Survey Shows Majority Support for Return of ROTC, Capstone-Intel Explains
A recent survey conducted by Capstone-Intel Corporation revealed that 71% of respondents expressed support for reinstating the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program for senior high school students. However, there are certain inquiries regarding the validity and implications of the survey findings. To address these concerns, the radio program Yes Yes Yo, Topacio! of DWIZ conducted an interview on October 10 with the board members of Capstone-Intel, namely Chief Data Scientist Dr. Guido David and Research and Publications Director Ella Kristina Domingo-Coronel. “Para maipakita na ang inyong survey ay hindi bias, anong nag-udyok dito sa inyong organization na magsagawa ng research regarding the public approbation of ROTC?” asked radio host Atty. Ferdie Topacio. “One of the objectives of Capstone-Intel ay makuha ang sentiments ng mga tao sa issues na importante sa lipunan ito man ay laging media o social media. Ang basehan namin lagi rito ay social media analytics, kung ano ang trendings and then magsasagawa kami ng survey para ma-validate ang mga ito. Ito rin ang paraan na ma-normalize ang evidence-based policymaking sa Pilipinas,” explained Domingo-Coronel. “Usually after numbers (akala ng publiko) ‘yon na ‘yon. No. Pagkatapos ng evidence mayroong action like this one. Through our survey we hope that the policymakers will be able to get this and all other stakeholders para magamit nila sa kanilang next step ng kanilang decision making,” she added. The officials of Capstone-Intel provided additional clarification, emphasizing that while the public generally expresses support, there are also compelling reasons behind their decision to make changes. These reasons include ensuring the protection of students against abuses and corruption, as well as addressing the increased financial implications, among other factors. In addition, during the interview, radio host Dr. Che Lejano posed a question to Dr. David regarding the survey’s accuracy. “Gusto ko lamang linawin, itong study na ito was conducted nationwide survey with 1,210 respondents. Ang OCTA Research ay nag-conduct din ng similar survey noong January at malapit talaga ang results ng Capstone-Intel. Sa OCTA, 68% ang lumabas na sang-ayon na maibalik ang ROTC. It shows na kapag mataas ang correlation ng results ay mataas ang reliability ng study,” clarified Dr. David. The demographics of the respondents were also examined, with a notable level of agreement observed in Mindanao. “Mataas sa BARMM (Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) na 86%, kasi may ibang regions na nararamdaman nila ‘yong pangangailangan ng ROTC at may kaunting instability. Kapag ganyang sitwasyon, mas maganda na mayroon tayong reserve corps. Just remember na itong ROTC, reserve lamang sila at hindi sasabak sa giyera,” stressed Dr. David. **** To know more about the data, please click here.
Basketball Fans Warmly Welcome Tim Cone on Social Media
After the recent controversy surrounding the Philippine men’s basketball team’s former coach, it was announced that they had named a new coach to lead the team throughout the 2023 Asian Games. Tim Cone, as the new head coach of the Gilas Pilipinas squad, is no stranger to competitive basketball, whether local or international. He already has multiple championship titles on his belt, which cements his credibility as a coach. He was also the coach of the same team at the 1998 Asian Games as well as the 2022 Asian Games. Capstone-Intel Corporation looks into the sentiment revolving around his involvement in the latest sporting event. Capstone-Intel is a high-impact research company that uses innovative research technologies, tools, and methods to convert data and information into breakthrough insights and actionable intelligence outputs. It is committed to helping its clients solve problems, find solutions, grow markets and constituencies, build reputations, navigate risks, manage crises, and be the country’s leading private research and intelligence agency. Methodology From July 7, 2023 up until October 7, 2023, Capstone-Intel utilized its social listening tools in order to scan publicly available social media accounts for their posts that mention “Tim Cone”. It should be noted that there were no specific demographics or personal data that were tracked. Online presence The tool itself was able to scan 1612 mentions from various websites. 198 of those mentions come from X (formerly Twitter), 22 mentions on Tiktok, 518 from various news sites, 64 mentions from blogs, and 7 separate forums have also mentioned Tim Cone. 154 of these mentions come from other miscellaneous news sites, and the last 235 mentions come from other videos found on the internet. On Facebook, there were a total of 502 posts that mentioned Tim Cone, and in total, all the consolidated posts on Facebook were able to garner an engagement score of 165,852.8. This was derived from the total share count of 30,927 and the total reaction count of 1,282,387. Top Stories The top story that involves Tim Cone is one that was posted by Basketball Ground on Facebook, which garnered an engagement score of 23,242.9. In specifics, the post was able to gather 87,971 (52.1 percent) Like reactions, 80,328 (47.6 percent) Love reactions, 145 (0.1 percent) Haha reactions, 353 (0.2 percent) Wow reactions, and a count of 2 for both Sad and Angry reactions. The story with the second highest engagement score is from the Facebook page of One Sports, wherein they liken the return of Tim Cone with the idea of a TOTGA, commonly define as “The One That Got Away”. This was able to garner an engagement score of 18,886. Similar to the top story, it was able to gather 50,861 (37.1) Like reactions, 85,958 (62.7 percent) Love reactions, 51 Haha reactions, 263 Wow reactions, 1 Sad reaction, and 3 Angry reactions. Finally, the third most engaging post is from user Ramon S. Ang, with an engagement score of 12,268.5. In this post, the user is congratulating the Men’s basketball team for their accomplishments during the Asian Games. This post was able to gather 63,768 (62.8 percent) Like reactions, 37,313 (36.8 percent) Love reactions, 396 (0.4 percent) Wow reactions, 0 Sad reactions, and 2 Angry reactions. The top stories that mention Tim Cone all follow a pattern of extremely high Like and Love reactions, which indicate an overwhelmingly positive reception of his new position. The top stories that mention Tim Cone all follow a pattern of extremely high Like and Love reactions, which indicate an overwhelmingly positive reception of his new position.
Italian Embassy launches book on its 75th bilateral relations anniversary with the Philippines
The Embassy of Italy in the Philippines, under the leadership of His Excellency Ambassador Marco Clemente, hosts a media book launch to highlight the 75th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Italy and the Philippines on October 11, 2023, at 11:00 AM at Caruso Ristorante Italiano in Makati City. The book titled ‘Philippines-Italy: Rising Together’ narrates the long-standing relationship between the two countries that led to the advancement of each other’s culture, economy, and mutual understanding. In a press conference, Clemente highlighted that the book is a transformative power of international collaboration that compelled the two nations to “rise together,” making it significant during these times. “Seventy-five years of bilateral diplomatic relations represent a momentous anniversary in the lives of two countries and two nations, and certainly deserve to be celebrated in a memorable way,” says Amb. Clemente. The diplomat also underscored the need for the two countries to bind together to uplift their mutual understanding by working closely with the people and ensuring that they are at the center of this cooperation. “We need to strengthen our ties better by building initiatives that empower our people to succeed and make sure that they are rooted in our goal of rising together. This only suggests that these activities are centered on cultural, economic, and diplomatic advancement, so we need to work hand in hand to make this possible,” he emphasized. “I would like to express my gratitude to all the authors who have generously contributed to this collection. I would also like to extend my appreciation to my Ministry and to the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of the Philippines, which have supported my initiative since its inception,” he added. Aside from book launching, the Embassy of Italy in the Philippines plans to roll out a series of events on education, language, and performing arts that target the marginalized communities in Metro Manila. The embassy said it also plans to offer scholarship opportunities to Filipino students in order to help them fortify their careers with the help of Italian education.
