced involuntary hunger, or hunger due to lack of food to eat, is –88. This is lower than the –75 among those whose families did not experience involuntary hunger.

The score is extremely low (–40 and below) both among families that experienced moderate hunger (“only once” and “a few times”) at –89 and among families that experienced severe hunger (“often” and “always”) at –84.

For those who have a job and are receiving full pay, the net gainers score is –73. Compared to this group, the score is worse among those who have a job but are not receiving pay (–81), those who never had a job (–80), and those who do not have a job at present but used to have one (–78).

The survey was conducted from May 4 to 10 among 4,010 respondents aged 15 years old and above using mobile phone and computer-assisted telephone nationwide.