OCTA Research, Inc. debunked on Monday unfounded claims circulating online that Vice President Sara Duterte received a higher public trust and performance rating than President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. allegedly based on its February 10 survey.
In fact, OCTA Research has not published any trust and performance rating of top government officials since January 14, 2025.
“We want to clarify that this claim and the alleged survey are entirely false. OCTA Research has not conducted any such survey,” OCTA Research said in a statement on February 17, urging the public to beware of such misinformation.
The survey firm said every survey it conducts will be posted in its official Facebook page.
“We urge media organizations and the public to verify the authenticity of any survey results attributed to OCTA Research by contacting us directly. We also ask for the public’s cooperation in preventing the spread of false or misleading information on social media,” OCTA Research said.
The false claims surfaced on February 13, the same day former President Rodrigo Duterte endorsed his senatorial candidates during their proclamation rally.
The Facebook and X posts claimed falsely that VP Duterte had a trust rating of 75% and a performance rating of 64%, significantly higher than President Marcos Jr.’s 33% trust rating and 29% performance rating.
One fake news post garnered 9,765 views as of writing, along with 155 likes, 51 shares, and 33 comments. Similarly, a post from the “Duterte Fans Club” on Facebook gained 3,700 reactions, 1,300 comments, and 906 shares.
OCTA Research’s last published survey on January 14 showed a decline in VP Duterte’s trust ratings from 59% in Q3 2024 to 49% in Q4 2024, while her performance rating dropped from 52% to 48%.
Meanwhile, President Marcos Jr. also saw a slight decline, with his trust rating falling from 69% to 65% and his performance rating dipping from 66% to 64%.