Philippine President Benigno Aquino's approval and trust ratings have plunged to their lowest ever as public anger over the killing of 44 policemen in a clash with rebels in January hurt his popularity, a pollster said today.
The president's poor ratings could have implications for a 2016 presidential election even though he will not be standing.
A police inquiry found Aquino responsible for a bungled mission against a top Malaysian bomb-maker on a southern island that sparked the January 25 clash and put at risk efforts to forge peace with the country's largest Muslim rebel group.
A survey by independent pollster Pulse Asia, taken during the first week of March, showed Aquino's approval ratings dropped from 59 per cent to 38 per cent. His trust rating fell from 56 per cent to 36 per cent.
"This was the largest decline in both approval and trust ratings in five years," Professor Ronald Holmes, president of Pulse Asia, told Reuters.
Holmes said the president's ratings were affected by the January clash in which at least 18 rebels were also killed.
Aquino is not eligible for re-election under the constitution, which limits presidents to one term, but prospects for the candidate of Liberal Party in a 2016 presidential election are likely to be damaged if his popularity is undermined.
Political analysts say the January clash, known as the Mamasapano incident after the place it happened, has blown up into Aquino's biggest political crisis.
"These ratings will have serious implications in the 2016 elections. An Aquino endorsement may be a kiss of death."
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