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Jakarta. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s popularity has taken a battering since his landslide election last year, new surveys show.

A Indo Barometer poll shows Yudhoyono’s approval rating in August had dropped almost 40 points since August 2009, while an Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) poll reveals a 20 percent drop.

The Indo Barometer survey of 1,200 people showed his approval rating was 51 percent, compared with 90 percent at this time last year.

LSI’s poll of 1,829 people showed that the president had the approval of 66 percent of the public, compared with 85 percent in the year-earlier period.

Despite the drop, LSI analyst Burhanuddin Muhtadi said 66 percent was still relatively high.

But House Deputy Speaker Pramono Anung, from the opposition Indonesia Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said it should be seen as a “drastic decline.”

He said the survey was conducted before the Malaysia row erupted, which would have pushed the president’s approval even lower.

LSI executive director Kuskridho Ambardi said many factors had led to the decline, but singled out the economy as the most influential factor. “Economic conditions usually serve as a great warning for governments,” he said.

Both surveys indicated the public believed the president had failed in regards to the economy.

The Indo Barometer poll showed 59 percent of respondents were unsatisfied with Yudhoyono’s economic performance, while the LSI poll showed only 29 percent believed he had done a good job.

The LSI survey raised two major issues tied to the economy that may have affect the approval rating: exploding gas canisters and rising electricity prices.

About 77 percent were unhappy with the government’s response to the gas canister crisis, while 66 percent objected to the power rice rise.

The president is also not doing an impressive job in other areas, the surveys suggest.

In the LSI poll, just 35 percent said the country’s legal environment was good, compared with 49.6 percent in the Indo Barometer study who approved of how the president was handling legal issues.

The president did get a relatively high score for security, with Indo Barometer giving him 66 percent approval and LSI 55 percent.

Kuskridho said the president’s falling fortunes could also be attributed to his leadership abilities and personality. “His perceived indecisiveness, slow response to major issues and other leadership characteristics could have affected the approval rating,” he said.

Vice President Boediono has even more reason to be concerned. Just 28 percent of the Indo Barometer respondents are pleased with how he is doing his job, while the LSI poll showed 53 percent were satisfied.