PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has landed in the top spot of Time magazine’s readers poll for the annual list of 100 most influential people in the world.
According to an article published by Time on Monday, Duterte snatched the five percent of the total "yes” votes as the poll ended Sunday night.
Duterte was ahead of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Pope Francis, United States billionaire Bill Gates and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who all received three percent of the total “yes” votes.
American politician Bernie Sanders topped the reader poll in 2016 while Russian President Vladimir Putin took the lead in 2015.
While Duterte topped the poll, Time noted that Duterte’s “controversial anti-drug campaign has inspired growing opposition from human rights groups and some political leaders, including Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo.”
Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella, in a statement, acknowledged Duterte’s winning in the poll.
Abella said Duterte has been admired by the Filipino people and international leaders because of his national agenda, which aims to prioritize "public interest first and foremost, especially the needs and aspirations of the poor and common people.”
“With or without the distinction, the President continues to be a hardworking government worker and a faithful servant of the filipino people,” Abella said.
The official Time 100 list, which is picked by the magazine editors, will be announced on April 20. (VoxPop Philippines)
