AMMAN - The government of Prime Minister Nader Dahabi continues to enjoy a high level of popularity, one-and-a-half years after its appointment by His Majesty King Abdullah, a poll showed Monday.
The poll, conducted by the University of Jordan's Centre for Strategic Studies (CSS) 18 months after the incumbent government's inception, found that 62 per cent of general public respondents believe the government to be capable of shouldering its responsibilities.
This percentage is identical to that of a poll conducted 100 days after the government's formation, and to the results of an earlier survey conducted immediately after the government took office, according to CSS figures.
According to pollster Mohammad Masri, the stability of oil prices on the local market and absence of crisis between the government and political powers enabled the executive branch to maintain a steady level of popularity.
"The stability of public opinion does not necessarily mean the gap of trust between citizens and the government has been bridged. For this to happen, opinion polls must show a continuous increase in the evaluation of the government's performance," said Masri.
He expressed hope the findings of this poll will be "a start" to increasing the level of trust between the government and the public.
CSS surveys conducted at the time of the formation of any new government usually show higher public optimism than those conducted after 100 days in office, pollsters note.
The study also revealed that 53 per cent of respondents in the national sample (vis-à-vis the elite) considered that the government team had been able to handle its responsibilities over the past period, compared with 75 per cent of respondents in the one-year poll.
However, when government's performance in the period in question was examined in more detail, the national sample results showed that respondents believed the government failed in addressing some of the most vexing issues, including creating jobs, achieving equal opportunity, solving the water deficit, fighting all forms of corruption, protecting limited-income citizens and adjusting salaries in line with inflation.
Meanwhile, the same group said the government succeeded in improving the level of higher education, supporting the Palestinian people, implementing housing projects, widening health insurance schemes and encouraging citizen participation in political life.
The poll, which the CSS has been conducting for 15 years, periodically gauges confidence of the general public and opinion leaders in governmental performance.
The survey targets two groups: the general public and opinion leaders, which include politicians, intellectuals, academics and professionals.
As many as 1,175 respondents took part in the poll, with only 25 refusing to answer pollsters. The poll had a 3 per cent margin of error.
Of the opinion leaders, 67 per cent said the government was able to shoulder its responsibilities in the past year-and-a-half, compared with 76 per cent in the one-year study.
Nearly 52 per cent of opinion leaders said Dahabi's team succeeded in addressing challenges that faced the Kingdom.
The highest scores were given by leading economists, professional association leaders and university professors. Political party leaders gave relatively lower grades, with 52 per cent of the latter giving the thumbs up to Dahabi and his team.
By Mohammad Ben Hussein
© Jordan Times 2009
