Written by Wong Choon Mei, Politics Now!
KUALA LUMPUR (Politics Now!) - As public criticism mounts against Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim over a 'backdoor defections' scandal, his office has announced a three-day event called "One Year with the Madani Government" to 'commemorate' his first year in power.
"It's quite normal for leaders to blow their horn and Anwar is definitely no exception," a political analyst told Politics Now!
"Hopefully there won't be too much overspending and the costs and sponsorships will be transparently detailed. For sure, the people are not too pleased with his performance and he might feel the need to 'shock and awe' them. But Malaysians are used to this type of ploy. They will come out and enjoy the freebies but after that, they will still criticize him."
A YEAR OF NEGATIVES
Anwar had drawn public disgust for sanctioning what is viewed by many as encouraging the 'party-hopping' of opposition MPs to his side, even helping them tap a controversial loophole in the Anti-Hopping Law by agreeing to give them federal funds in exchange for their political support.
Many Malaysians are also unhappy with him for what they perceive as backpedaling on anti-corruption promises when his deputy premier Zahid Hamidi, who also provides his main political support, was controversially freed from graft charges,
Anwar's failure to appoint a new domestic trade and cost of living minister is also frequently mocked as a sign of his political weakness. He is seen as not being able to control his Cabinet, which is made up of ministers from the various parties that form his unity government.
Infighting for portfolios amongst the parties is said to be so heated that it has forced Anwar to shelve a much-needed reshuffle to weed out the 'deadwood' from a largely incompetent Cabinet, that include several unpopular ministers from his own party, as well as the 'Little Napoleon' political secretaries and aides that dot his office.
However, the coup de grâce is likely to be the shock free-fall in value of the ringgit to historic 25-year lows and Anwar's impotence in curtailing it. His lack of hands-on work as Finance Minister, a portfolio he granted himself despite rumblings on the ground, is already showing signs - with investors unconvinced by his recently-tabled Budget for 2024, sparking a noticeable capital flight.
"For one year, that's a pretty lot of negatives. If not for his reformist image, there would already be public clamoring for him to step down but the people who voted for him are trying to give him a last chance while his political foes are doing the classic 'give him more rope to hang himself'," said the analyst.
"Based on his performance and the quality shown by his Cabinet, I think it will be difficult to last out their 5-year term. But if they get ousted, they have no one but themselves to blame for reneging on election promises and overstating their capability."
IF MUHYIDDIN & ISMAIL SABRI SPENT RM700 MIL, HOW MUCH WILL ANWAR SPEND?
Meanwhile, according to the organizing secretariat, the three-day event will showcase the 'Madani' government’s achievements so far. It also mentioned the “touchpoint services” rolled out for the people and other initiatives aimed at ensuring Malaysians’ welfare.
The event will also feature engagement sessions between the public and ministry officials, “Mega Madani” sales and others, it added.
However, the secretariat did not say how much the event will cost and who will be sponsoring the costs.
Ironically, Anwar had earlier this month accused his predecessors Muhyiddin Yassin and Ismail Sabri of overspending a whopping RM700 million on advertising, promotion and publicity, to showcase their administrative achievements between 2020 and 2022.
Out of the RM700 million, Anwar had stated that RM500 million was earmarked during the Muhyiddin administration and the balance under the Ismail Sabri administration.
Anwar, now in the U.S. to attend the Apec summit, is due to officiate the event on Dec 10. Other top government leaders are also expected to attend.
“The event aims to promote the new policies and initiatives introduced for the people, raise public awareness and understanding of the government’s direction and goals, and build the people’s confidence and trust in the government," Free Malaysia Today reported the organizing secretariat as saying.
“This event also involves strategic cooperation with various ministries and agencies, GLCs, NGOs, the private sector and other stakeholders.”
Anwar came to power after his Pakatan Harapan coalition, consisting of his own PKR party, the DAP and Amanah, collectively won the most seats in the 15th general election held in November.
Although, he failed to win a simple majority, with the help of the King, he managed to cobble together a 'unity government' which he has named the 'Madani' government.
The other main coalitions in the 'Madani' government are Umno-BN, GPS, GRS and Warisan.
Written by Wong Choon Mei, Politics Now!
Politics Now!
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