BANGKOK (Reuters) – A majority of Thais are dissatisfied with the government of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who took office nine months ago, as it has not been able to resolve the country’s problems and implement policies, an opinion poll showed on Sunday.
The survey of 1,310 people, conducted by the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA) over June 4-5, showed that two-thirds of the respondents were either not quite satisfied or not satisfied at all with the government’s performance.
About 70% of the respondents were not confident about the government’s ability to address the country’s issues as there have been no major changes and clear results, the poll said.
Real estate mogul Srettha has struggled to jumpstart Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, which has lagged regional peers.
His government is forging ahead with a 500 billion baht ($13.6 billion) household stimulus scheme expected to be launched in the fourth quarter of this year to spur consumption.
Last month, the Constitutional Court accepted a complaint seeking to remove Srettha over his cabinet appointment of a lawyer who served jail time. He has filed his defence statement.
Asked about any changes in the government in two months, 43% of the NIDA survey participants said they expected Srettha to remain in his position.
($1 = 36.79 baht)
(Reporting by Orathai Sriring and Panarat Thepgumpanat; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
