Aquino ratings rebound: what it means

President Aquino’s satisfaction rating made a sharp rebound in the third quarter after a slump in the turbulent previous quarter. This is not a good sign.

A survey of the Social Weather Stations conducted on Sept. 4 to 7 found that 70 percent of respondents said they were satisfied with the President’s performance, up 10 points from the 64 percent in June. Those who said they were dissatisfied accounted for 14 percent, down from 18 percent.

The results showed a net satisfaction rating   (the difference between the percentage of satisfied respondents and the percentage of dissatisfied) of +56 , a gain of 10 points from the +46 percent in June.  The increase put the President’s ratings back in the category of “very good” (for a net rating of  +50 and +69).

Geographically, the President posted his biggest gain in Luzon outside Manila, where he got a “very good” net satisfaction rating of +63 percent, up from the second quarter’s  “good” +41.

He maintained “very good” scores in the Visayas and Mindanao, gaining by a single percentage  point to +52 and +55. But his ratings in Metro Manila showed a  two-point  drop, but still the results stayed “good” at +41.

“Very good” results were recorded in both rural and urban areas, where his score  was  +64 from  +45.

The President posted “very good” scores across all socioeconomic classes, but it was among Class D (the “masa”) where he made the biggest gain of 14 points. His net score rose to a “very good” +58 from +44 in June.

It was four points higher at +52 among class E, but it slipped by 5  percentage points among classes ABC where he still got  “very good” score of +53.

Overall, it is fair to say that after a little more than a year in office, the Aquino administration enjoys a broad approval rating of its performance   across regions and classes. There are no signs of unrest that could destabilize his government, despite his record of doing nothing spectacular to improve the economy, create jobs and reduce poverty.

The question arises: Why does the President continue to enjoy a high satisfaction rating although he has not accomplished much to fulfill his promises to revitalize the economy, create employment, and alleviate poverty, much less reduce the gap between the few rich and the overwhelmingly poor segments of the population?

Questions are increasingly heard among the more thoughtful segments of the population, particularly among the middle class. The question often asked is: Are the majority of Filipinos demanding very little in terms of performance and economic management from the administration? Is the level of satisfaction of the people so low that it takes very little to make them satisfied?

This is where the results of the surveys bother me. The accuracy of the polls to capture the mood or reflect the satisfaction of the majority is not being questioned.

But there is a troubling message pulsating from the survey results.  The message is that the people are not pushing this government hard enough to deliver results beyond the platitudes of good governance being industriously churned out by the government’s propaganda mills, and beyond the overdrive in the campaign to expose the skeletons of alleged corruption scandals of the previous administration. The inquisitors of the justice department have within a year produced six plunder complaints against the predecessor president, and there’s something more to come.

And now comes the spin from the government’s mouthpieces. Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said, “The People’s response reflects the fact that the President’s message of curbing corruption and poverty alleviation is getting across.” But where are the results of poverty alleviation?

Lacierda adds, “While much remains to be done, the President remained focused and committed to fulfilling his social contract with his bosses (the Filipino people).” Is it his social contract with the Filipino people to pillory the predecessor government until its embodiments are pulverized to the ground and fed to the beasts in the arena incited by trial by publicity to call for blood?

Spokespersons of the oversized Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office have offered another explanation for the high satisfaction ratings, an explanation that insults the intelligence of the Filipino public. Lacierda said the higher ratings were due to “how the President has been consistent in doing what he says he has to do to mitigate poverty and eradicate corruption.”

This claim of achievement is a bald lie. In one year, has the administration done anything to show that it has mitigated poverty by merely unearthing corrupt acts of the past regime? What has the  mantra, “Kung walang corrupt walang mahirap,” done to  give jobs to the jobless,  to revive the  sluggish economy? International financial institutions now forecast a plunge in the GDP growth rate for 2011 and next year, as a new recession threatens the rich Western democracies.

The higher satisfaction ratings reflected by the surveys have resulted in fostering complacency in the administration, leading it to believe that it does not have to deliver economic and social results to maintain public confidence. The survey should be a call to the public to demand more than mediocre results from a government that enjoys a broad electoral mandate. Easily obtained approval ratings foster a lazy government.