PH's top leaders lose popularity

Days before the Senate rendered its verdict against ex-chief justice Renato Corona, the performance and trust ratings of all the five top national officials dropped, according to the results of the Pulse Asia survey released Wednesday.
 
The survey fieldwork was conducted from May 20 to 26, during which Corona testified before the impeachment court which led to his conviction.
 
As compared to the survey conducted in March, the results showed that President Benigno Aquino III’s performance and trust ratings fell from 70 to 67 percent and from 69 to 65 percent, respectively.
 
The ratings of Vice President Jejomar Binay likewise dipped from 84 to 81 percent and from 80 to 78 percent.
 
Despite the decline, Binay welcomed the results of the Pulse Asia survey given that majority of Filipinos still approve and trust the two highest officials of the land.
 
“The results of the survey are a humbling validation that the people appreciate the work that President Aquino and I have been doing,” Binay said in a statement.
 
The Palace also welcomed the survey, saying that it shows that the Filipinos’ confidence in Aquino “remains strong.”
 
“Given what has transpired in the past few months, it shows that the Filipino people fully support the campaign to clean up the government and to revitalize our institutions,” Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said in a statement.
 
Senate Juan Ponce Enrile likewise enjoys the approval and trust of majority of Filipinos with a score of 68 and 62 percent, which dropped from 71 and 63 percent, respectively.
 
Meanwhile, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr.’s performance and trust ratings fell from 41 to 37 percent and from 32 to 29 percent.
 
Lastly, Corona, who was ousted as chief justice last May 29, has suffered from low performance and trust ratings which further dipped from 14 to 12 percent and from 11 to 10 percent.
 
Of the five top national officials, Binay once again obtained the highest scores in both performance and trust ratings.
 
“Again, it inspires me and my co-workers in government to give our best in serving our kababayans,” the vice president said.
 
The Pulse Asia survey used face-to-face interviews to 1,200 representative adults, and has a +/- 3 percent error margin at the 95 percent confidence level.