Only 1 in 3 Pakistanis Supported the Panama Papers Judgement: Survey

The Panama verdict made quite an impact and the majority of the Pakistanis did not like the verdict. This observation comes according to a recent Gallup report, which states that only 1 in 3 people liked the decision of Supreme Court.

The poll was carried out during the first 24 hours after Supreme Court announced their verdict. Around 1400 participants were scientifically selected; men and women, from urban and rural areas nationwide.

Gallup utilized the latest Table Technology to collect the responses from the respondents. The results were made available 48 after the verdict was made public.

The PML-N representatives have expressed relief and on the other hand, the opposition expressed their disappointment as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was not de-seated, as they had anticipated.

According to the poll:

• 36% of the respondents liked the verdict
• 43% of them did not like the verdict
• 21% of them refused to express their feelings

Political Parties and Their Views

Each political party in Pakistan has its own narrative and agenda, which is why their voters had very different expectations from the Panama verdict.

Let’s take a look at how each political party and their supporters reacted to the judgement in the first 24 hours:

PML-N:

• 68% liked the verdict
• 16% did not like the verdict
• 16% did not voice their opinion

PTI:

• 67% disliked the verdict
• 12% were in favor
• 21% did not vote

PPP:

• 58% did not like the verdict
• 21% liked the verdict
• 21% refused to express their feelings

Have You Accepted The Decision?

PML-N Voters:

• 71% said yes
• 20% said to some extent
• 9% said no

PTI Voters:

• 45% said no
• 36% said to some extent
• 19% said yes

PPP Voters

• 44% said no
• 39% said to some extent
• 17% said yes

Jamat-i-Islami Voters:

• 46% said to some extent
• 37% said no
• 17% said yes

General Public Opinion

• 40% said to some extent
• 32% said no
• 28% said yes

What Would You Have Done?

The respondents were asked what decision would they have given if they were a Supreme Court judge, would they have given a stricter verdict or a lenient one.

• 40% said that they would have given a more strict verdict
• 23% revealed that they would have given the same verdict
• 21% said that they would have given a lenient verdict
• 16% were unsure

Was It a Good Decision In General?

Respondents were asked to categorize whether the Panama verdict will be remembered as a good decision or a bad one.

• 45% said that it was a bad decision
• 37% were in favor of the verdict
• 18% were undecided

Moreover, 55% of the respondents said that they believe the decision was in favor of Nawaz Sharif and only 14% thought it was against him. 31% revealed that they thought the decision was neutral.

How Will The Verdict Affect Things?

Will The Verdict Lead To Less Corruption?

• 51% voted no
• 29% voted yes
• 20% said corruption will increase

Will It Have A Good Impact?

• 32% said it will have a negative impact
• 32% said it’s insignificant
• 28% voted yes
• 8% did not know

Will The Growth Rate Increase?

• 35% said it will decrease
• 35% voted that it won’t have any impact
• 30% voted yes

Post-Verdict: Who Will You Vote For?

• 38% said PML-N
• 22% said PTI
• 17% said PPP
• 3% said independent nominee
• 2% each said JUI, ANP, MQM (Farooq Sattar) and BNP
• 1% each said PSP, JI, PML-F, PML (London) and PML-Q

Rest of the people either did not know whom they choose to vote for or did not wish to cast a vote.

Support For Supreme Court

Lastly, the respondents were asked whether Supreme Court should interfere in political matters or not:

• 39% were in favor
• 26% were against
• 24% were neutral
• 11% did not know

The Gallup report is based on Flash poll which is conducted within the 24 hours after any major incident, in this case the Panama Papers case and the court verdict.

To read the full report, click here.