|
By Angelo S. Samonte, Reporter
Irked by survey results that put President
Gloria Arroyo in a negative light, Press Secretary Jesus Dureza
asked the Marketing and Opinion Research Society of the Philippines
(MORES) to police its ranks against polling organizations that
misinform the public.
”I challenge Pulse Asia on the fairness of
survey results. Let us look at methodology, and let’s not
immediately agree on what [the survey] said. That’s why I’m
calling MORES to look into the ranks of survey takers,” Dureza
said.
Noting that Pulse Asia is not a member of the
society, he added, “I dare MORES, a respectable institution, to
look [into] non-members because, maybe, they are releasing
information that destroys the credibility of its members.”
Dureza proposed that Pulse Asia’s
questionnaire be submitted for scrutiny by the experts because it
may be using wrong methodology.
He said: “Pulse Asia asked how the public
viewed the President’s SONA [State of the Nation Address] when in
fact the SONA [was] yet to be delivered. I take it as something that
[would] embarrass or shame the President. Maybe the President is
unpopular but there should be policing among polling institutions’
ranks. I don’t question freedom, but I also ask the media to look
into this since they are the consumers of survey results.”
Dureza said it would not be fair to compare the
Arroyo administration with previous ones, particularly with that of
President Joseph Estrada, given the global economic conditions. He
asked, “How much does a barrel of oil cost today?”
A nationwide Pulse Asia poll from July 1 to 14
preceded the President’s SONA by almost two weeks. The survey
showed that six out of 10 Filipinos or 60 percent were aware of the
past state addresses of Mrs. Arroyo, with many of them doubting
their truthfulness.
Among those aware (60 percent) of the SONAs,
“a big plurality [46 percent] nationwide believes these SONAs had
not been truthful, with another almost equally large number [41
percent] being undecided [on] their truthfulness.”
Only 13 percent nationwide believed Mrs.
Arroyo’s SONAs had been truthful.
|
