“As democracy matures, the people are more likely to be less trusting of authority,” said Umno Youth executive councillor Shahril Hamdan, a panelist in a discussion of the latest results of the Edelmen Trust Barometer Annual Global Study.

“The more democratic the country is, the more cynical the people will be,” he added. “Regardless of how well the government communicates or performs, people will still have less trust in the government and its leaders.”

The Edelman survey published today revealed that the government is the least trusted key institution in the country, obtaining the trust of only 39% of the general population and 34% of the informed public.

Shahril likened Malaysia to the United States and Britain.

“The US and the UK are developed countries that provide good services for their people,” he said. “They are countries that we want to emulate in some ways. But their governments are also facing the same trust issues.

“”It’s simple. As you become more democratised, people become more cynical. They would say that whatever the government does is in its own self-interest, or some other ulterior motives.

“This is in contrast to countries like Singapore and China, which don’t value democracy as much as Malaysia, the US and the UK do.”

A panelist from Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University said the percentage of trust reflected in the study would have been lower if the question posed to those surveyed was in regard to their trust in politicians instead of the government.

“People implicitly make the distinction between politicians, who are perhaps like actors on a stage, and institutions of the government, which are perceived more as efficient service providers,” he said.

“In the future, if the government wants to make itself more popular, it should capitalise on this perception, but on a larger scale.”