Photo credit: PCO

The latest OCTA survey, conducted from December 16 to 20, 2025, leaves little doubt. It is a verdict on public sentiment.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s trust rating has dropped sharply, from 57 percent in September to 48 percent, with his performance score barely holding a majority.

In contrast Vice President Sara Duterte’s trust and satisfaction ratings are climbing, signaling growing confidence in her leadership as many Filipinos feel the effects of everyday hardships.

The real question is not what happened.
The question is why Malacañang refuses to see what is right in front of it.

This administration has perfected the art of talking to no effect.

Malacañang and its allies talk endlessly.
Press briefings. Clarifications. Palace mouthpieces more interested in airtime than answers.

Legislative allies grandstanding on cue.
Cabinet members rushing to microphones with rehearsed outrage.

Communications consultants crafting narratives no one outside the echo chamber believes. Keyboard warriors flooding social media with spin.

At some point, even the most patient Filipino gets tired of being talked at.

While the Palace explains, justifies, and sugarcoats, VP Sara Duterte moves.

She is in Cebu, standing amid a garbage crisis.

She is in Basilan, facing grieving families after a sunken boat tragedy.

She goes around the country quietly with less talk and more presence.

That contrast is not accidental. It is instinctive leadership, and Filipinos feel it.
People are exhausted.

We are tired of overexposed spokespersons who sound irritated when questioned.

We are tired of consultants who believe messaging can replace performance. We are tired of officials who mistake repetition for persuasion.

We are tired of being told to understand the context while daily life grows harder.

This is where Marcos is losing us.

Look at the Cabinet. The problem is not optics. It is performance.

The Department of Tourism has struggled to uplift the sector. The Department of Energy has not shielded Filipinos from high power costs. The Department of Agriculture has not consistently delivered affordable food and stability to farmers. The Department of Transportation has been unable to relieve the daily suffering of commuters.

Anyone who rides the MRT or LRT knows this. Trains are packed beyond human dignity. When we were younger and commuting, we used to describe a full train as 'sardinas.' Packed, yes, but still manageable.

Today, commuters joke it is no longer sardinas. It is 'corned beef,' compressed, compact to the point of discomfort.

That is not progress. That is regression disguised as reform. These are not abstract policy failures. These are daily life failures.

Instead of decisive correction,
Malacañang doubled down on bureaucracy.

A bloated ecosystem of presidential advisers, consultants, undersecretaries, assistant secretaries, and strategic advisers now crowds the Palace.

Endless meetings. Endless talking points. Endless taxpayer money burned to defend underperformers, while ordinary Filipinos ask a simple question: where are the results.

This is not governance. This is waste

No communications team, no matter how aggressive, can erase lived experience. No spokesperson, however combative, can argue down hunger.

No consultant, however clever, can spin cheap electricity, affordable food, or humane transport into existence. No keyboard army can drown out the daily misery of commuters crushed inside trains.

Filipinos are not stupid. We know when we are being managed instead of served.

This is why Duterte gains ground.
She does not hide behind jargon. She does not sound annoyed when questioned. She does not treat visibility as optional.

She shows up where problems are ugly and unavoidable, sending a clear message: we see the mess, and we face it.

Meanwhile, Malacañang looks insulated and defensive, surrounded by people who talk a lot but fix little.

There is fear of admitting mistakes, fear of reshuffling, fear of offending allies who should have been replaced long ago.
Leadership does not work that way.

In moments of crisis, the President appears cautious to a fault. Duterte appears decisive.

In Philippine politics, decisiveness beats perfect messaging every time.

This is not about style. It is about results.

We want cheap medicines.
We want affordable food.
We want reliable electricity.
We want humane and efficient transportation.
We want less corruption, not lectures about corruption.

The OCTA survey reflects something deeper than approval ratings. It reflects a growing belief that Malacañang is out of touch with daily suffering.

It shows an administration surrounded by too many talkers and too few fixers. It exposes a dangerous assumption that spin can substitute for delivery.

That belief carries consequences.

Once trust erodes, no amount of messaging can restore it. Once people feel talked down to, they stop listening.

Once they stop listening, numbers fall quietly and relentlessly.

Marcos still has time, but not much.

This moment demands ruthless honesty.

Poor Cabinet choices must be corrected. Deadweight advisers must be cut loose.
Communications must stop mistaking volume for credibility.

Governance must move from explanation to execution.

Sara Duterte’s rise is not accidental. It is a response.

A response to fatigue.
A response to frustration.
A response to leadership that shows up instead of talking over people.

The question is unavoidable. Why are Filipinos turning away from Marcos and toward Duterte.

One side keeps talking. The other keeps showing up.

Sa pulitika, dumarami ang salita kapag kulang ang gawa.

Ang problema sa Gobyerno, ang daming nagsasalita pero kakaunti ang may ginagawa.