Full Report Dari Merdeka Center
News Release,
June 8th, 2010,
Malaysian voters have mixed views on government KPIs - survey >
BANGI – Peninsular Malaysia voters showed wide-ranging views on the government’s key
result areas but at the same time the Prime Minister’s approval rating remained steady in positive
territory as found in the opinion poll released by Merdeka Center for Opinion Research today.
With respect to the National Key Result Areas (NKRA), the survey showed that a majority still
find the efforts to fight corruption and crime to be lower than expected:
• 61% of respondents were dissatisfied with the performance in fighting corruption
• 57% of respondents were dissatisfied with efforts in reducing crime;
On the other hand, the survey found:
• 52% were satisfied with efforts to improve living standards of those in rural areas;
• 54% were satisfied with efforts to render assistance to those that need it;
• 56% were satisfied with efforts to improve public transportation; and
• 63% were satisfied with efforts to improve the quality of education in primary and secondary schools.
Poll Report 08 June 2010 Malaysian voters have mixed views on government KPIs
Public remains split over national direction
When provided with a list of issues, 53% of the voters chose ‘fighting corruption’ as the most
important issue that the government should pay attention to.
The survey found that Malaysians for the most part remained split over the direction of the
country with 52% saying it was on the “right direction” while 34% said “wrong direction” while
14% were uncertain or could not tell.
With respect to issues, the survey found that public concern over the economy was highest at
22%. Worries over social problems stood at 14% while concerns on national unity issues was
third-highest at 13%. Worries over political stability had eased to 10%, tied with concerns over
crime and public safety.
Public sentiment on the economy remains mixed
47% of voters felt that current economic conditions as favorable, this is lower than the 52%
recorded in April 2010. Of the four indicators used to track public sentiments on the economy,
the survey found a marked decline among those satisfied with their personal income levels which
dropped to 46% from 52% previously. It should be noted that none of the indicators – personal
income, consumer prices, job opportunities and business opportunities stood above 50% at the
time the survey was conducted.
Voter optimism in the economy remained unchanged with 53% saying that the economy will be
better in one years’ time. The figure among ethnic Chinese voters expressing optimism over the
economy was 37% also unchanged since April 2010.
PM’s approval rating remains strong
72% of Malaysians said that they were satisfied with Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s
performance in this survey which is higher compared to 69% recorded in April 2010. Broken
down into ethnic groups, the survey found 77% of the Malays, 58% of the Chinese and 80% of
the Indians expressed satisfaction. Overall, the survey found that the number of people
dissatisfied with his performance remaining about the same at 21% as compared to 22% in June
2009.
From the survey, we note that the high approval ratings may in part be reflected by reasons why
a part of the electorate felt that the country was headed in the right direction, i.e. views that the
Malaysian economy was still doing reasonably well, the nation’s leaders were more dynamic and
that general conditions in the country remained peaceful and conducive for development.
But confidence levels in the government’s initiatives are limited, for example, only 50% were
confident that initiatives such as the Government Transformation Program, 1Malaysia and New
Economic Model will be able to achieve their goals. Exemplifying the sentiments of an
increasingly cynical public, a majority, 58% agreed with the view that “the federal government
was good in planning but weak in implementation”.
The Peninsular Malaysia wide telephone survey of 1028 randomly selected Malaysian registered
voters aged 21 and above was carried out between 6th and 16th May 2010. Respondents were
selected using the random, stratified sampling method and structured along the national
electorate profile and specifically proportional to gender, ethnicity, age groups and state of
residence.
View top-line, respondents’ profile and other findings at www.merdeka.org
About Merdeka Center for Opinion Research
Merdeka Center for Opinion Research is an independent, non-partisan organization focused on public
opinion research and socio-economic analysis. Merdeka’s mission is to act as a bridge between ordinary
Malaysians and other stakeholders with the leading members of the nation – by providing dispassionate
presentation of public opinion survey results, analysis and position papers.
Contact:
Ibrahim Suffian
Director - Programs
Mobile: 012 379 1940
Email: ben@merdeka.org
Tan Seng Keat
Research Manager
Mobile: 012 395 0316
Email: sengkeat@merdeka.org
June 8th, 2010,
Malaysian voters have mixed views on government KPIs - survey >
BANGI – Peninsular Malaysia voters showed wide-ranging views on the government’s key
result areas but at the same time the Prime Minister’s approval rating remained steady in positive
territory as found in the opinion poll released by Merdeka Center for Opinion Research today.
With respect to the National Key Result Areas (NKRA), the survey showed that a majority still
find the efforts to fight corruption and crime to be lower than expected:
• 61% of respondents were dissatisfied with the performance in fighting corruption
• 57% of respondents were dissatisfied with efforts in reducing crime;
On the other hand, the survey found:
• 52% were satisfied with efforts to improve living standards of those in rural areas;
• 54% were satisfied with efforts to render assistance to those that need it;
• 56% were satisfied with efforts to improve public transportation; and
• 63% were satisfied with efforts to improve the quality of education in primary and secondary schools.
Poll Report 08 June 2010 Malaysian voters have mixed views on government KPIs
Public remains split over national direction
When provided with a list of issues, 53% of the voters chose ‘fighting corruption’ as the most
important issue that the government should pay attention to.
The survey found that Malaysians for the most part remained split over the direction of the
country with 52% saying it was on the “right direction” while 34% said “wrong direction” while
14% were uncertain or could not tell.
With respect to issues, the survey found that public concern over the economy was highest at
22%. Worries over social problems stood at 14% while concerns on national unity issues was
third-highest at 13%. Worries over political stability had eased to 10%, tied with concerns over
crime and public safety.
Public sentiment on the economy remains mixed
47% of voters felt that current economic conditions as favorable, this is lower than the 52%
recorded in April 2010. Of the four indicators used to track public sentiments on the economy,
the survey found a marked decline among those satisfied with their personal income levels which
dropped to 46% from 52% previously. It should be noted that none of the indicators – personal
income, consumer prices, job opportunities and business opportunities stood above 50% at the
time the survey was conducted.
Voter optimism in the economy remained unchanged with 53% saying that the economy will be
better in one years’ time. The figure among ethnic Chinese voters expressing optimism over the
economy was 37% also unchanged since April 2010.
PM’s approval rating remains strong
72% of Malaysians said that they were satisfied with Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s
performance in this survey which is higher compared to 69% recorded in April 2010. Broken
down into ethnic groups, the survey found 77% of the Malays, 58% of the Chinese and 80% of
the Indians expressed satisfaction. Overall, the survey found that the number of people
dissatisfied with his performance remaining about the same at 21% as compared to 22% in June
2009.
From the survey, we note that the high approval ratings may in part be reflected by reasons why
a part of the electorate felt that the country was headed in the right direction, i.e. views that the
Malaysian economy was still doing reasonably well, the nation’s leaders were more dynamic and
that general conditions in the country remained peaceful and conducive for development.
But confidence levels in the government’s initiatives are limited, for example, only 50% were
confident that initiatives such as the Government Transformation Program, 1Malaysia and New
Economic Model will be able to achieve their goals. Exemplifying the sentiments of an
increasingly cynical public, a majority, 58% agreed with the view that “the federal government
was good in planning but weak in implementation”.
The Peninsular Malaysia wide telephone survey of 1028 randomly selected Malaysian registered
voters aged 21 and above was carried out between 6th and 16th May 2010. Respondents were
selected using the random, stratified sampling method and structured along the national
electorate profile and specifically proportional to gender, ethnicity, age groups and state of
residence.
View top-line, respondents’ profile and other findings at www.merdeka.org
About Merdeka Center for Opinion Research
Merdeka Center for Opinion Research is an independent, non-partisan organization focused on public
opinion research and socio-economic analysis. Merdeka’s mission is to act as a bridge between ordinary
Malaysians and other stakeholders with the leading members of the nation – by providing dispassionate
presentation of public opinion survey results, analysis and position papers.
Contact:
Ibrahim Suffian
Director - Programs
Mobile: 012 379 1940
Email: ben@merdeka.org
Tan Seng Keat
Research Manager
Mobile: 012 395 0316
Email: sengkeat@merdeka.org