Selangor think-tank claims survey shows Najib most unpopular PM

A Selangor government think-tank has claimed that the findings of its poll indicate that Najib Abdul Razak is the most unpopular prime minister in the nation's history.

According to Institut Darul Ehsan (IDE), only 19 percent of the 2,018 respondents, who are Selangor voters, believe that Najib's leadership would increase support for BN.

IDE deputy chairperson Mohammad Redzuan Othman pointed out that in a survey last year, 29 percent of the respondents answered in the affirmative when asked if Najib's leadership would see BN defending Putrajaya.

Based on the decline in the latest figures, Redzuan said: “This shows how Najib is the most unpopular prime minister in Malaysian history.”

He said this in his presentation of IDE's latest survey, titled “Selangor Rakyat’s Issues and Perception Towards the 14th General Election”, which was conducted between Feb 8 and Feb 13.

The IDE deputy chairperson also outlined the differences between former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Najib.

As for Najib's leadership boosting support for BN, he said respondents of all races had overwhelmingly answered in the negative.

However, he noted that Mahathir still managed to retain the support of Chinese voters in 1999, when the former prime minister was most unpopular.

Redzuan said 43 percent of the respondents disagreed when asked whether "legal action should not be taken against Malaysian Official 1 (MO1) as it was only a propaganda".

Another question asked of the respondents also showed Najib being viewed negatively.

Forty-eight percent of respondents answered 'yes' when asked whether the Najib administration was selling Malaysia’s sovereignty to China.

This was not only limited to a particular race viewing this as such. Most Chinese respondents believe this is the case, too, with 46 percent answering 'yes', compared with the 15 percent who answered 'no'.

Meanwhile, with regard to the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M), 47 percent of respondents answered in the affirmative on whether the financial aid was a form of bribery for the people to give support to BN.

Another issue of concern is the goods and services tax (GST), in which 78 percent of Selangor voters believe that it should not have been implemented due to the increase in prices of goods and services.

Even when it comes to BN supporters, 62 percent of respondents answered in the affirmative to this question, as opposed to the 19 percent who said 'no'.

Redzuan noted that dissatisfaction with regard to the GST was increasing and in time, will only further burden the rakyat.

Meanwhile, Redzuan explained that the perception of Selangor voters was important when it came to voting patterns in other parts of the country.

“Sabah and Sarawak politics will follow like that of Peninsular Malaysia, which determines the politics of many states while the Klang Valley plays an important factor,” he said, pointing to voting patterns in Kelantan, which depended on voters who return to the state from the Klang Valley.

Out of the 2018 respondents polled, 52 percent comprised women, while 48 percent were men. The breakdown of race is: Malays 55 percent; Chinese 31 percent; Indians 14 percent and 'others' one percent.- Mkini