MALACANANG has said recent survey results will serve only as a guide for the administration and will not affect President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s commitment to good governance and his anti-corruption campaign.
Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said survey ratings, whether high or low, will not deter the President from continuing investigations into alleged irregularities in flood control projects, which she acknowledged may generate political backlash and economic uncertainty.
“The President will not be affected by the rating decline because what he did is the right decision that may not be a popular decision since many people and politicians will be affected,” Castro stressed.
In the December 2025 Ulat ng Bayan poll by Pulse Asia Research Inc., nearly half of Filipino adults said they were unhappy with the President’s performance, with approximately 48 percent expressing disapproval and about 34 percent giving him the thumb up sign.
Castro also drew a contrast with the previous administration, noting that while it maintained high approval ratings during its six-year term, questions remained over whether public funds linked to alleged kickbacks were recovered or whether individuals were held accountable, despite reports of ghost projects emerging as early as 2020.
She said those involved in corruption were not made to answer for the allegations and, in some cases, appeared to have been tolerated.
Castro further pointed out that high survey ratings do not necessarily translate into concrete outcomes, citing ongoing scrutiny over the confidential funds of the Vice President.
“The Vice President has a high rating, but is there already any result from the investigation into her confidential funds, which many of her allies were still blocking,” Castro said.
Across geographic areas, the President received a majority approval rating in the rest of Luzon, with 51 percent.
However, disapproval was not so prevalent in Metro Manila at 53 percent, compared to the Visayas (which gave him 62 percent and Mindanao, 85 percent.
The survey indicated that while Marcos failed to achieve a majority trust rating in December 2025, he garnered majority distrust scores in the Visayas at 60 percent and Mindanao, 86 percent, and among Class E respondents.
Near-majority distrust levels were also reported in Metro Manila at 50 percent and Class D, 47 percent.
According to Pulse Asia, between September and December 2025, the only significant change in presidential performance ratings was a 17 percentage point increase in disapproval in Metro Manila-
The survey also revealed that Vice President Sara Duterte continues to enjoy small majority approval and trust ratings, with more than half of the adult population (56 percent) giving her a positive performance assessment, while around a quarter (24 percent) disapproves of her work.
Support for the Vice President’s work is notably high among Visayans (68 percent) and Mindanawons (95 percent), while approval in Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon was lower at 44 percent and 35 percent, respectively.
Furthermore, Duterte enjoys majority trust ratings in the Visayas (67 percent), Mindanao (96 percent), among Class D respondents (54 percent), and Class E respondents (70 percent).
The face-to-face survey was conducted from Dec.12 to 15, involving 1,200 respondents aged 18 and above, with a margin of error of ±2.8 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.
