Survey: Tax cut sentiment tied to govt trust deficit

PUBLIC support for tax reduction, postponement, or abolition has strengthened alongside declining trust in government institutions, with concerns largely driven by perceived gaps in transparency and accountability, according to the latest pollster Pahayag survey. The PQ1-2026 nationwide survey found that a dominant majority of voters, or 88 percent, supported calls to reduce, delay, or remove certain taxes. Researchers said the sentiment reflected broad fiscal dissatisfaction and frustration over governance issues. The same level of public attention was observed for transparency-related issues, with respondents expressing strong backing for a Supreme Court petition seeking the release of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee report on alleged flood control anomalies. Closely linked to this was a concern about the handling of investigations into alleged irregularities in flood control programs, which was shared by 84 percent of respondents. Support for political reform also remained high, with 81 percent of those surveyed favoring a proposal to ban political dynasties up to the second degree of consanguinity, covering grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, and half-siblings. Meanwhile, 50 percent of respondents supported the termination of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) on March 31, 2026, citing perceived deficiencies in transparency and accountability in its operations. The survey results indicated that calls for tax relief were closely associated with broader demands for governance reforms, particularly on transparency, accountability, and anti-corruption measures. PQ1-2026 was an independent, noncommissioned nationwide purposive sampling survey conducted from March 21 to 24, 2026, with 1,509 respondents who were registered Filipino voters. Participants were randomly selected from the market research panel of PureSpectrum, a US-based panel marketplace with global operations and a regional office in Singapore. The survey had a national margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent. Pahayag is the corporate social responsibility arm of Publicus Asia Inc., which has tracked key governance and public opinion metrics since 2017. Vox Opinion Research has served as its commissioned research arm since 2013.

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