Thais doubt professional ministers in energy crisis: NIDA Poll
Respondents were least confident in Ekniti Nitithanprapas, while nearly half said they did not sympathise at all with the government’s crisis response.
- A NIDA poll indicates significant public doubt in the ability of professional, non-politician ministers to manage Thailand's energy and economic crisis.
- Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas faced the highest level of distrust, with over 77% of respondents expressing little to no confidence in his performance.
- A majority of those surveyed also lacked confidence in the ministers of Foreign Affairs and Commerce to handle the ongoing crisis.
- Overall sentiment towards the government's efforts is low, with nearly 47% of respondents feeling "no sympathy at all" for its attempts to resolve the situation.
NIDA Poll at the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA) released the findings of a survey titled “Professional ministers… can they handle it?” conducted from March 31 to April 1, 2026, on public opinion towards the efforts of the government of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul to tackle the energy and economic crisis.
According to the survey, when asked about public confidence in the three outsider ministers in leading the country through the energy and economic crisis, the findings were as follows.
- Sihasak Phuangketkeow, identified in the survey as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, saw 30.23% of respondents say they were not confident at all. Another 29.54% said they were not very confident, 22.82% said they were quite confident, 16.03% said they were very confident, and 1.38% said they did not know or gave no answer.
- Suphajee Suthumpun, identified in the survey as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce, saw 33.89% say they were not confident at all. Another 28.70% said they were not very confident, 21.91% said they were quite confident, 14.35% said they were very confident, and 1.15% said they did not know or gave no answer.
- Ekniti Nitithanprapas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, recorded the highest level of outright distrust, with 40.38% saying they were not confident at all. Another 37.10% said they were not very confident, 14.12% said they were quite confident, 7.10% said they were very confident, and 1.30% said they did not know or gave no answer.
Lastly, when asked about public sympathy for the government of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul in its efforts to resolve the current energy and economic crisis, 46.87% said they had no sympathy at all. Another 23.59% said they were quite sympathetic, 19.39% said they were not very sympathetic, 9.77% said they were very sympathetic, and 0.38% said they did not know, gave no answer, or were not interested.
