BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, January 31, 2020 (Press Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister) – Director of the Caribbean Development Research Services (CADRES), Mr. Peter Wickham, said that the results of polls conducted by the reputable regional firm represent a true reflection of what is taking place on the ground at a particular time, and that these results are in no way influenced or altered by clients.
Mr. Wickham’s comments came on the heels of the recently released results of a national poll that showed the Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris-led Team Unity coalition is poised to win the next general elections based on its findings. The survey was carried out in October 2019.
The Barbados pollster, who was at the time discussing the poll results on the programme “Frank & Candid” on ZIZ Radio on Wednesday, January 29, stated that his clients have no option to change or alter the data collected during a survey.
“Basically, we give clients fair and accurate reading of what we are seeing on the ground. The client has the option to publish or not publish and that’s the way that I work with my clients. My clients know what they will get from me is the truth and they have the option to release it or not release it,” the pollster said.
Mr. Wickham added that there are many instances where the findings of polls carried out by CADRES were not published “because either the client does not like the result or chooses not to release it, or alternatively the client tries to learn from the result.”
For the October 2019 public opinion poll in St. Kitts and Nevis, approximately one-thousand persons in all 11 Federal constituencies were interviewed by CADRES using a methodology that is consistent with that which was used with all previous national surveys in St Kitts and Nevis.
The Right Track/Wrong Track question during the survey found that a majority of Kittitians and Nevisians (53%) believed that the country was on the right track or heading in the right direction under the current Team Unity administration, while 24% believed that the country was on the wrong track.
It also showed that the leadership style of Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris remains the preferred option among the majority of the electorate in St. Kitts and Nevis.
