VP Binay most trusted gov’t official – survey

MANILA — Vice President Jejomar Binay  said the results of the latest Pulse Asia survey showing that he is still the country’s most trusted top government official “encourages me to continue working hard as Vice President and member of the Cabinet.” 

Chief Justice Renato Corona, on the other hand, remains as the least trusted among the country’s top five government official, the same survey showed. 
The two heads of Congress — Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. — also suffered from ratings drop during the survey period, the poll showed.

”I am grateful to our people for their trust and support. I would also like to extend my sincerest thanks to President Aquino for his trust and confidence, and for giving me the chance to help him address the concerns of our people, particularly the poor,” Binay said.

He added that without the President’s trust and confidence, he would not have the opportunity to be of more service to the people.

In the Pulse Asia poll conducted from May 21 to June 4, both Binay’s approval and trust ratings remained unchanged at 83 percent and 81 percent, respectively, the same percentages he obtained in March this year.

Binay received a high 89-percent approval rating and an 84-percent trust rating in Mindanao.

Binay also received higher grades among the poorest Filipinos (84 percent approval rating and 83 percent trust rating).

The pollster noted that Binay is still “trusted by most Filipinos” despite the issues that plagued the government during the survey period, such as the rise in oil prices and the alleged special treatment extended by prison officials to several high-profile inmates.

Corona’s trust rating further dropped to 23 percent in May from 28 percent last March, while his approval rating also declined to 28 percent from 32 percent three months ago.

Enrile’s trust rating decreased to 49 percent from 56 percent last May. The same decline can be observed in his approval rating, which went down to 57 percent from 60 percent.

Belmonte, meanwhile, suffered the highest decreases in both trust and approval ratings among the country’s top officials. The House Speaker’s trust rating dropped 10 percentage points from 43 percent in March to 33 percent during the survey period.

His approval rating, meanwhile, dipped to 39 percent from 50 percent last March.

The survey was administered to 1,200 adults nationwide using face-to-face interviews. It has a margin-of-error of plus-or-minus three percent.