Qodari on Decline in Public Satisfaction Survey for Prabowo: Crucial for Government to Implement Corrections

The Head of the Indonesian Government Communication Agency (Bakom RI), Muhammad Qodari, stated that the government respects the survey results published by Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC). According to the SMRC survey, public satisfaction levels regarding President Prabowo Subianto’s performance have experienced a decline.

However, Qodari noted that the survey would be more beneficial if it could reveal the specific causes of this decline in greater detail. “We have never said that the public does not have the right to judge. They are very entitled to do so, especially since I have spent many years in the world of surveying,” Qodari said on Saturday, 1 August 2026.

He argued that the variables used in the survey remain too general. Qodari explained that indicators such as politics, law, and the economy should be broken down into more specific sub-indicators. By doing so, he noted, the reasons behind the decline in public satisfaction could be understood more precisely.

As an example, in the economic aspect, he suggested that surveys could separately measure public views on the Rupiah exchange rate, employment, the price of basic commodities, and evaluations of specific government programmes. Qodari clarified that he is not attempting to dispute the SMRC survey results; rather, he believes such an approach would provide a sharper picture of the factors influencing public satisfaction.

“I am more of the view that it would be better if the research were more detailed, so that it becomes more useful and the arguments are clearer,” he explained. “I believe this is not only important for us, the government, to be able to improve and implement corrections, but also for the public to gain a better understanding. The more detailed, the better,” Qodari added.

It is noted that in the survey conducted between 5–19 July 2026, SMRC recorded that the level of public satisfaction with Prabowo’s performance had declined compared to the previous year. During that period, the public satisfaction level for Prabowo stood at 51.1 per cent, a significant drop from 81.2 per cent recorded in November 2025.