By Ma. Cristina Arayata | Philippine News Agency
A recent survey commissioned by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) showed that 76% of Filipinos are committed to defending Philippine territory, including the West Philippine Sea, the OCTA Research said Monday.
The poll, held from March 19-25, had 1,200 adult respondents who were asked how strongly they agree with this statement: “I love my country, and I am committed to support the government in defending its territory and asserting sovereign rights, including over the West Philippine Sea.”
Results showed only 7% disagreed while 17% were undecided.
Support was highest in the National Capital Region at 83% and Balance Luzon at 77%. Mimaropa registered the highest support at 93%, followed by Caraga at 91% and Western Visayas at 90%.
Respondents from the Visayas and Mindanao showed the lowest agreement at 68% and 75%, respectively. Central Visayas had the lowest agreement at 45%.
“Agreement ranges from a high of 93% in Mimaropa to a low of 45% in Central Visayas—a 48-point gap that reveals significant regional variation beneath the national headline,” the OCTA said.
“The survey’s most critical outlier is Davao Region, where disagreement reaches 34%, five times the national average, making it the single most important sub-national finding of the study,” it added.
OCTA also said that in terms of educational attainment, the agreement rate was highest among vocational graduates at 85% and college-educated Filipinos at 80%. By socioeconomic class, support was highest among Classes ABCD at 76% and Class E at 71%.
“Support for territorial defense is not concentrated among the educated or affluent. Class D—which comprises 75% of the Filipino population—mirrors the national average exactly at 76%,” the OCTA said.
The survey has a ±3% margin of error at a 95% confidence level. Subnational estimates for the geographic areas covered in the survey have margins of error of ±6% for NCR, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, also at a 95% confidence level. (PNA)
