SURVEY A PLOY TO DISCREDIT MUSA

 

KOTA KINABALU: Opinion polls and surveys have advantages to a certain extent, but if not properly carried out, can be flawed and disrespectful to certain parties, Sabah UMNO deputy head Datuk Salleh Said Keruak pointed out.

Without as much as saying that a recent Merdeka Centre survey was wrong, Salleh said that if a survey is driven by an agenda, there is little to prevent those behind it from manipulating the results to fit the plan.

“Even the wording of the questions (in the survey) can whip up a certain response and provoke the person from saying things he never intended to say in the first place.

Salleh was commenting on an online report that claimed voter satisfaction of Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman in the state has taken a dive to below 50 percent.

“The way a question is worded would affect the answers that you get. Some question to not give the respondent the chance to offer mixed feelings as the question insists on a definitive answer,” he said.

“Respondents, if interviewed in a group, would tend to give the same responses, as they prefer the herd mentality, rather than when a person is interviewed individually where his or her responses would be more accurate.”

Salleh said he personally did not think that Musa’s popularity had shrunk not his decisions on how the State is developed has negative implications on the people.

He said: “Musa is not taking part in a popularity contest; some of the decisions he has to make, no matter how unpopular with a small group of people, are for the betterment of the bigger picture, he stressed.

“For example, the issuance of community titles for people in rural areas. The opposition has harped on this issue saying it is unfair, but our chief minister has implemented it with the full concern of the welfare of the people.

“If individual titles were to be issued, chances are they would be sold off for a quick gain; but no, Musa wants these people to own the land forever, to be passed on to future generations. Now, it may be an unpopular decision with some, but is that not done with the future in mind.”

Salleh also pointed out that there were no highly controversial decisions made by the chief minister and all major issues were thoroughly discussed at Cabinet and other levels before decisions are reached.

He said business and investments made by foreigners was also on the increase and that generally most businesses were doing well.

Salleh reckoned that the polls was done and highlighted in the media due to the proximity of the elections and an effort to demoralize Musa and the BN election machinery.

“As I mentioned earlier, the polls were commissioned by those with an agenda, and this could have been from among the opposition or those who which to see Musa toppled,” he added. “It is a mere ploy to try and discredit Musa.”

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.

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.