Poll: 9 of 10 Pinoys hopeful about 2011

MANILA, Philippines –  Nearly nine in 10 Filipinos look to 2011 with hope, buoyed by the reform agenda of President Aquino, with just one in 20 feeling apprehensive, results of a recent Pulse Asia survey showed.

“There is a perception that things will be better because we have a new administration,” Ana Maria Tabunda, Pulse Asia chief researcher, said.

However, Tabunda warned that optimism levels would go down if the economy did not improve, adding that a Philippine president’s approval ratings tended to go down the longer he or she had been in office.

She said Aquino, who won a landslide election victory in May, and many of his Cabinet members enjoyed high approval ratings owing to his vow to crack down on corruption, which was generally believed to be widespread under his predecessor Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, now a Pampanga congresswoman.

“It gives them hope. His campaign really linked graft and corruption to poverty. We are seeing this resonate,” Tabunda said.

Pulse Asia’s October “Survey on the Holiday Season” polled 1,200 people nationwide from Oct. 20 to Oct. 29.

The survey found 89 percent of Filipinos expressing high hopes for the coming year.

Pulse Asia said optimism is the predominant public sentiment, with huge majorities across geographic areas (87 percent to 93 percent) and socio-economic classes (88 percent to 96 percent) saying they would face the coming year with hope.

“Except for the 13-percentage point increase recorded between October 2009 and October 2010, in the percentage of Metro Manilans who are hopeful about the year 2011, public opinion on this matter is generally unchanged year-on-year,” Pulse Asia said.

Meanwhile, the survey also showed 50 percent of Filipinos expecting this year’s Christmas season to be the same as last year.

This sentiment is shared by more than half of those in the rest of Luzon (54 percent) and Metro Manila (65 percent), as well as in the most numerous Class D (50 percent) and the best-off Class ABC (67 percent).

Furthermore, those expecting a more prosperous Christmas this year outnumbered those expressing a contrary view or 39 percent versus 11 percent.

A small majority or 55 percent of those in the Visayas thought this year’s Christmas season would be better than last year.

In Mindanao and the poorest Class E, nearly the same percentages expect a better Christmas this year (41 percent to 42 percent) or say this year’s Christmas season will not be any different from last year (45 percent to 46 percent).

“Year-on-year, there is an increase in the percentage of Filipinos expecting a more prosperous Christmas season (+10 percentage points) and a decline in the percentage of those who are expecting otherwise (-11 percentage points),” Pulse Asia said.

The survey also showed more Metro Manilans think this year’s Christmas season will be the same as last year (53 percent to 65 percent) while more Visayans expect a better Christmas season (35 percent to 55 percent).

On the other hand, the survey showed a drop in the percentage of Metro Manilans and Visayans expecting a less prosperous Christmas season (-12 to -20 percentage points).

Across socio-economic classes, more of those in Classes D and E are inclined to believe that this year’s Christmas season will be better than last year (+10 to +15 percentage points) while those saying otherwise have declined -10 to -16 percentage points.

The survey has sampling error margin of plus or minus three percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level. –Helen Flores (The Philippine Star)