It is still the Economy – PAHAYAG

The economy remains the main concern in both the macro and micro issues in Pahayag Quarter 1 (PQ1-23) survey. Released last 23 March, there has been no change in the top issues (Table 1) deemed most important for PBBM to focus on, i.e. PH Economy, inflation/price hikes, corruption, poverty, and jobs. Education is in the top 5 among 18-24s, Government Workers, and Vocational graduates. Interestingly, when compared to PQ4-22 (Table 2), one can see that concern for corruption has increased marginally, from 11% (PQ4-22) to 13% (PQ1-23).

Table 1

Table 2

In terms of most important household concern heading into Quarter 2-2023 the following are the topmost anxieties: not being able to afford one’s basic needs, losing a job or having difficulty finding one (Table 3).

Table 3

The top household concerns in PQ4-22 were rising prices/inflation links to worry of not being able to afford their basic needs, not finding or losing a job, not getting enough pay, and getting sick as additional burden on their budget (Table 4). The concern on basic needs has improved from 17% (PQ4-22) to 13% (PQ1-23) and the rest have remained constant.

Table 4

Pahayag First Quarter is an independent and non-commissioned survey conducted by PUBLiCUS Asia Inc. between 2-6 May 2023. It is a nationwide purposive sampling survey comprised of 1,500 respondents randomly drawn from the market research panel of over 200,000 Filipinos maintained by the Singapore office of PureSpectrum, a US-based panel marketplace with multinational presence. The sample was restricted to registered Filipino voters. Samples provided by PureSpectrum are not affiliated with any bias or political party. All opinions voiced in the interpretation and analyses of the data are those of the writer and/or project sponsor. ###