SINGAPORE : Singapore's ruling People's Action Party has come up
tops in the political party category in a global survey by market
research firm Taylor Nelson Sofres.
Some 35,000 people from over 40 countries were polled in the global
survey, which TNS carried out for the first time.
The Corporate Reputation Index reflects the perceptions of people
towards their own country, both politically and economically.
Among the thousands polled across the globe, 500 Singaporeans were
selected to share their views.
And the results surprised many, including the researchers.
Singaporeans were so satisfied with their government that the
country came up tops in the political parties category.
John Smurthwaite, chairman of Taylor Nelson Sofres, said "Singapore
perhaps doesn't have the same reputation as being a democratic
country in the western sense, like the UK or US. But I think what
has happened is people have been very happy with the change in
leadership; they have seen a nice changeover and they are obviously
very happy with that."
Said Associate Professor Bilveer Singh, Department of Political
Science, National University of Singapore, "People are looking for
material goods and the government delivers that. I think the track
record is an excellent one in almost every area that you talk
about.
"At the same time, over the last couple of years, what has changed
compared to the earlier generation has been the notion of good
governance. People say we have good governance, accountability, no
corruption, somewhat growing openness, and therefore we are
relating with soft authoritarianism."
He added, "The government has also been exceptional in crisis
management, in the way it has dealt with SARS and the tsunami, etc.
The pride in associating with a successful government -- there are
many small states that are not successful and people will ditch
them; whereas in this case the government is successful and people
like to relate and correlate."
While Singaporeans interviewed by Channel NewsAsia agree with the
findings, some feel there is still room for improvement.
"I think the government has to be given credit where credit is due.
We are pretty transparent, it is accountable, and there's no
corruption. But I think in a democratic system, a one party state
is not always the best thing," one Singaporean said.
"My reaction is that the survey confirms everyone's opinions,
including my own. No matter how much they gripe, they still think
that the government is efficient. But they have to come up with an
image that is warmer, I guess; now they portray an image of
efficiency, of trust," another said.
Survey results also reveal that Singaporeans think very highly of
the country's health, telecoms and postal services.
As a result, health services and telecom operators here clinched
the top spots in their respective categories.
Mail services was ranked second best in the world, behind
Australia.
This is the first time that TNS has carried out such a massive
global survey, so there is no comparison for the present
rankings.
But TNS noted that consumer confidence in Singapore only picked up
recently after years of slow economic growth.
The survey also showed that Singapore is the best country to do
business in Asia.
Globally, it takes the 4th spot, following closely behind the US,
Australia and Ireland. - CNA