PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte continues to enjoy a “very good” public satisfaction rating even if his harsh rhetoric towards foreign allies have sparked concern among majority of Filipinos, the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed.
The poll, conducted from December 3 to 6, found that 77 percent of 1,500 respondents were satisfied and 13 percent were dissatisfied with the performance of President Duterte, or a net score of +63.
In Malacañang, Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said: “Surveys are snapshots of our people’s sentiments at any given time. We are thus grateful to the Filipino people for giving the President two consecutive ‘very good’ net satisfaction ratings.”
Duterte’s latest net score was down by just one point from +64 in September (76 percent satisfied against 11 percent dissatisfied), his first rating as President.
Public satisfaction with the President dropped in Mindanao, where his net rating went down by 11 points to +74 from +85. But this was still “excellent” and was the best reading among all geographical areas.
The President’s score stayed “very good” in the Visayas, at +61, down slightly from +62 in September. He maintained a “very good” score of +60 in “Balance Luzon,” three points up from +57 in September.
Net satisfaction in Metro Manila stayed in “very good” territory at +59 this month from September’s +58.
Duterte’s satisfaction rating was also “very good” in urban and rural areas. He scored +66 in urban areas, three points up from September’s +63 and +61 in rural areas, six points down.
The President also got “very good” ratings across all socioeconomic classes, even as they registered some declines.
Among males, Duterte scored +66, down five points from +71 in September while he scored +61 among females, three points down.
SWS classifies net satisfaction 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”; and -70 and below, “execrable.”
SWS conducted interviews with 1,500 adults nationwide. The poll had sampling error margins of ±3 points for national percentages, ±4 for Balance Luzon and ±6 points each for Metro Manila, the Visayas and Mindanao.
The results of the SWS fourth quarter survey were published in the newspaper BusinessWorld on Thursday.
Duterte’s cussing
Respondents were also asked if they agreed that Duterte’s use of expletives affected the country’s relationship with foreign officials.
Fifty-one percent agreed, 33 percent did not, and 17 percent were undecided.
Andanar asked for the “people’s understanding.”
“[T]hese utterances are not personal attacks directed at particular persons but mere expressions of disgust and impatience over the many unresolved and unaddressed issues that remain pervasive to this day,” Andanar said.