Filipinos want President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to address or tell them how the government is handling inflation in his third State of the Nation Address (SoNA) after three out of four respondents in a survey disapproved of how his administration was handling the rising prices of goods in the country.
Based on the June survey by pollster Pulse Asia released on Friday, 57 percent of Filipinos want Marcos to discuss inflation during the SoNA on 22 July.
According to Pulse Asia, “bare to considerable majorities” in all geographic areas (between 51 and 63 percent) and in Classes D and E (between 58 and 66 percent) hold this opinion.
This was backed by the poll results that showed 76 percent of Filipinos disapproved of how the government was handling inflation, a five-percentage point increase from the previous quarter’s 71 percent.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority in June showed the average annual rate of headline inflation reached 3.5 percent, falling between the government’s target range of 2 percent to 4 percent. Nonetheless, the rise in food costs has continued to raise concerns.