Petro’s Disapproval Rating Rises as Colombians Fret About Graft
(Bloomberg) -- President Gustavo Petro’s disapproval ratings rose in December, topping that of other regional leaders, as Colombians fret about corruption and crime.
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Disapproval of the leftist leader government’s increased 5.2 percentage points to 56%, while his approval rating fell to 39%, according to according to LatAm Pulse, a survey conducted by AtlasIntel for Bloomberg News.
Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum was the most popular leader among the countries surveyed, with an approval rating of 60%.
Colombians see corruption as by far their nation’s biggest problem, followed by insecurity and the failure of the justice system, the poll found.
Last month, Diego Guevara was appointed finance minister after Petro asked his close ally Ricardo Bonilla to resign amid a criminal investigation over alleged corruption. Bonilla denies wrongdoing.
Cocaine Plants
On the security front, a study found that amount of land planted with coca, the raw material for making cocaine, rose 10% in 2023 to a record 253,000 hectares.
The poll found that 48% of respondents considered that management of the economic policy in Petro’s administration is worse than that of his predecessor Ivan Duque who faced the Covid 19 pandemic.
The Colombian peso weakened 12.5% last year as the government struggles to rein in the fiscal deficit amid lower-than-expected revenue. Inflation overshot the central bank’s 2%-4% target range for a fourth straight year.
AtlasIntel conducted its survey for Colombia Dec. 26-31 with 1,807 respondents. It has a 95% confidence level and +/-2% margin of error.
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