High Basic Needs and Presidential Control by the Party: The Reasons Behind Public Dissatisfaction with Jokowi's Performance

The Indonesian Political Indicator Survey shows that 25.9% of respondents reported dissatisfaction with the performance of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi). This breaks down into 23.1% expressing some dissatisfaction and 2.8% expressing complete dissatisfaction.

Several reasons underlie this dissatisfaction. Firstly, the rising prices of basic necessities, experienced by 35.3% of respondents, during Jokowi's presidency.

Secondly, 22.7% of respondents felt that aid distribution was uneven. Thirdly, 5.2% cited a lack of jobs or rising unemployment.

Fourthly, 4.9% felt poverty had not been reduced, and fifthly, 2.3% felt the government was not sufficiently pro-people.

Furthermore, 2.1% of respondents felt Jokowi was controlled by political parties, ranking this as the sixth reason for dissatisfaction. The remaining reasons are included in the graph above and the points below.

Respondents included all Indonesian citizens with voting rights in general elections – those aged 17 or older, or those who were married at the time of the survey. A multistage random sampling method was used.

This data is from the second Indikator Politik survey conducted from March 12-18, 2023, with a sample size of 800 people. The sample came from almost all provinces, proportionally distributed.

A sample size of 800 respondents has a margin of error (MoE) of ±3.5% at a 95% confidence level. Selected respondents were interviewed face-to-face by trained interviewers.

Databoks compiled the top ten reasons for respondent dissatisfaction with President Jokowi's performance. The list is as follows:

* Rising prices of basic necessities (35.3% of respondents)
* Uneven aid distribution (22.7%)
* High unemployment (5.2%)
* Unreduced poverty (4.9%)
* Insufficient pro-people policies (2.3%)
* Control by political parties (2.1%)
* Income inequality (1.7%)
* Failure to eradicate corruption (1.2%)
* Poor law enforcement (1.2%)
* Poor performance (1.1%)

(See also: Reasons for Public Satisfaction with President Jokowi's Performance, from Caring for the Common People to Eradicating Corruption)