This handout photo from the House of Representatives website shows the House Committee of the Whole holding deliberations on March 6, 2024 on Resolution on Both Houses No.7, which seeks amendments to economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution.  House of Representatives Press and Public Affairs Bureau, handout.

MANILA — Pulse Asia president Ronald Holmes stands by the pollster's latest survey showing majority rejection of charter change after House lawmakers raised questions on how it was done.

"We have been running the questions for 20 years," Holmes said in a text message to ABS-CBN News.

"The sequence is we start with asking if they favor charter change, in general, then the specific changes proposed now and before are posed later."

Holmes' statement came in the wake of criticism from House lawmakers who have been at the forefront of charter change efforts.

Survey results provide a snapshot of public opinion, which can change over time. 

"Why include questions that people don't want and are not related to the ongoing process in Congress? Is this black propaganda?" Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe of Zamboanga City asked in a statement.

"Including unrelated questions in the survey only serves to confuse and mislead the public," Dalipe asserted, calling for a more objective approach in future surveys.

He said a plebiscite, which would be needed to ratify any proposed changes to the 1987 Constitution, would be a better gauge of public opinion on charter change.

“The people’s voice should be heard directly through a plebiscite, not through biased surveys,” he said.

READ: 3 in 4 Filipinos oppose charter change: Pulse Asia survey

Deputy Speaker David Suarez of Quezon claimed that the survey questions seemed to have been written "to steer respondents towards a specific viewpoint on Charter amendments."

He said that including questions on "contentious issues such as term extension, foreign exploitation of natural resources, and a shift from a presidential to a parliamentary system of government" may have skewed respondents' answers.

Senate and House leaders, as well as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, have said that any changes to the constitution will be limited to economic provisions.

Those opposed to charter change — including members of the Duterte family, the minority Liberal Party and activist groups Bagong Alyansang Makabayan and Akbayan — are wary of charter change, warning tinkering with economic provisions could lead the way to changes in political provisions too.

"The wording of survey questions should accurately reflect the actual provisions being proposed for amendment," Suarez also said.

House Assistant Majority Leaders Jil Bongalon of Ako Bicol Partylist, Paolo Ortega V of La Union, and Zia Alonto Adiong of Lanao del Sur raised similar issues in a separate statement.

According to the latest Pulse Asia survey, 74 percent of respondents believe that the 1987 Constitution "should not be amended now nor any other time.” 

Before going on its Lenten Break, the House of Representatives approved a charter change resolution which needs Senate concurrence before it becomes implementable.

Senators however believe the survey is reason enough not to rush into charter change.