MANILA, Philippines – Lawmakers weighed in on the slide in President Rodrigo Duterte’s net satisfaction and trust ratings, with critics describing this as a wake-up call for him to put the brakes on his war on drugs.
Administration allies, however, said the President should continue focusing on his work and not be distracted by the numbers.
Caloocan Representative Edgar Erice said the survey should be taken as a “wake-up call that it’s time to listen to his critics, especially on the issue of war on drugs.”
“It’s already a cause of embarrassment not only here but all over the world. The war on drugs is a losing proposition, it is doomed to fail as similar template had been tried by many countries and the results were the same: failure, police brutality and impunity and the collateral damage of innocent civilians,” Erice added.
“No Filipino should feel happy for the failures of a President. His failures adversely affect all of us,” Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat, said.
“We should feel indignant that his drug war policies continue. We should feel sad for the country that his is a politics of division. We should be alarmed for the people that economic malaise persists. I’m hoping that Malacańang sees the wisdom in what we have been advocating all along and mends its ways,” he added.
For Akbayan Rep. Tom Villarin, the ratings reflect the “unease and uncertainty that our people are having under his administration.”
“This is a sign that the government should be more serious in listening to the people, and not just to itself. The people are now demanding answers to questions of justice, human rights, and accountability for the whirlwind of past and present atrocities linked to President Duterte made public in the last few months,” he said.
Davao Rep. Karlo Nograles said survey results go up and down, and despite the latest results, the President “is doing well” compared to his predecessors in the same period.
Quirino Rep. Dakila Cua said Duterte should continue his focus on his job and in making difficult decision and not be worried about ratings.
For Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel, the decline in trust ratings should not be a cause for alarm “as long as the basic services are delivered to the people.”
Click and watch this video report below:
