Cyprus Mail 13 September 2020 - by Jean Christou
The government ministers with the highest approval ratings, according to a poll published on Sunday are Constantinos Ioannou minster of health, labour’s Zeta Emilianidou and finance Constantinos Petrides.
The lowest approval rating went to Education Minister Prodromos Prodromou, according to the poll conducted by RetailZoom at the beginning of September among 1,348 people on behalf of Politis newspaper.
Ioannou scored a 78% approval rating among all respondents, 83% with the 55+ age group. He is most popular in Nicosia with an 81% approval rating.
Emilianidou came in a close second with a 77% approval, with 81% among the over 55’s and 71% per cent among the 18-35 age group. Her approval rating too was highest in Nicosia at 82%.
The approval rating for Petrides stood at 68%, rising to 72% among those over 55. He also was most popular in Nicosia with a 70% approval rating there.
Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulidis came fourth with a 66% approval rating out of the six ministers included in the survey. But 34% of respondents have a negative image of the way he performs his duties. His approval reaches 69% in the 55+ group and he is most popular in Limassol at 71%.
According to Politis, Prodromos Prodromou was the only government minister who was literally rejected by almost all respondents with a 78% disapproval rating. In the age groups 18-35, this reached 86%, while those aged 55+ give him a positive vote of only 33%.
Interior Minister Nicos Nouris was not hugely popular either with an overall 58% disapproval but with a 42% approval. His popularity rose to 47% in Limassol.
As for President Nicos Anastasiades, his approval rating fell 18 points since the last such survey in April, Politis said. Back then it was 79% compared with 61% at the time of the poll two weeks ago.
Anastasiades is most popular among the 55+ age group at 66% but scores only 52% among those aged 18-35. The president is most popular in Nicosia at 64%, Limassol 42% and in the Larnaca-Famagusta area only 44%.
The poll also touched on the citizenship by investment scheme with six out of ten saying they would like to see a probe against parliament as regards the leaking of documents to Al Jazeera.
Six out of ten believe the scheme benefits the few but 45% see the benefits to the economy though most think its should be modified and improved.
As for the Cyprus issue, 67% believe the government should be involved in a process for the immediate resumption of talks. The percentage in Nicosia is 70%, in Famagusta 75%, in Limassol at 55% and in Paphos at 53%.