A majority of Filipino adults find it unacceptable for a company linked to Vice President Sara Duterte to have received alleged remittances from China, according to the October 2026 National Momentum Survey.
Cale88, a banana chips company owned by Duterte’s husband, has been linked to P319 million in remittances from firms based in China and Hong Kong. The non-commissioned survey, conducted October 16 to 19, asked Filipino adults nationwide whether they find this acceptable or unacceptable.
It found that 61% find it unacceptable, while only 20% consider the Chinese remittances acceptable. Around a fifth (19%) are unsure or refuse to answer.
The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) testified before the Senate impeachment court that Cale88 had transacted with multiple Chinese companies over the past years, reporting a total of 141 covered transaction reports and three suspicious transactions worth P319
million received by the company’s accounts.
Duterte neither confirmed nor denied the remitted funds. At an October press conference, she told reporters there should be nothing wrong with doing business or negotiating with China, which is one of the country’s trade partners.
Cale88 and its transactions were just one of the pieces of evidence and witness testimony the prosecution presented in arguing its unexplained wealth case against the vice president.
By region
Majorities across all regions, except Mindanao, consider the reported Chinese remittances to Duterte’s banana chips company unacceptable. Disapproval is strongest in Metro Manila (76%), followed by the Rest of Luzon and Visayas (65% each).
Mindanao is more divided, with 39% saying the remittances are unacceptable and 31% considering them acceptable. Another 3 in 10 (30%) are also unsure, the highest share across regions.
The findings should be read with the region’s ±5.8-percentage-point margin of error in mind.
By faction
While Duterte supporters might be expected to view the alleged remittances as acceptable, nearly half (49%) of Pro-Duterte adults actually consider them unacceptable, compared with a third (33%) who say they are acceptable.
Other factional groups, like the Pro-Opposition 1 and Independent, find the remittances to Cale88 more unacceptable at 79% and 67%, respectively. Nearly a fifth of Independents, however, are still unsure.
Among Marcos supporters, nearly two-thirds (65%) consider the Chinese remittances unacceptable, while 22% are unsure or have declined to answer. Despite this, this group is the least accepting of the transactions linked to the vice president.
By generation
All generational groups also align with the general consensus that it is unacceptable for a firm linked to the vice president to receive remittances from companies based in China and Hong Kong.
Filipinos who are least accepting of Cale88’s Chinese remittances are those from Gen X and Gen Z (66% each), followed by Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation (56%), and lastly by Millennials (54%).
The share of undecided is largest among Boomers, with almost 3 in 10 unsure or refusing to answer. Meanwhile, the younger generations have more or less a fifth still on the fence.
Conducted from October 16 to 19, the National Momentum Survey was carried out through face-to-face interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,401 Filipino adults. It has a national margin of error of ±2.6 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.
Subnational margins of error are ±7.0% for the National Capital Region, ±3.8% for the Rest of Luzon (North, South, and Central Luzon), ±6.1% for Visayas, and ±5.8% for Mindanao — all at a 95% confidence level.
Find the complete survey results on our public dashboard at momentumresearch.ph.
