By Prior Beharry
POLLSTER Dr Vishnu Bisram says he is neither a mercenary nor in the pocket of any political party.
His statement comes after at least two political parties attacked his credibility following his releasing of results for his latest poll that showed the People’s National Movement (PNM) will retain power if elections were called now.
Bisram, 62, stated, “The public is discontented with the ruling PNM but do not want the presently constituted opposition (United National Congress) UNC as the alternative. The PNM will handily win re-election if a general election were called soon.”
In a release on Wednesday, UNC Public Relations Officer Dr Kirk Meighoo said, “It is an open secret that the so-called NACTA ‘organisation’ quite transparently appears to be nothing more than the mercenary identity of Dr Vishnu Bisram, ready to create so-called ‘polls’ to suit the agenda of whomever is paying him.”
He also asked: What sort of polling methodology does he use? How is the sample chosen? What is the poll’s margin of error? Can the polling data be analysed and vetted by third parties? Can anyone say they have ever been contacted by NACTA for the many “polls” it has done over the decades?
And political leader of the Progressive Empowerment Party (PEP) Phillip Edwards Alexander also questioned the integrity of Dr Bisram’s polling. He asked similar questions about sample sizes and whether anyone was really interviewed in these polls.
Contacted for comment by AZP News on Thursday Dr Bisram said, “Anyone who doesn’t have polling results favourable of them will attack the pollster. That’s how it is in every underdeveloped society. In a western democratic developed society, they accept the results and expect to do better.”
Stressing that he believed in freedom of speech, he said Dr Meighoo attacked the messenger but said nothing about the message.
Dr Bisram said, “I am not an agent or mercenary of any party or individual. I am not on the payroll of anyone.”
He said the poll in question had a sample of 520 to measure the demographic of the population and a margin of error of +/- 4%.
Dr Bisram runs his polls through the North American Caribbean Teachers Association (NACTA) and said it was established by a Trinidadian in the mid-1980s.
He said its founders included himself and a number of Guyana and Trinidad-born teachers in New York and they began to do polls and in interviews in these two countries.
Dr Bisram said, “All of them have moved on to other activities and I was the only one who remains with the organisation and therefore I continue to do polling and other research using that name.”
Asked if he was the only current member of NACTA, Dr Bisram said, “I am one of the founders and I remain one of the active members who continue to do polling by using interviewers in Trinidad and Guyana and other places.”
He said he does a poll in Guyana every two or three months and slowed down in Trinidad during the pandemic but did one in Tobago last year.
But, Dr Bisram said he has travelled extensively and done polling also in Fiji, Mauritius, Antigua, Grenada, St Vincent, Indian and New York.
Born in Guyana, now living in New York, Dr Bisram said he has four Ph.Ds in the social sciences and has been doing polling for 35 years.
Asked about the point by Dr Meighoo who asked whether NACTA had a website, Dr Bisram said when it was established there were no websites which he felt were not important now.
And about the claim made by the PEP’s Alexander that NACTA polls only include the PNM and UNC and not other parties, Dr Bisram replied: “Phillip Alexander party does not attract any support, virtually no support, less than 1%, and therefore the impact of his party is minuscule.
“It’s not a question of including or excluding; no party is excluded. People give their views and he is not among those who people prefer to lead a party against the PNM. He and (interim political leader of the National Transformation Alliance Gary) Griffith and all others are there.
“There was a very specific question (in the poll) because you have an official Opposition. And the question is who do you prefer?”
