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SWS: 83% of Filipinos hopeful worst of COVID-19 is over


A record high 83% of adult Filipinos are hopeful that “the worst is behind us” with the COVID-19 crisis, the latest poll of Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.

The national survey conducted from April 19 to 27, 2022 at the same time found that 88% of Filipinos believed a “great deal/somewhat worried” that anyone in their immediate family might catch COVID-19.

The survey was conducted using face-to-face interviews of 1,440 respondents nationwide with 360 each in Balance Luzon, Metro Manila, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The sampling error margins are ±2.6% for national percentages and ±5.2% for Balance Luzon, Metro Manila, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The 83% who were hopeful was three points higher than the 80% in December 2021, and nearly twice as high as the 44% when SWS first asked the question in May 2020.

Meanwhile, those fearing “the worst is yet to come” fell from 19% in December 2021 to 16% in April 2022.

According to the SWS, most of those who expressed that “the worst is behind us” were from Mindanao with 86%, followed by Metro Manila with 82%, Balance Luzon with 82%, and Visayas with 81%.

Compared to December 2021, those saying “the worst is behind us” rose by 3 points from 83% in Mindanao, and by 6 points from 75% in Visayas.

It stayed at 82% in Metro Manila, while it hardly moved from 81% in Balance Luzon.

"On the other hand, the percentage of those fearing “the worst is yet to come” is slightly higher in the Visayas (18%), Balance Luzon (18%), and Metro Manila (17%) than in Mindanao (12%),” the pollster said.

“Compared to December 2021, those saying “the worst is yet to come” fell by 6 points from 24% in the Visayas, and by 5 points from 17% in Mindanao. It hardly moved from 17% in Balance Luzon and 18% in Metro Manila,” it added.

Worry on catching COVID-19 still at 88%

Likewise, the poll found that 88% of Filipinos believed a “great deal/somewhat worried” that anyone in their immediate family might catch COVID-19.

“This is similar to the 88% (72% a great deal worried, 16% somewhat worried) in December 2021, but 3 points below the 91% (76% a great deal worried, 15% somewhat worried) in September 2021,” the SWS said.

“Compared to past SWS surveys, worry about catching COVID-19 is much greater than worries about catching previous viruses such as Ebola, Swine Flu, Bird Flu, and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS),” it furthered.

Most of those who expressed that “a great deal/somewhat worried” on catching COVID-19 were from Visayas with 94%, followed by Mindanao with 93%, Balance Luzon with 85%, and Metro Manila with 83%.—LDF, GMA News

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