Growing disapproval of government institutions
Recent polling by La Prensa Grafica shows growing disillusionment with public institutions over the past three years. As the poll results show, from 2005 to 2007 the number of people saying they approve of the job of various governmental institutions has declined and the number of people who say they disapprove has increased. Highest approval ratings go to schools and hospitals; the lowest approval ratings go the the National Assembly and the courts. (See the results in graphic form at this link). For some reason, LPG did not include the approval rating for president Saca's office in these poll results, but other polls show that his approval rating has also declined over that time frame.
Comments
And yet the Saca-ARENA strategy is not to consolidate institutions, regroup, and cut their losses in bad, over-extended government management.
Instead, he has opened not one, but two new Ministries, plus a number of new, superfluous and often redundant institutions.
For the time being, they are just one more mediocre socialist/populist party.
May he and his party lose at least one election, wake up, and go back to their roots, or disappear forever into the dustbin of history.
2009 is still away, we will see what new montage the gangster party will show to the world exibiting the mask of "humanity" and "social responsibility", in attempt to apeace and mislead critical voices, while under the table souls are traded like cheap liquor for a dime.
Escuadrones o mata monseñores ?
It is almost universal with those that I talk to, that the drivers in El Salvador are atrocious. I ask those that have lived in the US if they drive like that up north. "Of course not", they tell me. "We would be ticketed in a second". Yet when they come back here they drive any old way because they know they can get away with it. In other words there is no respect even for transit laws. Which tells me there is no desire for change. Change begins within.
AS far as the election goes it will be interesting. Most everyone I talk to wants to see change. They don't believe change will come with ARENA. Even the dificulty in getting a secret vote into the selection process for selecting a presidential candidate shows how hidebound ARENA is.
Nobody believes that ARENA has the interests of the common man at heart. Yet at the same time they feel the same about the FMLN. People are afraid to vote Frente because they worry about Funes making it to the end of his term alive. Funes is respected for his intelligence and social position but since Funes is not even a member of the FMLN do you think the hard line Stalinists are going to be squeamish about getting him out of the way if he doesn't seem to be a suitable puppet? When the VP moves into the #1 spot it will be even more extreme than ARENA in its abuse of peoples rights. A la Hugo Chavez. Bye Bye Prensa Grafica and Diario DE Hoy, Long live Co-Latino.
I wish the moderates on the left and the moderates on the right would get get together with the progressives of the center and form a new party that would really try and make life more equitable for everyone here. The rich industrialists can't continue to avoid their social responsibility and hope to stay on the top of the heap.