THREE of four Filipinos or 75 percent would vote for candidates asserting the Philippines’ rights in the West Philippine Sea, an April 11 to 15 survey of the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.
The survey, commissioned by the Stratbase Consultancy Group, involved 1,800 adult respondents nationwide with a ±2 percent margin of error.
The polls showed that 75 percent of Filipinos favored “a candidate who believes that the Philippines must assert our rights against China’s aggressive actions in the West Philippine Sea,” down from 78 percent in February.
SWS said 25 percent said they would vote for “a candidate who does not believe that the Philippines must assert our rights against China’s aggressive actions in the West Philippine Sea,” up from 22 percent.
It also found that the majority of Filipinos from socio-economic classes D (76 percent), ABC (72 percent) and E (59 percent) want candidates who support the Philippines’ assertion of its rights in the WPS.
Stratbase President Dindo Manhit, however, pointed out that 41 percent of voters belonging to Class E, or the country’s poorest and most vulnerable sector, prefer non-assertive candidates.
Manhit said this proves that “those in Social Class E have become the primary targets and victims of China’s systematic disinformation campaign in the Philippines.
“Tragically, Social Class E’s daily fight for survival leaves them more susceptible to these manipulations, especially when false narratives are amplified by local candidates who have historically aligned themselves with Chinese interests,” he said.
“Let us be clear: the hardworking men and women of Social Class E are not to blame. They are victims of a deliberate, aggressive disinformation campaign waged by China, which aims to dull national outrage, normalize foreign aggression, and create confusion about the necessity of defending Philippine sovereignty,” he added.
