As the country awaits President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s third State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 22, findings from a survey by OCTA Research showed that inflation remains the most urgent national concern among nearly two-thirds of Filipinos.

Based on the results of the 2nd quarter of 2024 “Tugon ng Masa” nationwide survey conducted from June 26 to July 1, 65 percent of Filipinos identified “controlling the increase in prices of basic goods and services” as the most urgent national concern requiring action from the Marcos administration.

OCTA said inflation remains the primary concern across major areas and income classes.

Other urgent national concerns among Filipinos include access to affordable food such as rice, vegetables, and meat, with 40 percent highlighting this issue.

The survey also revealed that 33 percent of Filipinos want the Marcos administration to prioritize increasing or improving wages and salaries, while an equal percentage emphasize the need for creating more jobs.

Reducing poverty followed closely behind at 28 percent.

The least priorities mentioned by Filipinos were providing free quality education (18 percent), fighting graft and corruption in government (17 percent), defending and strengthening ownership of the Philippines over the West Philippine Sea (15 percent), fighting criminality (11 percent), and promoting peace and order in the country (10 percent).

Regional differences

In Mindanao, 71 percent of Filipinos prioritize controlling the increase in prices of basic goods and services as a pressing national concern, marking the highest percentage among major regions.

Conversely, in the Visayas, 51 percent of Filipinos are notably more concerned about access to affordable food compared to other major areas.

OCTA also observed that the proportion of Filipinos expressing concern about improving or increasing wages and salaries of workers is relatively higher in the National Capital Region (NCR) and the Visayas, at 36 percent, compared to Balance Luzon and Mindanao.

Among socioeconomic classes, the concern about controlling inflation is most pronounced in Class D and E, with 66 percent and 65 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, 48 percent of Filipinos in Class E expressed a heightened concern about access to affordable food compared to other socioeconomic groups.

Moreover, Filipinos in Class ABC show a higher level of concern regarding the creation of more jobs as a pressing national concern, with 40 percent expressing this sentiment.

“While there was no significant difference observed among Filipinos who are worried about inflation, those concerned about access to affordable food declined by four percentage points this quarter compared to the first quarter survey conducted last March 2024,” OCTA said.

The survey, conducted through face-to-face interviews, involved 1,200 adult respondents aged 18 and above, selected using probability sampling.