53pc people think country headed in wrong direction: IRI survey

Some 53 per cent of the voters in Bangladesh think the country is headed in the wrong direction and 50 per cent of them believe that the price hike is the main reason behind that. Meanwhile, 44 per cent of the people think the country is headed in the right direction and they think the main reason for that is the overall development of the country.

However, some 76 per cent people said the country was in the right direction during the survey conducted in September, 2019.

These figures came up in a survey conducted by US-based organisation International Republican Institute (IRI). The survey was conducted from 1 March to 6 April. A total of 5,000 adult men and women in the 64 districts of Bangladesh participated in the survey. Redstone Scientific supervised the survey.

The results of the survey were published on the website of IRI on Tuesday. It shows that for the first time since 2014, most of the people said the country is not headed in the right direction. The national parliamentary election is likely to be held before January 2024.

The survey also shows that some 70 per cent people have support towards prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her government on a range of issues. At the same time, people’s support toward the opposition party has grown as compared to the past. Some 63 per cent people supported the opposition party, which was 36 per cent in 2019.

The survey further shows that most of the people of the country are interested in casting their votes if the election is fair and transparent. Some 92 per cent of the respondents said they are likely to vote in the next national election. Those who do not intend to vote cite election fraud and voter registration issues as key barriers to voting.

According to the survey, a plurality of 44 per cent of the respondents support the return of Bangladesh’s caretaker government election system, but the majority believe the opposition should join the election regardless of election administration.

Speaking regarding the survey, IRI’s South Asia Director Steve Cima said, “It is encouraging to see public support for free, fair, and competitive elections. These findings underscore the fundamental desire of Bangladeshis to have a real choice at the ballot box this winter.”