69% of Filipinos see bright prospects for Christmas

MANILA, Philippines – About seven in 10 Filipinos see a “happy” Christmas this year, based on the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey results.

In the November 27 – 30 survey among 1,200 respondents nationwide, 69 percent said they expect a happy Christmas or 5 percent higher than those who expressed a positive outlook (64 percent) last year.

SWS said the latest figure surpassed the average 62-64 percent optimism in the past six years.

However, this is still far from the record-high happiness of 82 percent recorded in 2002.

The results also showed that 7 percent said they expect a worse Christmas, lower than last year’s 10 percent.

Meanwhile, those who said Christmas would neither be happy nor sad was unchanged from 24 percent to 26 percent.

The number of Filipinos who expect a happy Christmas remains lowest in Metro Manila at 55 percent, but higher than last year’s 50 percent.

However, happiness with Christmas remains high in the rest of Luzon (70 percent), Mindanao (71 percent), and Visayas (73 percent).

Those who said Christmas will not be happy declined in the rest of Luzon (5 percent), Visayas (6 percent), and Mindanao (7 percent).

Those who do not expect a happy nor sad Christmas was at 33 percent in Metro Manila, 24 percent in the rest of Luzon, 21 percent in the Visayas, and 20 percent in Mindanao.

With regard to socio-economic classes, happy Christmas is expected highest among the class D or the masa at 70 percent.

It is followed by the poorest class E at 67 percent, and upper-to-middle class ABC at 65 percent.

Only 7 percent among class D, and 8 percent in class E, said otherwise.

SWS noted that no one from the class ABC expected a sad Christmas. –ELLALYN B. DE VERA, Manila Bulletin