Government acknowledges critical IRI public opinion poll

The government of Prime Minister Hun Sen has accepted the results of a recent public opinion poll carried out by the International Republican Institute (IRI), which found that fewer people support the direction the country is headed, the organization said Thursday.

The annual survey found that the number of people who supported “the direction the country is heading” had dropped from 79 percent to 55 percent between January and November of last year, and 43 percent of people surveyed said the country is headed in the “wrong” direction. …

Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan said he had been briefed on the IRI survey results by Ms. Keegan. …

One of the prime reasons given by people who said they had lost faith in the country’s direction, along with nepotism and damage to the environment, was corruption.

Mr. Siphan acknowledged that corruption had been flagged as an issue for more than a decade. …

Ms. Keegan said the National Election Committee (NEC) has also been briefed on the outcome of the survey, which found that 46 percent of respondents said the “country needs a change” when asked which party—Mr. Hun Sen’s CPP or the opposition CNRP—they wanted to vote for in last year’s closely fought national election. …

 LAUREN CROTHERS
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/government-acknowledges-critical-iri-public-opinion-poll-51639/