Bangkokians prefer anti-Thaksin rally to stay put
A clear majority, 71 per cent, of Bangkok residents are opposed to the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD)'s decision to move its anti-Thaksin rally to Siam Paragon shopping mall, according to Abac Poll released on Tuesday.
Pollsters surveyed 1,116 Bangkok residents on Monday following the PAD's announcement that it would shift its rally site to the shopping mall, a move that could paralyse traffic in the capital."The PAD's strategy to shift its rally from one site to another will antagonise the public, resulting in a loss of support for political reform," Abac pollster Noppadon Kannikar said. Sympathy for the antiThaksin movement is strongest among members of the urban middle class, but if the protests disrupt their daily lives they will withdraw their support, Noppadon said. After the PAD rallied on Silom and Sukhumvit roads last week, more than half of Bangkok residents said they opposed protests as a means of forcing caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to resign. In a survey on Saturday before the Sukhumvit rally, 41 per cent of those polled said they would vote in Sunday's election. After the rally, the number rose to 64.8 per cent. The number of voters who said they planned to tick "no vote" on their ballots fell from 25.6 per cent to 22.6 per cent, pollsters found. The Nation
|
