President Benigno Aquino III has only been in office for barely a year, but more people in the Philippines are expressing their dissatisfaction over his performance.
A recent Social Weathers Station (SWS) survey shows another 5 point-drop in Aquino’s ratings.
The SWS says respondents in earlier surveys have been concerned with the rising inflation and slow progress in the justice system in the Philippines.
Rodel Rodis led the Filipino-Americans who raised over a $100,000 for Aquino’s presidential campaign. He said a 5 point-drop is not bad.
Rodis, president of the U.S. Pinoys for Good Governance said, “You need to consider that his predecessor, GMA (Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo) had a negative 39% — and he has 64%. The fact that he went down from 69% to 64% — while that is a concern — is not that bad.”
Ray Satorre led the the Fi-lAms who staunchly criticized Aquino during the elections. They backed Senator Manny Villar.
Satorre said, “Well you can only please Filipinos for as long as there are jobs, creation of industries, roads, infrastructure and emphasis on education.”
Rodis said there are reasons why the economy is down — and Aquino cannot be faulted for it.
Rodis said, “The situation in the Middle East is causing a lot of Filipino overseas Filipino workers to return. That’s not the result of any policy or anything he could have done. That affects the amount of remittances these OFWS send — and the Philippine economy depends on it greatly.”
Satorre said the drop in ratings could also be due to Aquino’s penchant for allegedly protecting friends, classmates and shooting buddies — giving them positions in government.
Satorre said, “You have to show that you’re a leader for everyone — not just for a chosen few.”
Rodis, to a certain extent, agrees to allegations that Aquino awards to close to him in government.
“He has to find better caliber people. It should not be based on personal friendships but on competition,” Rodis said.
But he added that, so far, Aquino has shown that he will not tolerate corruption in government.
If anything, these FilAm community leaders said the drop in ratings should only encourage Aquino to do better in his job — and prove to more people that he truly is the right man for the job.
Syrian refugees talk with a Turkish soldier in a refugee camp in the Turkish border town of Boynuegin in Hatay province yesterday.
