LONDON: A new public opinion poll says that Imran Khan is the most popular political figure in Pakistan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) seen by large majorities of respondents as notably more popular, more capable and more trustworthy than established parties such as the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
YouGov-Cambridge, the academic research arm of the global pollster, YouGov, conducted three separate studies of public opinion in urban Pakistan over the course of 2011.
Speaking exclusively to The News, Dr Joel Faulkner Rogers of YouGov-Cambridge commented: “What the polls help to show is that a growing number of Pakistanis seem prepared to abandon the old parties and consider the PTI as a viable alternative. As the numbers also suggest, many voters agree with Imran Khan that the two biggest threats to Pakistan’s survival are endemic corruption and Pakistan’s current support of US foreign policy in Afghanistan and the tribal areas.”
The report makes references to the large crowds Khan is attracting to his rallies, surprising rivals and supporters alike, and the defection to his party of a number of heavyweight political figures, including some thirty current and former ministers, from major political forces.
Dr Kamal Munir, Professor at Cambridge University, notes that “the movement of senior political figures towards the PTI means the party is now extending its political base across both urban and rural parts of the electorate”.
These events, says the report, suggest that Pakistani people are “willing” to abandon established parties and that there is growing consideration of the PTI as a “serious alternative” with “increasing viability”. The elements driving Khan’s popularity are its stand against corruption and its critique of official policy towards America, Afghanistan and the tribal areas, according to the report.
Sixty percent of the respondents told the survey they thought PTI was most likely to eradicate corruption and nepotism; the other parties stood at: PML-N 6%, MQM 4%, and PPP 5%.
When respondents were asked which party they would vote for if an election were held tomorrow, 66% said they would vote for the PTI, just 9% said they would vote for PML-N, while PPP was chosen by 3%. Eighty-one percent respondents chose Imran Khan from a list of 19 candidates as the person they think is best suited to lead Pakistan; Nawaz Sharif was chosen by 18%, while Asif Ali Zadari was chosen by 2%.
On eradicating corruption and nepotism, 83% described Khan as capable versus 13% who described him as incapable; 36% described Sharif as capable versus 60% who described him as incapable and 6% described Zadari as capable versus 89% who described him as incapable.
On tackling Pakistan’s foreign policy problems, 81% said Khan was capable versus 15% incapable; 46% described Nawaz Sharif as capable versus 49% incapable and only 15% said President Zardari was capable versus 81% incapable.
On tackling Pakistan’s economic problems, 83% said Khan was capable versus 13% incapable; 50% said Nawaz Sharif was capable versus 46% incapable and 10% thought President Zardari was capable versus 86% incapable.
More than 80 percent voted for Imran Khan as the best person to deal with lack of access to constant electricity and escalating food crisis while Nawaz Sharif won the approval of more than 45 percent in these areas.
The report says many Pakistanis seem to view their country as a kind of ‘klepto-state’, where the core institutions of national and local governance are plagued by endemic corruption and graft.
Respondents ranked ‘corruption within Pakistan’ as number one threat, above the United States (2nd place), extremist militants from within Pakistan (3rd), India (4th), foreign extremists militants (5th) and Afghanistan (6th). 94% of respondents believe corruption is widespread among government leaders.
An overwhelming majority of respondents said the main priorities of the Pakistani government should be “eliminating corruption” (1st place), education (2nd) economic growth (3rd) reducing terrorism (4th), employment (5th), while improving relations with India came at the last. The respondents said they would like to see improvements in “a transparent judicial system” and “transparency in government”.
It is politically relevant, therefore, that the PTI is viewed by respondents as the only party with a genuine intention to tackle corruption.
Sixty percent of respondents said the PTI is the party most likely to eradicate corruption and nepotism while only 6% and 5% respectively thought the PML-N and PPP were most likely to do so.
Seventy percent of respondents disagree with the government’s policy of accepting aid from the US; 71% said the US should withdraw all of its troops from Afghanistan now; 86% disagreed with allowing or having allowed US drone attacks on militant groups; and 84% said they opposed the presence of US troops in Pakistan.
A majority of respondents also view the Afghan Taliban as engaged in a legitimate war of resistance against foreign aggressors with a right to play their role in the future governance of Afghanistan, the survey says.
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