Satisfaction positive for top officials except chief justice

PUBLIC SATISFACTION with the performance of government officials in the line of succession to the presidency is highest for Vice-President Jejomar C. Binay, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey found, with personal bests garnered by Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and House Speaker Feliciano R. Belmonte, Jr. and Supreme Court Justice Renato C. Corona ranked last.

The same poll, conducted last March 10-13, also saw gains for the top government institutions and record highs for both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

One lawmaker suggested that the ongoing impeachment trial of Mr. Corona had “boosted” satisfaction with Congress, and by extension the officials’ scores.

The results showed that Mr. Binay remained the highest-favored bureaucrat — topping President Benigno S.C. Aquino III whose rating has slipped to a “good” +49 (68% satisfied minus 19% dissatisfied) in the first quarter from December’s “very good” +58 (71% satisfied, 13% dissatisfied) — a continuing phenomenon the vice-president said he “appreciates.”

The SWS survey found 79% of respondents saying they were satisfied with Mr. Binay’s performance, versus the 9% who were dissatisfied, which allowed him to retain his “excellent” net rating of +70, just four points shy of his personal record high of +74 in March 2011.

The SWS classifies net satisfaction ratings of +70 and above as “excellent”; +50 to +69, “very good”; +30 to +49, “good”; +10 to +29, “moderate,” +9 to -9, “neutral”; -10 to -29, “poor”; -30 to -49, “bad”; -50 to -69, “very bad”; and -70 and below, “execrable.”

Mr. Enrile, meanwhile, improved to a “very good” net rating of +56 (69% satisfied, 13% dissatisfied), up by 20 points from December’s “good” +36 (53 satisfied, 17 dissatisfied). It was a record-high for the senator, whose previous best was “good” +41 in June 2010.

Similarly, Mr. Belmonte advanced a level to a “moderate” +18 (39% satisfied, 27 dissatisfied), up 10 points from a “neutral” +8 (33% satisfied, 25% dissatisfied) last December. This was also a personal best, up a point from the +17 achieved in March 2011.

Mr. Corona, in contrast, saw his “poor” rating worsen to -28 (22% satisfied, 51% dissatisfied) from -14 (35% satisfied, 21% dissatisfied) three months earlier.

Public satisfaction, meanwhile, rose for the top four state institutions.

The net satisfaction rating of the Senate rose to “very good” from “good”, up by 14 points to a record-high +58 (71% satisfied, 13% dissatisfied) from +44 (59% satisfied, 15% dissatisfied) in December. This surpassed the previous peak of +51 in November 2010.

Satisfaction also rose to “good” from “moderate” for the House of Representatives, up 13 points to a record +40 (56% satisfied, 16% dissatisfied), from +27 (46% satisfied, 19% dissatisfied) in the previous quarter, surpassing the previous high of +33 in November 2010.

The Supreme Court, meanwhile, continued to be rated “moderate” but its latest score was up six points to net +27 (50% satisfied, 22% dissatisfied, correctly rounded) from +21 (46% satisfied, 25% dissatisfied) in December.

Satisfaction also stayed “moderate” for the Cabinet as a whole, up four points to +26 (45% satisfied, 20% dissatisfied, correctly rounded) from +22 (43% satisfied, 20% dissatisfied, correctly rounded) previously.

Sought for comment, Joey Salgado, a spokesperson for Mr. Binay, said “the findings [will] encourage the Vice-President to work harder.”

“They reflect satisfaction in his work as a member of the Cabinet and as Vice-President,” Mr. Salgado added.

Asked how this would affect Mr. Binay’s chances during the 2016 elections and his relationship with Mr. Aquino, Mr. Salgado said they did not expect any impact.

“For the vice-president, politics will never affect his relations with the president and the Aquino family,” he said.

“We know that the president and the vice-president come from different political parties so this is nothing unexpected.”

Mr. Binay recently re-forged his alliance with former president and Partido ng Masang Pilipino chairperson Joseph Ejercito Estrada, Mr. Aquino’s strongest rival in the last presidential elections.

Speaker Belmonte, meanwhile, welcomed the results for the House, saying he was “more concerned” over this than his own personal score.

“Overall, the impeachment also boosted the House ratings,” he said in a text message, also attributing the high score to legislators who have worked hard to push the chamber’s legislative agenda and have “taken good care of their districts.”

Mr. Enrile and Mr. Corona, nor their representatives, were not available for comment.

The SWS survey involved face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults nationwide and utilized sampling error margins of ±3% for national and ±6% for area percentages. –JOHANNA PAOLA D. POBLETE, Senior Reporter, Businessworld