A majority of people are satisfied with relief measures taken by the government to mitigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, but say there are too many conditions attached, according to an opinion survey by the Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, or Suan Dusit Poll.
The poll was conducted online on Feb 23-26 on 1,087 people throughout the country to compile their opinions on the pandemic relief measures.
In terms of satisfaction, 68.26% of respondents were satisfied -- 50.60% moderately and 17.66% highly. On the other side 19.69% said they were fairly dissatisfied with the measures and 12.25% completely dissatisfied.
The respondents were asked to choose the "strong points" and "weak points" of the measures, with each allowed to give more than one answer.
On the "strong points", 48% said the measures could help reduce hardships for low-income earners; 21.53% said the measures were flexible, showing the government's attempt to help the people; and 16.19% said the measures could help spur the economy and distribute income to the people.
On the "weak points", 52.34% said there were too many conditions attached, causing disparities; 33.19% said the steps people had to take to get help were too complicated and inefficient; and 6.81% said the measures would not solve problems in the long run and could leave burdens on the people in the future.
Asked to provide suggestions for how the government can best tailor the measures to help people, 71.72% said the measures should apply to all groups of people evenly; 62.38% said registration for assistance must not be difficult or complicated; 61.37% said registration should not be required; 60.44% said use of technology and social media should be avoided with the elderly; and 59.52% said the measures must not put more burdens on the people and should allow them to spend the handouts easily.
The measures taken by the government to relieve people's hardships from Covid-19 include a discount on electricity and water bills for the months of February-March, co-payment programmes, the Rao Chana handout schemes and low-interest loans from banks.