President Benigno S. Aquino III leads the singing of the National Anthem during the ceremonial signing of Republic Act No. 10533 or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 at the Rizal Ceremonial Hall of the Malaca?n Palace on Wednesday (May 15). The K to 12 program covers Kindergarten and 12 years of basic education (six years of primary education, four years of Junior High School, and two years of Senior High School) to provide sufficient time for mastery of concepts and skills, develop lifelong learners, and prepare graduates for tertiary education, middle-level skills development, employment, and entrepreneurship. In photo are Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, Jr., Senators Ralph Recto, Franklin Drilon and Edgardo Angara, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr., and Representatives Rosenda Ann Ocampo and Neptali Gonzales II. (MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – The controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program, aside from the pork barrel scam, caused the drop in the satisfaction ratings of the Aquino administration, Senate President Franklin Drilon said Monday.
“I would attribute this (drop) to the involvement of a number of our senators and members of Congress in the so-called PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) scandal, in the issue on DAP which has not been received well by our people and a few other factors,” Drilon said during a news forum in Manila.
A survey by the Social Weather Stations released Monday showed that the Aquino administration’s satisfaction rating fell to a new low, a “moderate” +29 , in June. It showed that only 56 percent were satisfied with the administration’s general performance, down from 65 percent in the first quarter.
Dissatisfaction went up to 26 percent from 20 percent in the first quarter, resulting in the +29 net satisfaction rating.
Critics questioned the DAP which allowed the executive branch in 2013 to use the savings and realign it to augment existing programs and projects and fund priority programs and projects not considered in the 2012 budget.
DAP hit the headlines after Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, one of the accused in the pork barrel scam, revealed that several senators received P50 million to P100 million after the conviction of Chief Justice Renato Corona by the Senate impeachment court.
On July 1, 2014, the Supreme Court declared as unconstitutional some provisions of DAP.
Drilon expressed confidence that the administration’s satisfaction rating will improve in the following months.
“This survey is focused on a particular period. I’m confident that the administration will recover from this and increase the net satisfaction level of this administration,” he said.
The Senate leader also said that the Aquino administration’s satisfaction rating is still better than that of the Arroyo administration.
“Why don’t we compare the Aquino administration’s satisfaction rating, which is more than a majority of our populace, compare it to where the previous administration was at this stage of their administration and you will see that the Aquino administration is faring much, much better,” he added. (MNS)