Survey says majority of Dabawenyos aware of EDCA but

DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 28 June)— A survey conducted by the Institute of Popular Opinion (IPO) of the University of Mindanao showed that majority of Dabawenyos are aware of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the United States and the Philippines.

_{Filipino soldiers with a US trooper during a military exercise inNorth Cotabato. MindaNews file photo by GENE BOYD R. LUMAWAG}

But only 14.5 percent of them are aware of the specific provisions of the bilateral agreement allowing the US military to have access to Philippine military bases for various activities.

Conducted from June 7 to 13 in the three political districts of Davao City, the results of the survey suggest that 65.2 percent of the respondents have knowledge about EDCA.

Some 1,200 respondents were randomly selected for the survey based on a predefined criteria.

According to the IPO, a mix bag of response was noticed when the respondents were asked whether they are familiar with the details of the defense cooperation agreement.

At least 49.3 percent, or almost half of the respondents, said they are only “somewhat” familiar with the details of EDCA while 36.2 percent are “not familiar” at all, results of the survey showed. Only 14.5 percent are aware of the specific provisions of the agreement.

As to their sources of information on discussions about EDCA, at least 78.3 percent of the respondents learned about the agreement from news websites or online articles, 65.2 percent from social media, 40.6 percent from local government or official statements, and 23.2 percent from public forums.

The survey also noted that 89.9 percent of Dabawenyos do not participate or have not participated in any discussions or forums about EDCA.

At least 73.9 percent of the respondents claimed that EDCA would further strengthen the defense and security of the Philippines, 58 percent perceived EDCA as protecting sovereignty and national interests of the country, and 50.7 percent believed it would address regional security concerns.

The survey said 50.7 percent of the Dabawenyo respondents feel that EDCA could have a positive impact on Davao City and its surrounding areas, 29 percent are unsure of its any direct impact, and 14.5 percent see no impact of EDCA to the city.

The UM-IPO said that “further open-ended probings revealed several purposes: power struggle between US and China, using the Philippines as a pawn in a brewing war, EDCA being useless to economic growth of the Philippines, EDCA being a tool to exploit Philippines, EDCA being used as a leverage to gain advantage in Southeast Asia, among others.” (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)

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