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Musa Aman's approval rating slumps below 50pct
05-Oct-2012, The Malaysian Insider

A public opinion poll has found that voter satisfaction of Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman in the state has taken a dive to below 50 percent although the approval rating for Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak still remains high.

A survey by the Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research has detected that the satisfaction of Sabah voters towards Musa, who has been head of the state for almost a decade, has dropped significantly from 60 percent in November 2009 to 45 percent in September 2012.

While the decline was recorded across all ethnic groups, surprisingly it was largest from among Muslim bumiputera respondents, falling 21 percent from 72 percent, to 51 percent.

Contrary to Musa's popularity, Najib's popularity remained stable and high when 75 percent of the respondents were satisfied with his performance, compared to 77 percent in November 2009.

Similarly, voter satisfaction towards the state government remained positive at 56 percent, although it recorded a six percent decline from 62 percent in November 2009.

The independent pollster commented that the marked difference in voter perceptions towards key political leadership and the state government reflected a "Sabah-centric" sentiment exhibited by voters.

"It also indicates that voters had different expectations on political leadership at various levels," it added in a statement today.

The survey also detected a slump in the economic sentiment among the voters, with more than half of the respondents having expressed dissatisfaction with the economy in the Land Below the Wind.

This is the second and last release from the survey carried out by the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research between Sept 6 to 17 to gauge voters' perceptions of current developments in Sabah.

A total of 829 registered voters, comprising 51 percent Muslim bumiputera, 29 percent non-Muslim bumiputera and 20 percent Chinese respondents, reflective of the electoral profile of Sabah were interviewed via fixed line and mobile telephones.

The poll was jointly-funded by Merdeka Centre and a regional consultancy firm.