Super Poll Research Office director Dr. Noppadol Kannikar has defended himself and his organization against an allegation, made by Pheu Thai deputy spokeswoman Sunisa Thivakorndamrong, that Super Poll is unreliable and biased in favour of the government of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, and have received sponsorship from state agencies.
In his Facebook post today, Dr. Noppadol threatened to sue Ms. Sunisa for defamation.
On Sunday, Ms. Sunisa told the media that she doubted the credibility and impartiality of the latest opinion survey conducted by Super Poll, pointing out that Dr. Noppadol was appointed a political official by the Government in October 2014, with a basic salary of 57,250 baht excluding meeting allowances. She also said that most of Super Poll’s clients were state agencies and enterprises, thanks to Dr. Noppadol’s connections with the government.
Super Poll’s latest survey results, which were published on Sunday, claim that the majority of Thai people were happy under General Prayut’s administration and that he is their favourite government leader whose achievements over the past five years were more sustainable that those of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Super Poll also said that it is possible that Thai society may overcome the so-called “Thaksin Syndrome”, which has polarized Thai politics into pro and anti-Thaksin camps.
Dr. Noppadol said today that Super Poll’s credibility had been verified by its accurate forecast two weeks before the referendum on the current Constitution, predicting that the supreme law would receive about 61.4% support.
He claimed that, due to the accuracy of this forecast, which was within a 2% margin of error, the national university of Taiwan had invited him to address a gathering of academics about Super Poll’s survey methods. He then cited two websites where, he said, Ms. Sunisa could check the veracity of his claim.
Dr. Noppadol said he served as a political official in the government of Prime Minister Prayut for just 11 months and then quit, adding that none of his staff at Super Poll has received salaries or allowances from the Government since Super Poll became operational four years ago.
He also claimed that his organization had designed several strategies for the Government, including those against trafficking in ivory and strategies against human trafficking, illegal fishing and forced child labour.
All these strategies have been successfully implemented by the Government, he said.
