MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte maintained the highest trust and approval rating from among the top government officials, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey.
In its December 10 to 15 and 17, 2017 survey, Duterte received an approval rating of 80 percent and a trust rating of 82 percent.
The survey also showed that most Filipinos remain appreciative of the work of Vice President Leni Robredo (59 percent approval rating; 58 percent trust rating) and Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III (57 percent approval rating; 53 percent trust rating).
Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has an approval rating of 42 percent and trust rating of 37 percent, while Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, who is facing an impeachment complaint at the House of Representatives obtained only 31 percent approval rating and 27 percent trust rating.
As in its previous Ulat ng Bayan surveys, Pulse Asia’s nationwide survey was based on a sample 1,200 respondents. It has a +/-3% error margin at the 95 percent confidence level.
Of the three key institutions of government, only the Senate registered majority approval and trust scores in the survey (55 percent and 56 percent, respectively). Approval for and trust in the House of Representatives were expressed by a near majority of Filipinos (50 percent and 49 percent, respectively).
The Supreme Court got 48 percent approval rating and 45 percent trust rating.
Among the news developments which preoccupied the Filipinos in the weeks prior to and during the conduct of the survey are:
• The ratification by Congress of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) bill which seeks to raise more revenues for the Duterte administration’s infrastructure program, among others, and its approval of the P 3.7 T national budget for 2018;
• The approval by Congress of President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s request to extend the declaration of martial law in Mindanao for a year or until 31 December 2018;
• The hearings being conducted by the House Committee on Justice on the impeachment complaint against Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes A. Sereno;
• The suspension of the Department of Health’s (DOH) dengue immunization program following the admission of Sanofi, the manufacturer of the Dengvaxia vaccine, that it would have severe oreven fatal effects on those who have no prior dengue virus infection;
• The return of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to the anti-illegal drugs campaign of the Duterte administration, with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) remaining as the lead agency;
• President Duterte’s issuance of a proclamation declaring the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the National People’s Army (NPA) as terrorist organization.
