President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. welcomes U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during a courtesy call at Kalayaan Hall, Malacañan Palace, on March 28, 2025. Yummie Dingding, PPA pool

MANILA — Almost all top government officials including President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. saw a decrease in trust rating in latest survey from OCTA, except Vice President Sara Duterte who reversed her downward trend with a 9-percentage-point boost.

In the Tugon ng Masa (TNM) survey conducted by OCTA from April 2 to 5 with 1,200 adult respondents, Marcos Jr. received a trust rating of 60 percent and a performance rating of 59 percent.

The numbers are lower compared to his 65 percent trust rating in the 2024's 4th quarter, and 64 percent performance rating in November 2024.

Trust ratings of Marcos, Duterte drop in January: SWS

"Tinanong namin s'yempre gaano kataas ang trust nila [kay Marcos Jr]. Ang lumalabas sa survey, nag-decline po halos lahat ng top government officials when it comes to trust. 'Yung presidente nag-decline po from 65 percent noong 4th quarter noong 2024 to 60 percent. Nag-decline ho si presidente hindi lang sa trust pati sa performance po. Dati po nasa 64 percent siya noong 4th quarter ng 2024, bumagsak ang performance rating ng 5 percentage point," Prof. Ranjit Rye, OCTA Research founder and president, told Teleradyo Serbisyo on Tuesday.

He said the president's downward trend since July 2024, as per TNM surveys, can be attributed to three urgent public concerns: inflation, access to jobs, and availability of affordable food.

He stressed the data shows that Filipinos are not satisfied with how the government deals with these problems.

"Hindi masyado satisfied ang mga kababayan natin sa response ng gobyerno tungkol d'yan. Nakaapekto sa trust and approval ratings ng presidente. Dagdagan mo pa no'ng 4th quarter ng 2024, tumaas po ang self-rated poverty at hunger ho. So 'yan ang nakaklaro sa 'tin na 'yang mga 'yan nakaapekto talaga sa bahagyang pagbaba ng trust and performance ratings," he explained.

Marcos approval rating drops, Sara Duterte's score up: Pulse Asia

Among all key officials in the national government, Rye noted that only Duterte emerged as the top gainer from the survey.

"Sa lahat ng mga government officials, ang tumaas lang po ay si VP Sara Duterte. 'Yung tinaas ni VP Sara Duterte, plus 9 percentage point tinaas niya sa trust from 49 to 58 percent. At sa perfromance, from 48 to 56 percent, plus 8 percentage point," he said.

He explained that it seemed the sudden and controversial arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte, the vice president's father, had an impact on the latest survey results.

"Mas malaking factor ho 'yan sa pag-explain ng pagtaas ni VP Sara. Tatandaan natin si VP Sara wala ng portfolio 'yan, wala ng ginagawa 'yang actual na programs except sa programs ng Office of the Vice President. 'Yung performance rating niya po ay almost double digits tinaas. Mahirap i-explain na hindi isasama sa konteksto 'yung pagkaaresto ng kaniyang tatay na very popular pa rin ngayon," Rye said.

The former Philippine leader was arrested by the police in March 11 and was brought to the International Criminal Court detention facility in The Hague, Netherlands. He is facing a trial for crimes against humanity due to the extrajudicial killings committed during his war on drugs.

The vice president kept visiting her father and even tried to postpone the former chief of state's first appearance before the ICC judges.

She also repeatedly slammed Marcos Jr.'s administration for cooperating with the Interpol and ICC to arrest her father.

Marcos says Duterte arrest part of PH’s obligation to Interpol

Rye said the incident influenced Duterte's standing in the survey, with most areas and classes delivering an increased percentage points for her.

"Tandaan bumagsak numbers niya noong last quarter, ngayon nag-reverse na. Kay Presidente, tuloy-tuloy 'yung downward niya. Pero majority ng kababayan natin nagtitiwala pa rin sa presidente natin," he said.

He however noted that majority of Filipinos still trust Marcos Jr. as the president still has more than 50 percentage points.

"Bagamat may decline ho ang presidente, nananatiling majority pa rin ang trust and approval ratings niya. It's above 50 percent. Nananatiling majority of the Filipinos continue to trust and approve the president's performance, 'yun ang difference namin sa ibang survey," added Rye.

Marcos Jr. had welcomed OCTA's recent survey results, saying majority of Filipinos are able to understand his administration's efforts throughout the past years.

The OCTA Research founder also emphasized that these surveys serve as a "wake up call" to the government to understand and hear the sentiments of the Filipinos.

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