The main challenge for Pakatan Harapan, now in office for a little more than 500 days, remains bread-and-butter issues, said political observers, giving mixed reviews of the government’s performance to date.
International Islamic University Malaysia political science lecturer Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar told The Malaysian Insight that PH has opened up the democratic space by lowering the voting age, granting press freedom and undertaking parliamentary reforms.
Prior to the 14th general election last year, the pact had raised voters’ expectations for a better Malaysia, he said.
“Because of this and the democratic euphoria post-GE14, the coalition has been accused of being slow to introduce more meaningful reforms. The most obvious change that it has effected is, perhaps, bringing leaders accused of corruption to face trial.”
However, he said, the government’s attempts to address quality-of-life issues have yet to make a sufficient impact.
“PH claims to have fulfilled more than half of its election promises, but for the majority, the effects have not yet been fully felt,” he said, citing job creation, better-quality jobs and higher wages.
Merdeka Centre manager Tan Seng Keat said voter expectation was high when PH took over Putrajaya in May last year.
Malaysians had expected more of PH than the previous administration, he said.
“Furthermore, the different races expect different things. Malay voters’ opinion of what constitutes a better Malaysia is different from the Chinese, for instance.
“Malays want better jobs, higher wages and more business opportunities, while the Chinese want fairer opportunities and education reforms.”
He said achieving these aims is difficult as PH has had to spend a lot of time learning how to work with the federal bureaucracy while grappling with Barisan Nasional’s legacy issues.
“They have to find the right balance on how to be fair to everyone while dealing with debt issues left behind by the previous government. The timing of the US-China trade war hasn’t helped, either. This has caused investors to be more cautious.”
According to a Merdeka Centre poll in June, PH’s approval rating had stabilised at 41% following a high of 75% shortly after it wrested power in GE14.
With some 3½ years to go before the next elections, said Institut Darul Ehsan research manager Kamarul Baharin Zahid, there is hope yet for PH.
Referring to the think-tank’s public perception survey in June, he said overall sentiments for the ruling pact have not drastically changed.
“PH got 49% of the popular vote in GE14, and according to our June survey, their support level dipped just one percentage point. The support for BN remained at 32%, while PAS’ fell from 19% to 17%.”
The situation for PH is not dire, despite the loud voices of dissent, he said.
“This is in part due to the opening up of the democratic space. Social media users are not afraid to speak up after the fall of BN.”
Although 53% of those polled expressed unhappiness with the state of the economy under PH, 52% said they are confident the pact can turn things around within five years, said Kamarul.
“Overall, voters believe that the government should be given enough time to reform the country and improve the economy.”
Even though racial and religious rhetoric is a hot topic, the poll’s results showed that the economy is Malaysians’ primary concern, he added.
“Unlike the previous government, there are no dominant parties in PH, and it is capable of managing the different communities’ expectations.
“If the new government can translate its shared prosperity concept well, racial tensions will dissipate. People become anxious only when the economy is bad.”
The survey, which saw 1,597 voters in the peninsula polled, was shown to The Malaysian Insight.
On the positive side, the poll showed that the people remain upbeat about the economy, despite its slow recovery, and believe that prices have stabilised and corruption, waned.
On the other hand, those surveyed expressed unhappiness over the ringgit’s depreciation, burden of the sale and services tax, Felda settlers’ reduced income, and subsidy cuts.
Moving ahead, Tunku Mohar said PH’s main obstacle will be its management of the economy and identity politics.
“The perceived lack of policies aimed at strengthening the position of Malays and Islam is being used by the opposition Umno and PAS to rally Malays against the ruling pact.
“The failure to accede to ICERD (International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination) and withdrawal from the Rome Statute are just two examples to show that the Malay segment of the electorate can be mobilised through identity politics.” – TMI