M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Just 37 percent of the public approves of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's job performance, the lowest rating he has registered in his 18 months in office, a poll has revealed.

The survey, conducted by the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI), discovered a number of unpopular decisions made by the Yudhoyono administration, such as raising fuel prices and electricity rates and a planned amendment of the labor law, had stirred a fast-growing resentment among the public.

Of 700 respondents surveyed between April 23 and April 27, only 37.9 percent said they were satisfied with the overall performance, a nose dive from 79.7 percent 18 months ago, when Yudhoyono first assumed office. The survey's margin of error is 3.8 percent.

The economy is the public's greatest concern, with 73.9 percent saying they believed the Yudhoyono administration had failed to tackle the chronic problem of unemployment.

The poll also found 70.4 percent of respondents felt there had been no improvement in their household incomes. Over 60 percent of respondents said they had experienced a drop in their purchasing power.

The poor state of the economy was attributed to the lackluster performance of the President's new economic team, assembled by Yudhoyono late last year. 72.2 percent of the respondents said they were not impressed by the work of the economic team.

LSI executive director Denny Januar Ali said that with his continuously declining popularity, it would be difficult for Yudhoyono to press ahead with his agenda. "The implication is that Yudhoyono will have problems gaining a wide support for future substantial policies," Denny said.

Denny recommended Yudhoyono not make new policies that would only to the people's problems. He also said Yudhoyono should reinforce his alliance with political parties, especially the Vice President Jusuf Kalla-led Golkar Party or he would be left with a fragile government.

In spite of the growing resentment, however, Denny thought it unlikely that there would a movement to overthrow the President. "In spite of the poor state of the economy and the cropping up of opposition figures who seek to capitalize on that failure, Yudhoyono's position is safe as people still believe in him as a respectable and clean figure," Denny said.

There are also other reasons for Yudhoyono to draw a sigh of relief. The LSI survey revealed 59 percent believed the administration had done well in tackling rampant corruption, far better than its predecessors.

The peaceful resolution of the Aceh conflict has also became a hallmark of the Yudhoyono administration, as indicated by 56 percent of respondents praising his handling of Aceh.

Lawmaker Didiek J. Rachbini of the National Mandate Party said the first thing Yudhoyono needed to do to rejuvenate the country's economy was court as many investors as possible to invest here. "If need be Yudhoyono must come to them one by one and spread a red carpet for them," Didiek said.