Poll: 49% of Pinoys see life improving

EARLY half of adult Filipinos believe their quality of life will improve in the next 12 months, a recent poll from the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.

The SWS survey published Monday noted that 49 percent of adult Filipinos are hopeful their life will improve, while 37 percent believe it will stay the same.

Meanwhile, five percent believe their life will worsen, while eight percent did not give their answer.

The December 2022 Net Personal Optimism score was 4 points higher than the “excellent” +40 in October 2022 and is the highest since the prepandemic score of “excellent” +44 in December 2019, SWS added.

The Fourth Quarter 2022 Survey was schools, congestion in the K-12 curriculum, employability of senior high school graduates, and lack of support for teachers, among others.

“We will rally for an improved learning system in the country. Together, we will rally for every Filipino child,” the Vice President said.

She said MATATAG will have four critical components: MAke the curriculum relevant to produce competent and job-ready, active, and responsible citizens; TAke steps to accelerate delivery of basic education facilities and services; TAke good care of learners by promoting learner well-being, inclusive education, and a positive learning environment; and Give support to teachers to teach better.

“We know that the road will be bumpy, but our direction is clear. We know that the challenges are vast, but we Filipinos are resilient. We will overcome,” Duterte-Carpio said.

While the review of the K to 12 curriculum is still ongoing, the VP said it can be improved “by focusing on foundational skills and embedding peace competencies.”

Mr. Marcos, for his part, vowed to invest in Filipino teachers.

“Our teachers are there because it is a vocation. Teachers do not become teachers because it is their job. Teachers do not become teachers because they want to become rich. Teachers become teachers because they have to. It is a vocation,” the President said.

“We will build infrastructure that will provide our teachers, learners, and our entire academic sector with a healthy and safe environment that is conducive to learning... We will offer them multiple opportunities that meet both their personal and professional needs.” might also result in power outages affecting about 835,000 households.

“We will offer them the support they need in terms of resources, programs, and policies so that they can effectively perform their roles as teachers and mentors of our children,” he added.

“The idea that was presented is to ration available fuel throughout the entire year effectively. We had initially announced the rationing to start as early as February, but we have not finished the consultations, so, we decided to defer it for consideration in March,” NPC president Fernando Martin Roxas said.

Roxas said the fuel rationing program would mean “equal misery.” conducted from December 10 to 14, 2022, using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults aged 18 and above.

“We won’t favor anybody. We will dispense the available fuel as much as possible, fairly,” Roxas said.

Based on the reduced electricity schedule, SPUG power plants running 24 hours would operate at 15 hours, while those running 16 hours would be available for only 12 hours. Those operating below 16 hours would run for only five hours.

The Department of Energy said NPC’s approved and allocated funds for fuel expenses and subsidies of new power providers and qualified third-party parties in 2023 are insufficient to cover the requirements for the entire year amid high fuel costs.

NPC’s outstanding fuel payables for the operation of SPUG power plants and barges amounted to P1.031 billion for the billing months of November and December 2022, while payables to NPPs and QTPs reached P5.508 billion, representing three to four months of unpaid billings which are due and demandable.

The survey’s error margins are ±2.8% for national percentages, ±5.7% each for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao.

The 4-point increase in the national Net Personal Optimism score was due to an increase in Mindanao, which recorded a 14-point increase from a “very high” +34 in October 2022 to an “excellent” +48 in December 2022.

The optimism scores in other areas were almost the same, with Metro Manila, Balance Luzon and Visayas all recording a 1-point increase from the October 2022 results.

In terms of academic attainment, college graduates are among the most optimistic with an “excellent” +57 score, up by 5 points from +52 in October 2022.

The December 2022 survey also showed 34 percent of Filipinos saying their quality of life was better than 12 months ago, or “gainers”, while 26 percent said it got worse -- termed “losers” by SWS.

Net Personal Optimism was still high among families who did not experience hunger in the past three months, with an “excellent” score of

+44. Those who experienced hunger, on the other hand, recorded a +43 score, while those who experienced moderate hunger had a +45 score.

Compared to the October 2022 survey, Net Personal Optimism rose from +41 among those from Not Hungry families.

The survey, likewise, showed 51 percent of Filipinos rating themselves as “poor” or “mahirap”, while 31 percent said they are “borderline” poor. Another 19 percent consider themselves as “not poor” or “hindi mahirap”.

Optimism was highest in families who do not consider themselves as poor, with an “excellent” +52 score, while those who consider themselves borderline poor was at +49.