Noynoy, Mar most trusted candidates – Pulse Asia

MANILA, Philippines – The Liberal Party (LP) said yesterday its standard-bearer, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and his running mate, Sen. Manuel Roxas II were the most trusted by Filipino voters among public figures and among all candidates running in the presidential and vice-presidential elections on May 10, according to a Pulse Asia survey.

In contrast, voters’ trust for their rivals, Nacionalista Party standard-bearer Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. and his running mate, Sen. Loren Legarda’s ratings declined, with Villar suffering a double-digit drop.

 

According to LP, the latest Pulse Asia survey conducted from Feb. 21 to 25 among 1,800 respondents also showed Aquino and Roxas topping voters’ preferences for president and vice president, respectively if elections were held today.

Pulse Asia said Aquino enjoyed the “big trust” of 64 percent of Filipino voters, making him the most trusted candidate for president. Only 14 percent of voters said they had “small/no trust” for Aquino, with the rest undecided.

Roxas, on the other hand, still earned the highest trust among Filipino voters with 70 percent saying they had “big trust” in him, with only 10 percent having “small/no trust” and the rest undecided.

Villar’s ratings dipped to 59 percent due to an 11-point drop among Filipinos with ”big trust” in him.

Legarda’s trust rating likewise went down to 58 percent, or a drop of three percent from her January trust rating.

Among the presidential candidates, former President Joseph Estrada came third with 40 percent, followed by administration standard-bearer Gilberto Teodoro Jr. with 29 percent and Sen. Richard Gordon with a 25 percent rating.

In the vice presidential race, Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay came third, with only 45 percent; former Metro Manila Development Authority chief Bayani Fernando with 22 percent and actor Edu Manzano, 19 percent.

Aquino and Roxas are campaigning on a platform of good governance and transformational leadership. They promised to open their bank accounts to public scrutiny to stress their commitment to wipe out graft and corruption in government.

• Philstar