Duterte approval rating at 80 percent, down two points from June —Pulse Asia

President Rodrigo Duterte’s approval rating is down two percentage points in September from June 2017, but 80 percent of Filipinos still approve of his work and trust him, according to the results of a Pulse Asia Survey released Friday.

According to the survey, Duterte enjoys an 80-percent approval rating, slightly lower than June’s 82 percent. Eighty percent of Filipinos have "big trust" in him, too, according to the survey.

Duterte’s approval rating is highest among the poorest Filipinos, with Class E rating at 86 percent, Class D at 79 percent, and Class ABC at 75 percent.

Although 80 percent of those surveyed trust Duterte, 14 percent are undecided. Six percent, meanwhile, said they distrust him.

Duterte got 85 percent trust rating among Class E; 80 percent among Class D; and 74 percent among Class ABC.

Approval ratings of top national officials have all dropped, albeit by varying degrees, according to the survey, which was conducted from September 24-30, 2017 through face-to-face interviews with 1,200 adults.

The drop in approval ratings for the work of government leaders in the executive, legislative and judiciary branches of government range from two to 13 percentage points. Duterte’s two-point drop is the smallest drop, while Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno’s 13-point approval rating drop is the biggest drop among the five national officials that were the subjects of the survey.

Palace reaction

Malacañang on Friday welcomed the latest Pulse Asia survey results.

Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella pointed out that the survey conducted on September 24-30 was at the height of the demolition job against Duterte.

"Despite the multi-faceted political noise, President Duterte is still the most approved and the most trusted government official in the Philippines today," he said.

"We hope the survey results will inspire us in government that despite the odds and challenges, we continue to provide a comfortable life for all Filipinos in an environment free of illegal drugs and criminality," he said.

Key events, survey details

Salient events during the survey period, include the Senate investigation into the P6.4-billion shabu shipment from China, the sacking of the Caloocan police force in light of the deaths of minors Carl Angelo Arnaiz and Reynaldo de Guzman, the commemoration of the 45th anniversary of the proclamation of martial law, and the hazing death of law student Horacio Castillo III, among many others. 

The survey has a margin of error of ± 3% error margin at the 95 percent confidence level. Subnational estimates for Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao have a ± 6 percent error margin at the 95 percent confidence level.

No singular party commissioned the survey, according to Pulse Asia.

Just recently, a separate survey by the Social Weather Stations recorded an 18-point drop in Duterte’s approval rating. —KG, GMA News