Pinoys morally upright, Palace on Pulse Asia survey

Filipinos are morally upright and would not easily resort to crime because of poverty, Malacañang said yesterday, belying a Pulse Asia survey showing that the poor are now more likely to turn to stealing or other illegal acts to escape hunger.

There is also no alternative government for the Filipino people but the government of President Arroyo, it added, in response to survey respondents who said that an extremely poor person would likely join groups attempting to overthrow the government.

"The Filipino people can either support the administration of President Arroyo or the right-wing groups offering to set up a military junta and the left-wing groups offering a dictatorship of the proletariat. But knowing the Filipino people, they are tired of dictatorship and their only choice is democracy," said External Affairs Secretary Edgardo Pamintuan.

In separate statements, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita and Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye also sought to give the survey results a positive spin and called on the people to work harder and be less dependent on government to improve their lives.

"If there’s anything that we Filipinos are known for, it is strength of character and the resiliency to be able to stand up to trying moments such as this," Ermita said.

Bunye, on the other hand, said the Filipinos’ moral fiber is "very strong and would not easily break under economic strain."

Ermita cited there were many instances in the past when Filipinos had survived trying times, such as the darkest days of Martial Law under the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos when the communist insurgency was also at its peak.

According to Pulse Asia, 21 percent of those surveyed in October 2004 and in March 2005 said that a poor person was likely to steal or engage in an illegal livelihood while 12 percent said that the same people would support moves to overthrow the government.

Bunye explained that public perception of the government usually sours when economic hardship sets in, but it is not necessarily accurate. He said once the Arroyo administration has addressed many of the economic concerns of the country, particularly the fiscal position of government, the negative perception would change.