Duterte sets record with highest trust rating at start of term: Pulse

President Rodrigo Duterte's trust rating of 91% at the start of his term is the highest rating among presidents, the chief of Pulse Asia revealed on Wednesday.

Professor Ronnie Holmes told ANC's Dateline Philippines that among the presidents they have covered, which included the two terms of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and President Benigno Aquino III's, Duterte's was the highest.

"This is higher than what we’ve seen at the start of the terms of the two prior presidents. President Aquino had a trust rating of 85% in the first survey that we’ve conducted, and President Arroyo had about 52% in the third quarter of 2004," he said.

"It’s the highest numerically, it’s the highest trust rating of the president at the beginning of his or her term," he said.

The survey, conducted last July 2 to 8, after the oath-taking of Duterte and Vice President Maria Leonor Robredo, showed that Duterte is beginning his stint at the country's 16th president with an "overwhelming majority of his constituents expressing trust in him (91%)."

The survey said 8 percent of Filipinos cannot say if they trust or distrust Duterte while only 0.2% said they have small or no trust in the President.

READ: Nearly all Pinoys trust Duterte: Pulse Asia

However, Holmes also noted that relative to the trust ratings obtained by presidents as their terms progress, the first trust rating is normally the highest.

"It’s always at the start when people are more receptive and more appreciative of the incoming president, and it’s an indication of high expectations with respect to the president that had immediately assumes the position," he said.

The length of time the presidents are able to maintain their high trust ratings vary, said Holmes.

"President Aquino was able to maintain it for a longer period relative to the two former presidents," he said.

Aquino, he recalled, reached an 80%, just five points shy from his start-of-term rating.

RESULT OF ANTI-DRUG DRIVE?

Holmes said it's difficult to gauge if the survey ratings were affected by the recent spate of drug-related killings, but noted that among Duterte's campaign promises is "to rid the country of this pervasive problem of illegal drugs."

"Those drug-related killings, the nature of which is something that is, of course, questioned by some groups, may be seen by a number as an indication of the resolute action taken by the president specifically with regard to his campaign promise," he said.

He added that their survey also indicated that reducing criminality was not the most important issue that Filipinos expect the administration to focus on.

Instead, it showed Filipinos want the Duterte administration to prioritize three economic issues: controlling increases in prices (68%), creating employment opportunities (56%) and crafting new pro-poor programs (55%).