A survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) has revealed that at 8 out of 10 or at least 80 per cent of Filipinos are hoping the country is already past the “worst” phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The figure is up by over 40 points from 38 per cent in September last year, breaking the previous record of 69 per cent in November 2020 and the majority of those who expressed hope “the worst is behind us” came from Mindanao with 83 per cent, Metro Manila with 82 per cent, and Balance Luzon with 81 per cent. The Visayas region had 75 percent.
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The number of people fearing “the worst is yet to come,” on the other hand, dropped from 60 percent to only 19 percent, the SWS said as this garnered the highest response in Visayas at 24 percent, followed by Metro Manila at 18 percent.
The survey was conducted before the holidays, from Dec. 12 to 16, when new COVID-19 cases in the country were only averaging between 200 and 400 per day.
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It also found 88 percent of Filipinos are “a great deal or somewhat worried” that anyone in their immediate family might get infected with COVID-19 which is slightly down from 91 percent in September.
The survey also noted worries about contracting COVID-19 have always been “much greater than [those] about catching previous viruses,” namely Ebola, Swine Flu, Bird Flu, and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. (AW)
