THE unity government’s solidarity convention in Kuala Lumpur today is to showcase that the government will last the full term or maybe beyond.The government in power, a coalition of coalitions and political parties, has a majority of 148 parliamentary seats. The partners in the grand coalition came together to thwart the political ascendancy of the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition.After a brief period of jockeying for power, the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition was able to form a unity government with coalitions in Sabah, Sarawak and others — what was thought impossible was achieved.PN with its dubious affidavits of political support, could not stop the grand coalition headed by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who became the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia. A position that eluded him for a long time.The unity government has been in power for six months, with state elections coming soon.In a way, the solidarity convention today is to take stock of what has transpired in the past six months—the achievements and problems.The ultimate litmus test for the government is whether or not it can show Malaysians that it means business, can ride the challenge of the state elections. I still inspire confidence in Malaysians that the government, despite the different political ideologies, is here to stay for at least one full term.It will certainly be a bonus if it can last beyond the full term.It is plainly wrong to say that since the former governments of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri did not last too long, the same cannot be said of the present unity government under the leadership of Anwar.The unity government, or coalition of coalitions, might superficially appear to be unstable, but the glue of Anwar appears to be holding the government together.It’s not just about the personality of Anwar, it’s about the general good feeling that Anwar is doing the right thing.His move against corruption, bringing in more foreign investments, his pursuit of inclusivity, and ultimately his notion of what constitutes good governance have sown the seeds of stability and political longevity.The detractors might not give the government much time, but Anwar’s popularity is on the rise.The government is not perfect, but certainly it does not take rocket science to realise that the present government is relatively much better than the previous ones that were entrapped in extremism of race and religion.The unity government, despite differences, seems to be an inclusive government.A recent survey conducted in Penang suggests that the government of Anwar has a good measure of support.It is not that PN’s challenge can be ruled out of undermining the unity government. They are not resting on their laurels; they are just waiting for the opportune moment to bring down the government.The signing of the Malay Proclamation initiated by Dr Mahathir is just another attempt to bring down the unity government.The feeling of confidence in the convention does not mean that political, economic and social challenges can be swept under the carpet. — May 14, 2023
Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is the state assemblyperson for Perai. He is also deputy chief minister II of Penang.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
