"Self rated poverty" as mediocre measurement

A paper last weekend by Dr. Mahar Mangahas, President of SWS.

Dismal science, dismal research?
By: Mahar Mangahas - April 01, 2023
https://opinion.inquirer.net/162115/dismal-science-dismal-research

The "Dismal science" here should refer to Economics, not Political Science, not Natural Dcience, etc. 

"Dismal research" here should imply economic poverty research. He wrote,

"When first surveyed nationally in 1983, Self-Rated Poverty was 55 percent of households. Now, as of the Fourth Quarter of 2022, it is 51 percent, or only 4 points less than four decades ago...

Economic growth is hardly helpful to the poor....

Self-Rated Poverty is much more realistic than official poverty."

I find this funny. So the poor who rode bicycles and cows in the 80s and 90s still ride bicycles and cows today? They don't ride motorcycles or 2nd hand cars? The poor who used slow mail and doves to send and receive mails in the 80s and 90s still use these until today? They don't use cell phones with messenger, viber, twitted, IG?

Self-rated poverty is likely driven by people who receive free public education, free healthcare, free monthly cash transfer, free condoms, free ayuda on top of cash transfer, etc. If they say that things have improved in their lives, some or most of these freebies might be gone. Sayang naman. So even if their lives have improved, many will say they are still poor horrible hungry desperate etc. So subjective.

So, far out that "self-rated poverty is more realistic than official poverty." Far out.

His article has implicit attack on Economics as a "dismal science", and explicit attack on economic measurement of poverty as "dismal research" and implying "less realistic" than self-rated poverty. 

Many corruptos in Congress, some Departments will be very happy to use this SWS survey. Four decades of growth and only 4% gain in self-rated poverty. It will give them alibi to demand "send us hundreds billions pesos yearly increases and we will fight self-rated poverty." Meaning hundreds billions pesos yearly of new borrowings, new taxes, new wastes.

"Economic growth is hardly helpful to the poor." Awww, pathetic. Sorry, Mahar.

Growth has allowed the poor to graduate from riding bicycles to riding motorcycles or 2nd hand cars. Growth has allowed the farmers to graduate from using cow de carabao in tilling 1 hectare ricefield for 2 weeks straight or more, to using modern tractors that can till 1 hectare for only 2 hours. Growth is helpful to the poor.