President Uhuru Kenyatta’s approval rating dropped by 10 per cent following the Garissa university massacre, a survey has revealed.
The drop in the confidence rating from 76 per cent to 66 per cent was linked to his administration’s response to terror attacks.
The survey involved 1,364 participants before the April 2 attack and 452 after it occurred.
Uhuru’s overall approval rating now stands at 73 per cent, according to the Ipsos opinion poll released on Thursday.
The poll shows that 91 per cent Jubilee and 53 per cent Cord supporters approve the president’s work.
Before the Garissa attack 49 per cent Kenyans thought the country was headed in the wrong direction but the figure jumped 11 points to 60 per cent after April 2.
“Security concerns increased dramatically following the Garissa attack, lowering support for KDF’s continued presence in Somalia,” the report stated.
Eighty per cent termed the al Shabaab militia group “very much” a threat to Kenya.
The survey conducted from March 28 to April 7 said the public has lost confidence in Amisom’s ability to conquer the group.
Seventy three per cent said the African Union Mission in Somalia cannot defeat it.
The drop in Uhuru’s approval rating was also attributed to corruption. More than half of the interviewees cited the ‘Chickengate’ scandal as a graft case that needs solving.
Eighty eight per cent supported teachers’ refusal to return to the Northeastern region while locals differed evenly on the matter.
Noting that schools are primary local level land grabbing targets, interviewees said they support the anti-corruption drive but doubted its efficacy.
Forty three per cent want at least one cabinet secretary replaced, the survey revealed.
Five CS – Charity Ngilu (Lands), Michael Kamau (Transport), Davis Chirchir (Energy), Kazungu Kambi (Labour) and Felix Koskei (Agriculture) are in a list of 175 public officials implicated in graft.
Source-the-star.co.ke
