Cebu officials react to Duterte ratings plunge
THE double-digit drop in the trust and satisfaction ratings of President Rodrigo Duterte can be attributed to a growing number of Filipinos who are now starting to mind how Duterte is handling the country particularly on the issue of extrajudicial killings (EJKs) in his war on drugs. Thus says Cebu Governor Hilario Davide III, Monday.
But for Mayor Tomas Osmeña, the steep drop in the President’s ratings, particularly in the Visayas, can be attributed to how Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino has done his job.
Dino, for his part, blamed Osmeña and “a certain organization going around the Visayas” for the plunge in the President’s ratings.
Public satisfaction and trust in President Duterte saw double-digit declines in the third week of September, a slump in his 15-month-old presidency that gave him the lowest ratings since he came to power, according to the latest survey by Social Weather Stations (SWS).
The biggest decline in public satisfaction was recorded among Class E, the poor who are mainly the victims of Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.
Net public satisfaction with Mr. Duterte plunged 18 points from +66 to +48, according to SWS. His net trust rating declined 15 points to +60 from +75 in June.
SWS conducted the noncommissioned survey just days after rallies were staged nationwide on September 21 to protest street killings related to Duterte’s war on drugs and threats of one-man rule.
“There are so many factors in the decline of trust ratings. But this time, concerned groups, NGOs (nongovernment organizations) are now voicing out their sentiments on issues, particularly EJKs. This shows that a lot are starting to care and mind how our President is handling the country,” said Davide.
Davide also said that the President, being the most powerful official in the country, should always listen to the public and “take note” of their sentiments.
Despite the huge declines, SWS still considered the President’s net satisfaction rating “good” and his trust rating “very good.”
SWS considers a rating of +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.”
In terms of area, a report from GMA-7 said Duterte’s net satisfaction rating saw its steepest drop in the Visayas region where it fell by 30 points, followed by a 22-point drop in Luzon, and the 19-point drop in Metro Manila.
His net satisfaction rating remained “excellent” in Mindanao which slightly grew to +76 from the +75 in the second quarter.
The blame game
Osmeña blamed Duterte’s 30-point drop in satisfaction ratings in the Visayas to Dino’s failure to address the needs of disaster victims especially in Leyte.
“The disaster victims have been complaining. The rating is because of how Dino did his job as Presidential Assistant,” said Osmeña.
The mayor also claimed that Dino’s move to stop Cebu City’s Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project affected the President’s ratings.
For Dino, Osmeña was partly to blame for the plunge in the President’s ratings.
“Cebu City is an urban area and the mayor, Tommy Osmeña, pretends to be allied with the President and at the same time keeps on criticizing the Duterte administration’s policies and programs,” Dino said in a press statement issued yesterday.
According to Dino, he was also investigating reports of an organization that claims to be working for the President in the grassroots level in the Visayas making “false promises to the people about the government’s pro-poor programs, but promises that remain to be undelivered until today.”
Police on survey results
Despite the recent survey results, the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) will continue its intensified campaign against illegal drugs.
CCPO director Senior Supt. Joel Doria noted that police morale is very high under the Duterte administration and cops are not affected nor bothered by survey results.
“I think everyone can see that our police barely have rest considering that there are just a few of us. We are doing everything to fulfill and finish the programs that we have started.” Doria said in Tagalog.
The police director, however, welcomed criticisms as a way to improve government service. with reports from Rosalie O. Abatayo and Inquirer.net
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