(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte continues to have an “excellent” trust rating among Filipinos for this fourth quarter, with a +72 net trust rating, considered as one of the highest ever achieved by a Philippine president.
The figure however also represents a slight drop from the previous quarter’s +76 net trust rating in the September SWS survey.
The December 2016 Social Weather Survey was conducted from December 3-6, 2016 using face-to-face interviews of 1,500 adults (18 years old and above) nationwide, 600 in Balance Luzon and 300 each in Metro Manila, Visayas and Mindanao (sampling error margins of ±3% for national percentages, ±4% for Balance Luzon, and ±6% each for Metro Manila, Visayas and Mindanao).
The survey was initially reported in Businessworld, the SWS’ media partner in the polling.
Among those surveyed, 81 percent said they had “much trust” in the President, while 9 percent said they had “little trust,” (with percent “much trust” minus percent “little trust), thus achieving the +72 net trust rating which is still classified as “excellent.” Ten percent said they were undecided.
The SWS classifies net trust ratings of at least +70 as “excellent”; +50 to +69 as “very good”; +30 to +49, “good”; +10 to +29, “moderate”; +9 to -9, “neutral”; -10 to -29, “poor”; -30 to -49, “bad”; -50 to -69, “very bad” as well as -70 and below as “execrable.”
The SWS said the four-point drop of the President’s overall trust rating were because of declines in Metro Manila (from +76 in September to +65 in December), Mindanao (+92 to +85) and the Visayas (+73 to +69) that offset a steady score in “Balance Luzon.”
– Excellent trust ratings in urban and rural areas-
The President’s trust rating stayed “excellent” in both urban and rural areas, but also reflected a drop in points – from +75 in September to +73 in December in urban areas, and from +77 to +71 in rural areas.
The President also had “excellent” ratings in classes “D” and “E” but nevertheless there was a drop among class D from a +78 in September down to a +73 this December.
It was only in Class “E” that there was a rise in percentage points this quarter for Mr. Duterte – from +67 to +72.
Among classes “ABC,” the President’s trust rating dropped 13 points, from September’s +72 to this December’s “very good” rating of +59. This 13 point drop in a socio-economic class is the biggest in this survey period.
The President still scored “excellent” among male respondents, although there was a two-point slip from +77 to +75 this quarter.
Among women, the President’s rating dropped from an “excellent” +74 in September down to a “very good” +69.
“By educational attainment, the President’s net trust score stayed “excellent” among college and high school graduates, though down six points each, as well as remained “very good” and hardly moved among respondents who were elementary and non-elementary graduates,” a Businessworld report of the survey said.
However, Businessworld said that the four-point drop in net trust rating of the President is still considered “insignificant” citing an interview with University of Sto. Tomas political science professor Edmund Tayao. Tayao said this is still within the survey’s margin of error.