Irresponsibility is to blame for the persistent absence of a quorum leading to the collapse of House sessions, according to a survey by Super Poll.
Some 94.3% of respondents said the problem was caused by MPs lacking discipline, morals and responsibility, and showing a disregard for the public interest.
Slightly fewer (93.8%) saw the frequent collapse of House sessions as a reflection of the failure of the democratic system, while only fractionally less (93.7%) than that said politicians had become preoccupied with their own political gain rather than trying to solve people's problems.
In addition, 93.4% thought MPs' performance was not worthy of taxpayers' money while 93.3% said MPs lacked unity and democratic ideology, with some jockeying for positions.
Asked about the negative effects of the frequent collapses, 93% said they had damaged the country's interests, while 92.1% said they had led the public to lose confidence in politicians and parties.
Some 94.5% called for harsher punishment for those MPs, while 93.7% said parties where those absentee MPs belong must be held responsible.
Some 92.1% said the collapse of House sessions had disrupted the passage of key bills, while 91.7% said they showed Thai politics is not mature enough. About 91% said social media was used to inflame political conflict.
The survey found 93.4% wanted the absent MPs held up to public condemnation.
Noppadon Kannika, director of Super Poll, said 1,152 people took part in the nationwide poll.
Teerajchai Phunthumas, a list-MP of the opposition Move Forward Party, said opposition parties have to keep government parties in check by asking for a quorum count to expose those irresponsible MPs to the public.
The absence of enough MPs to assure a quorum, prompting the collapse of recent House sessions, hints at divisions that could affect the government's stability, an observer said.