President Susilo's popularity continues to drop: Survey
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
On the eve of the government's announcement it was raising fuel prices, a poll found President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's popularity had dropped to 66 percent, with voters criticizing Susilo's efforts to improve the economy.
A poll conducted in November by the Indonesia Survey Institute (LSI) showed Susilo's popularity at 80 percent. This figure dropped significantly to 67 percent in a December poll.
LSI's January poll put the President's popularity at 69 percent, in part due to his response to the tsunami.
According to the latest LSI poll, the results of which were announced on Tuesday, Susilo's numbers were down as a result of his perceived indifference to issues affecting the lower classes, including unemployment, the high cost of education and the rising prices of basic commodities.
Out of 1,200 respondents, 65.3 percent said Susilo had failed to reduce unemployment, 55.4 percent cited his inability to increase wages and 52.6 percent said Susilo had done nothing to bring down the costs of education.
The poll, with a margin of error of less than 3 percent, was conducted during the first week of February in 87 cities and 63 villages across 32 provinces. The LSI said the respondents represented the broad range of interests and concerns of the more than 150 million registered Indonesian voters.
The poll also focused on the public response to the government's decision to cut the fuel subsidy.
Despite widespread protests the government went ahead with the subsidy cut, announcing on Monday that fuel prices would increase by an average of 29 percent.
The government has promised to channel Rp 10.5 trillion of the more than Rp 20 trillion (US$21 billion) that will be saved by cutting the fuel subsidy into programs that will directly benefit the poor.
The country has about 40 million people officially classified as poor, meaning they live on less than US$2 a day.
The majority of poll respondents opposed the fuel price increases, though the poll did not provide specific reasons.
It said more than 70 percent of respondents opposed increases in the prices of premium and diesel fuel, while about 50 percent were against the rise in the prices of liquefied natural gas and Pertamax.
LSI executive director Denny J.A. said that although the President's popularity had fallen to 66 percent, he still had the "political capital" to push through unpopular policies, particularly the fuel subsidy cut.
Susilo's popularity rating is still above the number of votes he received in winning the presidential election on Sep. 20, 2004.
Susilo and running mate Jusuf Kalla received 60.62 percent of the vote in the presidential election, defeating incumbent president Megawati Soekarnoputri and running mate Hasyim Muzadi, who received just 39.38 percent of the vote.
"If he (Susilo) wants to boost his popularity rating, he must answer the public's doubts over the fuel price rises by creating new success stories with the social programs financed with the savings from the subsidy cut," said Denny. (006)