Digested information on the Social Weather Station (SWS) Survey Conducted on October 24-27, 2009

Wednesday, January 20, 2010, 16:51
Opinions, press releases, statements
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The Social Weather Station (SWS) October 2009 National Survey was conducted from October 24-27, 2009 using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults in Metro Manila, the Balance of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao (sampling error margins of ±3% for national percentages, ±6% for area percentages) . The area estimates were weighted by National Statistics Office medium-population projections for 2009 to obtain the national estimates.

The SWS survey questions on public anxiety about the 2010 automated election are non-commissioned, and were included on SWS’s own initiative and released as a public service, with first printing rights assigned to BusinessWorld.

The survey revealed the following results:

Half (49%) of adults sense that people power will happen if the 2010 elections fail, according to the SWS October 24-27, 2009 National Survey.
The survey also found that 47% fear the counting machines are vulnerable to sabotage, and that 44% trust the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to ensure the counting machines will not be sabotaged (Chart 1).
Sense of people power in case of election failure
To the test statement, “If the 2010 elections fail for any reason, e.g., malfunctioning of counting machines, then people power will probably happen already [Kung mabigo ang eleksyon sa 2010 sa anumang dahilan, halimbawa, kapalpakan ng mga makinang pambilang ng boto, malamang magkakaroon na ng people power o ang pagprotesta ng napakaraming mamamayan sa kalye], 49% agree and 22% disagree, for a net agreement score of +27 (% agree minus % disagree). The remaining 26% neither agree nor disagree (Chart 2).
Majority (58%) in Balance Luzon and over half (54%) in Metro Manila sense people power or massive street protests in case of election failure. Plurality (40%) in Mindanao share this anxiety.
The survey found mixed opinions about the statement in the Visayas, with 38% agree, 33% neither agree nor disagree, and 25% disagree.
Fear for the vulnerability of the counting machines to sabotage
The October 2009 survey found that 47% agree and 28% disagree with the test statement, “The machines that will be used to count the votes in the 2010 election can easily be sabotaged in order to fake the election results [Ang mga makinang gagamitin sa pambilang ng boto sa eleksyon sa 2010 ay madaling masabotahe para dayain ang resulta ng eleksyon]. Twenty-three percent neither agree nor disagree (Chart 3).
Over half in Metro Manila (56%) and Balance Luzon (55%) fear the vulnerability of the counting machines to sabotage.
Opinions are mixed in the Visayas, with 37% expressing fear of sabotage, 33% undecided, and 27% expressing confidence in the counting machines against sabotage.
On the other hand, a plurality 41% in Mindanao express confidence that the counting machines cannot be easily sabotaged, compared to 33% who express fear of sabotage.
Trust in the COMELEC to guard against sabotage
To the test statement, “COMELEC can be trusted to make sure that there is no sabotage of the machines to be used to count the votes in the 2010 election [Ang COMELEC ay mapagkakatiwalaan na siguraduhin na hindi masasabotahe ang mga makinang gagamitin sa pagbilang ng boto sa eleksyon sa 2010], 44% agree and 28% disagree. The remaining 26% neither agree nor disagree (Chart 4).
Plurality in Balance Luzon (47%), Metro Manila (45%), and Mindanao (45%) trust that the COMELEC can guard against sabotage in the 2010 elections.
Opinions tend to be mixed in the Visayas, with 37% expressing trust, 35% undecided, and 25% expressing distrust in the COMELEC.