Public debate over Vice President Sara Duterte’s alleged threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has largely centered on whether her remarks constituted a serious threat. For most Filipinos, however, it matters little whether they were conditional or not.
Eighty percent of Filipinos consider Duterte’s statements against Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez “unacceptable,” according to the July survey of Momentum Research.
The non-commissioned national survey found that only 12.3% of respondents view the alleged threats “acceptable,” while 5.4% are unsure and 2.6% refuse to answer.
As with the survey’s other impeachment-related questions, Pro-Duterte and Mindanao respondents are more likely to express views favorable to the vice president than other political factions and regions.
While supermajorities across all regions consider the alleged threats “unacceptable,” the share is notably lower in Mindanao. About 7 in 10 respondents in the region hold this view, compared with nearly 8 in 10 in Metro Manila and Visayas, and nearly 9 in 10 in the Rest of Luzon.
The same pattern also appears across political factions, where 70.1% of Pro-Duterte respondents find the vice president’s alleged threats against the president “unacceptable.”
Although they still constitute a clear majority, by comparison, more than 8 in 10 respondents in the other political groups hold this view.
The contrast is just as pronounced when looking at respondents who consider the alleged threats “acceptable.” About 20.4% of Pro-Duterte respondents share this perspective, compared with 14.9% of Pro-Marcos respondents, 11.5% of Pro-Opposition* respondents, and 7.3% of Independents.
Conducted from July 13 to 16, the National Momentum Survey was carried out through face-to-face interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,438 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% for the National Capital Region, ±4% for the Rest of Luzon (North, South, and Central Luzon), ±6% for Visayas, and ±5% for Mindanao — all at a 95% confidence level.
