Citing the fifth thrust — to strengthen racial and religious ties among the people — he said Malaysia had never been more polarised since the “backdoor Sheraton Move” takeover 10 months ago which was openly based on the formation of a Malay-Muslim government.

Lim said if he was genuine in this pronouncement, Muhyiddin should now declare himself to be “Malaysian first, Malay second” so that the rakyat could join him in his efforts to build a more united nation to face the challenging post-pandemic period.

He said the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government created after the Sheraton Move was the most unstable government in the history of Malaysia – riven not only by dissension in the ruling coalition but also the narrow majority in Parliament.

In his statement, Lim said there were no signs over the last 10 months of the PN government that stern action would be taken against any “misinformation campaigns” by certain parties to polarise the races and religions in Malaysia.

On the prime minister’s strategy of ensuring good governance, Lim said this was a mockery unless he was prepared to replace the numerous politician-led government-linked companies (GLCs) and agencies with professionals to ensure they were operated professionally and with integrity.

“I am sure all Malaysians, including the Cabinet, will be dreading the release of the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index 2020 later this month as it will be the latest global report card on the performance of the PN government.”

On Muhyiddin’s plan to uphold sovereignty and strengthen the country’s position on the world stage, Lim said the latest report that Vietnam would surpass Malaysia to become the 4th largest economy in Southeast Asia was not encouraging.

“The PN government’s way of controlling the spread of Covid-19, rising unemployment rate and the contraction of industrial production are signs of tough times ahead, with no signs of long-term plans to handle the post-pandemic situation,” he added.