Most Filipinos favor Marcos’ WPS transparency, says Pulse Asia

Photo of a Chinese vessel using water cannon on the BRP Pagbuaya, a vessel of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, in a photo posted by Commodore Jay Tarriela, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson on the West Philippine Sea, on Sunday, October 12, 2025. The Chinese vessel later rammed the Pagbuaya. — Photo from Jay Tarriela/Facebook

MANILA, Philippines — A vast majority of Filipinos approve of the Marcos administration’s shift toward greater transparency in West Philippine Sea operations, a Pulse Asia survey has shown.

Commissioned by We Protect our Seas (WPS) foundation, the Pulse Asia survey held from Sept 27-30 and published on Wednesday revealed that 94 percent of Filipinos believe that the transparency initiative to expose China’s coercive behavior in the West Philippine Sea should continue.

On the other hand, only five percent disagreed, while one percent remained undecided.

“The data affirms that Filipinos understand the importance of transparency in defending our national interests and upholding international law,” Jeffrey Ordaniel, president of WPS Foundation, said in a statement.

READ: Marcos-successor-must-carry-on-fight-for-west-ph-sea-tarriela/

Ordaniel said this shows the public’s “growing demand for truthful and timely information” in the West Philippine Sea.

PCG most trusted for WPS info

The survey also found that 41 percent of respondents identified the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) as the most trustworthy government agency for updates and incident reports concerning the West Philippine Sea.

Trust in the PCG was consistently high across regions, with the agency topping the list in Metro Manila (42 percent), Luzon (43 percent), and the Visayas (42 percent) and Mindanao at 35 percent.

The survey also showed significant urban-rural differences, revealing a strong provincial base for the PCG, with 48 percent of rural respondents expressing trust in the Coast Guard compared with 39 percent in urban areas.

“It is clear that the Philippine Coast Guard has been effective in communicating the government’s principled, law-based approaches to maritime issues,” Ordaniel said.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Navy ranked second with 19 percent, followed by the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea at 14 percent.

Other agencies mentioned in the survey include the Armed Forces of the Philippines (eight percent), Department of National Defense (five percent), Department of Foreign Affairs (three percent), National Security Council (two percent), and National Maritime Council (two percent).

US most trusted in WPS deterrence

Meanwhile, 77 percent of respondents identified the United States, Manila’s sole treaty ally, as the top country capable of managing Beijing provocations.

The second most trusted partner is Japan (45 percent), followed by Australia (30 percent).

Ordaniel said this shows that Filipinos clearly recognize the importance of working with like-minded powers to resist China’s assertion of sovereignty in almost the entire South China Sea, which impinges on the country’s sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea backed by a landmark international tribunal ruling.

READ: PH strongly condemns China’s ‘illegal, reckless action’ in WPS

“Strong public confidence in the United States—our sole treaty ally—and the favorable perception towards partners such as Japan, Australia, and Canada demonstrate a deepening awareness that international cooperation, credible deterrence, and transparency—not silence or appeasement—are vital to countering Beijing’s aggression and coercive activities in the West Philippine Sea,” he said.

Manila and Washington are bound by a Mutual Defense Treaty that calls for each other’s defense in case of an armed attack.

Also, Manila has a status of visiting forces agreement with Canberra and the Reciprocal Access Agreement with Tokyo, pacts that enable mechanisms for shared military training and operations and larger joint exercises.

Marcos reversal of Duterte policy

Duterte pivoted to China but Marcos reversed this move.

Aside from the “transparency initiative”, Marcos’ administration also greenlighted joint patrols and military exercises with the United States and other like-minded nations in the West Philippine Sea, allowed its treaty ally access to four more military bases under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, and the deployment of two American missile systems in northern Luzon. These moves had earned the ire of China.

Previously, Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Tarriela said the next president needs to “pursue” the Marcos administration’s move to “expose and publicize the aggressive actions” of China in the West Philippine Sea.

Tarriela made the appeal as he cited lessons from the past administration that allegedly tried to “hide and downplay” the West Philippine Sea situation. /mr