Noli, Arroyo Cabinet leave office with lower satisfaction ratings

Vice President Manuel "Noli" de Castro Jr. and the Cabinet of outgoing President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo stand to leave office with yet another drop in their satisfaction ratings, a survey of pollster Social Weather Stations showed. Conducted last March, the survey — the results of which were publicly disclosed on Monday — showed De Castro suffered a "record-low" satisfaction rating while the Arroyo Cabinet's rating declined from the fourth quarter of 2009. "Vice-President de Castro's latest net satisfaction rating of moderate +14 (% satisfied minus % dissatisfied) is 9 points down from the moderate +23 in December 2009," said the survey. "It is a new personal record-low since his previous record-low of +22 in May 2005." SWS terminology for Net Satisfaction Ratings include: +50 and above, "very good"; +30 to +49, "good"; +10 to +29, "moderate", +9 to -9, "neutral"; -10 to -29, "poor"; -30 to -49, "bad"; -50 or lower, "very bad." Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile also received a net satisfaction rating of +19, then Chief Justice Reynato Puno net zero, and House Speaker Prospero Nograles with -19, the survey said. Its pre-election survey undertaken from March 19 to 22 found 47 percent satisfied and 33 percent dissatisfied with the performance of de Castro; 46 percent satisfied and 27 percent dissatisfied with that of Enrile; 31 percent satisfied and 31 percent dissatisfied with Puno; and 21 percent satisfied and 40 percent dissatisfied with Nograles, the SWS said. Compared to December 2009, Enrile's net satisfaction rating stayed at moderate +19. It is has been moderate over the past four quarters, SWS said. Nograles' latest net satisfaction rating barely changed from poor -20 in December 2009 to -19 in March 2010. His net satisfaction rating has been poor since March 2008. Puno's net satisfaction rating has been at neutral levels since March 2007, with his latest score at net zero, similar to +1 in December. On the other hand, the survey found 50 percent satisfied and 25 percent dissatisfied with the performance of the Senate, or a moderate net +25, two points down from +27 in December 2009. There were 37 percent satisfied and 30 percent dissatisfied with the House of Representatives, for a neutral net satisfaction rating of +7, similar to +9 in the previous quarter. The survey found 41 percent satisfied and 32 percent dissatisfied with the performance of the Supreme Court, or a neutral +9, nine points down from moderate +18 in the previous quarter. It also found 31 percent satisfied and 38 percent dissatisfied with the Cabinet as a whole, or a neutral -7, six points down from -1 in the previous quarter. "The net satisfaction rating of the Cabinet has been neutral since August 2005, except in March 2006 and March 2008 when it was at poor -10," SWS said. SWS said its March 2010 Social Weather Survey was conducted from March 19 to 22, using face-to-face interviews of 2,100 registered voters. The voters were divided into random samples of 300 in Metro Manila and 600 each in Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Sampling error margins of ±2.2 percent for national percentages, ±6 percent for Metro Manila, and ±4 percent for Balance Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, applied to the survey. - RJAB Jr/KBK, GMANews.TV