No ‘bloodbath,’ just Sara soaked in her own sweat of fear

I had an interesting conversation last Friday with Pulse Asia president Ronnie Holmes and political persuasion specialist Alan German on independent journalist Christian Esguerra’s evening podcast.

- RONALD LLAMAS

The four of us discussed Pulse Asia’s latest survey and explored the possible reasons Filipinos either trust or distrust the country’s top two leaders, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte.

In the survey, Marcos posted a 35 percent trust rating, with 44 percent saying they distrust him and 21 percent remaining undecided. On the other hand, Duterte registered a 54 percent trust rating, with 26 percent expressing distrust and 20 percent undecided.

Among those who trust Marcos, the leading reason is his effort to fight government corruption (28.6 percent). However, those who distrust him cite a range of concerns like his failure to fight corruption (16.7 percent), failure to fulfill promises (15.3 percent), failure to perform his duties (13.8 percent), failure to control the prices of goods (12.3 percent), alleged involvement in corrupt activities (12.0 percent), and failure to curb criminality (10.1 percent).

Meanwhile, those who trust Duterte point to her perceived capability to lead (12.8 percent), being pro-poor (12.7 percent) and being courageous (12.4 percent). Among those who distrust her, the dominant reason is her alleged involvement in corrupt activities, cited by 51.5 percent nationwide.

The report is interesting, to say the least. For one, Marcos’ greatest strength appears to also be his greatest weakness. His trust ratings are buoyed by his anti-corruption campaign, which he launched in his 2025 SONA. But his perceived failure to carry this campaign to its logical conclusion, such as going after the “big fish,” has also eroded public trust. Ronnie Holmes said that there is a “narrative discontinuity.”