The majority of the people do not know who to blame for the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) imbroglio - but most who do point the finger at Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

According to a Merdeka Center survey, conducted in collaboration with BFM, 52 percent of the respondents said they are unsure of who to blame while six percent said "don't know".

In an interview with the radio station aired this morning, Merdeka Center director Ibrahim Suffian said for the 42 percent who did assign blame, 18 percent faulted Najib and 16 percent the federal government.

Five percent said the 1MDB management was responsible while three percent pointed at other institutions.

A total of 1,011 voters from peninsular Malaysia were surveyed in the study between March 12 to 27, of which 60 percent were Malays, 31 percent were Chinese, and nine percent were Indians.

The study also found that 49 percent of respondents said they were "not confident at all" or "somewhat not confident" with the government's handling of 1MDB.

This is in contrast to 18 percent who said they were "a great deal confident" or "somewhat confident" of Putrajaya's management of 1MDB.

The remaining 32 percent said they were unsure, and one percent refused to answer.

Despite the apparent lack of confidence, when respondents were asked if they will be affected by 1MDB, only a third, or 33 percent, thought it strongly or somewhat affected them.

In contrast, 36 percent felt strongly or somewhat felt that 1MDB will not affect them.

The remaining 30 percent were unsure and another one percent refused to answer.

'Middle class feel the pinch'

In the interview, Ibrahim said the vast majority who thought they would be affected were from the middle class or younger respondents with Internet access.

"In the rural areas and low-income groups, they don't feel that they are affected because the vast majority of Malaysians don't pay taxes before April 1.

"If the money is lost, (they feel) it is not their money, it is someone's else's money.

"For the middle class, they feel the pinch because it will be their tax dollars supporting or bailing out any financial failure," said Ibrahim ( left ).

According to the survey, many respondents also admitted to not being aware of what exactly the 1MDB controversy is about; 69 percent said they knew "nothing" or "not very much".

Only 29 percent said they knew "a great deal" or "quite a lot".

The gulf is even wider when respondents were asked about their knowledge of the company, with 75 percent stating they knew nothing or "not very much" about it.

Only 23 percent said they knew "a great deal" or "quite a lot", while two percent said they were unsure.