President Muhammadu Buhari’s approval rating has slipped further from 32.8% in February to 31.2% in March, amid worsening economic crisis and crippling fuel scarcity, according to a new poll.
The monthly poll by Governance Advancement Initiative for Nigeria (GAIN) says more Nigerians scored Buhari low on his administration’s handling of the economy, power and fuel shortage.
It is the second time the president’s rating dropped since GAIN in December started monthly tracking of performance of governments at all levels in Nigeria.
In earlier months, the poll found that majority of respondents did not blame President Buhari for Nigeria’s economic troubles. They blamed former President Goodluck Jonathan instead.
In January, the president’s approval rating stood at 63.4%.
The trend however shifted significantly in February as the nation’s economic crisis bit harder.
In March, which is the latest result, the poll said more Nigerians blame Buhari— not Jonathan— for the nation’s economic woes.
The falling rating was primarily due to petroleum scarcity, bad economy, power outage, and broken campaign promises, said the poll.
“A crippling fuel scarcity continued to affect individuals and business across the country, and had a concomitant effect on transportation and business costs,” said Malcolm Fabiyi, one of the poll’s coordinators, who previously served as a visiting professor at the Lagos Business School.
The president scored low on economy, power, and rule of law.
Buhari is currently on a weeklong working visit to China to secure greater support from Beijing for the development of Nigeria’s infrastructure, especially in the power, roads, railways, aviation, water supply and housing sectors.
