MANILA, Philippines - Six in 10 Filipinos are not in favor of another term for President Aquino, a recent survey by Pulse Asia showed.
The survey, conducted from Sept. 8 to 15, also showed that the same percentage of Filipinos oppose moves to amend the 1987 Constitution.
Pulse Asia said this is the majority sentiment across socio-economic classes (61 percent to 65 percent) and geographic areas (52 percent to 71 percent) except in the Visayas (50 percent in favor versus 50 percent not in favor).
Opposition is more manifest in Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon than in the Visayas and Mindanao (67 percent to 71 percent versus 50 percent to 52 percent).
On the other hand, 38 percent of Filipinos support proposals for Aquino to run for president again at the end of his term.
Pulse Asia’s Ulat ng Bayan survey used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults 18 years old and above.
The Movement for Reform, Continuity and Momentum (More2come) is pushing for a second term for Aquino through political Charter change (Cha-cha).
The group recently came out with full-page advertisements in various newspapers, which says only Aquino could continue to lead the country owing to “the barrenness of talent and virtue among the presidential bets.”
Aquino had said he would listen to his bosses, the people, on how to make reforms in the country permanent.
Anti Cha-cha
Sixty-two percent of Filipinos are also against Charter change, Pulse Asia’s third quarter poll showed. At least 32 percent are opposed to Cha-cha at any other time and 30 percent are open to it at some future time.
Opposition to Cha-cha is now the majority sentiment in each geographic area and socio-economic grouping (61 percent to 68 percent and 56 percent to 65 percent, respectively), according to the survey.
On the other hand, 20 percent of Filipinos think the 1987 Constitution should be amended now while 18 percent could not say whether Cha-cha should be done now.
The survey research institute said most Filipinos (61 percent) are aware of proposals to amend the Constitution but nearly half of them (46 percent) admit to “knowing little” about it.
A majority of awareness is recorded in almost all geographic areas and socio-economic classes (55 percent to 70 percent and 63 percent to 77 percent, respectively), with Mindanao (49 percent) and Class E (48 percent).
Higher awareness figures were noted in Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon than in the Visayas (67 percent to 70 percent versus 55 percent) as well as in Class ABC than in Class D (77 percent versus 63 percent).
Pulse Asia said 39 percent of Filipinos learned about proposals to amend the Constitution only during survey interviews.
“Among Filipinos aware of proposals to amend the 1987 Constitution, a higher level of opposition to Charter change at the present time is posted (70 percent) -– with 34 percent saying it may be amended in the future and 36 percent expressing complete opposition to such proposals regardless of timing,” the pollster said.
Among those aware of Cha-cha proposals, eight percent are undecided.
There is a higher support for Cha-cha (28 percent) and amending it at some future time (37 percent) among those with sufficient amount of knowledge of the 1987 Constitution.
“At the national level, support for Charter change at the present time eases between October 2010 and September 2014 (-20 percentage points),” Pulse Asia said.
Support decline in all geographic areas (-16 to -23 percentage points) as well as in Classes D and E (-20 to -21 percentage points) while there is an increase in opposition to Cha-cha now or at any other time (+14 percentage points).
Complete opposition to Charter change is more notable in the rest of Luzon and the Visayas (+19 to +22 percentage points) and in Classes ABC and D (+14 to +18 percentage points), Pulse Asia noted.
Meanwhile, the survey also found that most Filipinos (70 percent) reject proposals to limit the powers of the Supreme Court (SC) to review the decisions of the executive.
Nearly nine in 10 or 85 percent also expressed disapproval on allowing foreign individuals and companies to own residential and industrial lands in the country.
In contrast, 30 percent of Filipinos are in favor of limiting the SC’s power of judicial review of the executive while 15 percent support foreign ownership of residential and industrial lands in the country.