“With President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino’s falling approval rate, do you think that the changes he proposed in this year’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) will help the Philippines and improve his image in the eyes of the people?”

“For me and for the [Christian Union for Socialist and Democratic Advancement (Crusada)] the more important question is grounded on the conversation of ‘Can the president change the political culture he sought to replace?’ Because in so far as ratings go, we first have to be able to analyze the kind of standards people hold the government accountable for. Firstly, why was it harder for the administration to defend itself from any criticism against the DAP (Disbursement Allocation Program) when it argued that it just did what other administrations did in the past? This was because the standard it brought to itself was that it could change the political culture present during the time they were elected through their platform of matuwid na daan. This directly tells us that people no longer hold them beholden to their ability to ‘act as legitimately’ as a previous administration, rather on how well they can veer away from previous practices. What does this tell us? Well, it’s a bit premature to know if everyone will start liking him statistically, especially knowing that these are just words out of a politician’s mouth; but if the main promise the president gives is that he will continue the fight for fiscal reform through defending DAP in Congress, I’d feel as if it’s a move that further puts our branches of government into a gridlock. If the administration is a true reformist, they would focus on striking down the culture of patronage that it promised to destroy to begin with, not strengthen it.”

Abbo Hernandez, premier, Crusada

“In my opinion, he has not given us any new material to expect from him. Yes, he had given statistics and evidence to support his claims [on] our recovering economy, but I don’t see these so-called achievements of his governance. All in all, I feel like President Aquino’s tenure will be ending in a downward spiral. His image is now tarnished by his slow response to national issues. His talk of foresight and historical reviewing will be for naught if he cannot see that all talk of progress is hindered by prevalent corruption. I doubt that the appropriation of funds is strictly monitored or will continue to be so. Maybe the Philippines will benefit from these proposals, if they do push through, but I doubt that we will see the fruit of these endeavors anytime soon. His image to the Filipino people might be too skewed to be rectified as fast as he might want it to be. Seriously, I’m just waiting for the next president to take over.”

Alyana Olivar (2 BFACW)

“I think no, because people are going to look for certain things that they can actually see and that they actually think that are real. And even though [Aquino] is just saying these things, there are no concrete things that we can see right now, such as the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) modernization. We don’t really see progress if nothing changes. [Aquino] is just saying statistics and the like. We can see if it is really brand new or not. If he really wants to make the people’s opinion of him good, he needs to do something concrete that we can see and we can feel.”

Alenah Romero (3 AB POS)

“I don’t remember him asking for specific things from Congress. He was saying that the thrust of this SONA was ‘trust me.’ ‘Trust me in not committing any anomaly. Trust me with the budget, and in the last two years of my term, I will do my best. Trust me that I’m doing the best for the country.’ The thing is, the suspicion of many people is that, this year, people will still follow him because he still has two years, but next year, he will most likely be a lame duck president. People will start to stop following him. My feeling is that we will give him the benefit of the doubt. After the SONA, the complaints against him are not too strident anymore. Instead, people will say ‘You (Aquino) have two years. Make the best of it.’”

Marco Lopez, assistant professor, Filipino Department

“He proposes changes—all presidents do, during a SONA. But if he doesn’t manage to pull through with all of his promises, his image is guaranteed ruined. Besides, he shouldn’t be worrying about his image now. There are more pressing matters to be addressed than maintaining an image.”

Grace Basilisa Aguilar (4 AB DipIR)

“I don’t think that improving his image should be his concern now. He should be focused on deliverables which he gave during the SONA. Usually at the end of the president’s term, you are no longer looking at the popularity ratings. You’re really looking at leaving a legacy.”

Maria Elissa Lao, DPA, chairperson, Political Science Department

“Well, he entered into public service. Like it or not, he would have to do well on his programs and promises. Politics is not about popularity; it’s about service and leadership. Yes, his ratings are going down, but it should not be a hindrance in doing his job as the president which includes implementing [the] programs [he said]. Popular or not, he is the president, elected by the people, there to serve his constituents.”

Jim Matthew Ham (2 AB POS)

“Given PNoy’s falling approval rate, I don’t think that whatever changes he says he’ll make based on the SONA will have any leverage on the people’s perception of him unless they see actual results. Year after year, Filipinos have constantly been disappointed by the promising SONA speeches, and now they know better than to immediately believe that all the projects the president said he’d do would come to fruition. Hence, I really believe that not until PNoy starts delivering, only then will the Filipino people alter their currently negative stance on him.”

Lauren Ong (3 BFA CW)

“For me, President Aquino could still improve his approval rate through his proposed changes. However, it could only happen if he is really able to implement most, if not all of them. The reason why his approval ratings are going down seems to be that he is not really true to many of the things he says. There is still crime, and a lot of poor people out there. With the proper implementation of his proposed changes, he could still improve his ratings amongst the people.”

Paulo Chua (3 BSM AMF)

“In my opinion, SONA 2014 will not significantly improve President Aquino’s rating to the masses simply because he does not follow through [with] his promises. During SONA 2014, he announced to the public all the promises he kept from SONA 2013, but we can clearly see that these are only a handful compared to the number of promises he made. This is due to the fact that PNoy is too slow in the implementation of his projects and that causes disappointment within the nation, especially to those in the marginalized sector. The masses want to hear all the good things promised by their leader, but what they really want is that all these ideas turn into reality. If President Aquino can speed up the process of implementing his projects and be more efficient in pushing through with his promises, then we can expect good ratings for him.”

Matthew Fernand Alano (1 BS HS)