Anwar said the collaboration at the federal level was expected to not only continue throughout his current term but also extend beyond the next general election.

“For now, things are a bit settled, it’s politically stable. I think the coalitions are working together and I think we are talking even beyond this term of office.

“If we remain tough and consistent with our policies, then I believe we will get the mandate (from the people) to proceed,” he said in an interview with FMT at the Prime Minister’s Office.

Anwar added that it “would augur very well” for Malaysia if the unity government continued in office.

He pointed out that he would be completing his second year in office on Nov 24, surpassing the tenures of his predecessors Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Muhyiddin Yassin, both of whom served fewer than 18 months as prime minister.

“We are quite comfortable in that sense,” Anwar said.

The unity government was proposed by Al-Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, then Yang di-Pertuan Agong, as a solution to Malaysia’s first-ever hung Parliament after GE15.

The four major coalitions that make up the unity government are the Anwar-led Pakatan Harapan (PH), Barisan Nasional (BN), Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).

Several party leaders have expressed hope that the cooperation between PH and BN would continue beyond the next polls. In July, DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook said the PH-BN collaboration in recent by-elections had sufficiently shown that the unity government was solid.

Similarly, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had hinted that the pact would continue in GE16 and beyond, although BN has yet to make an official decision on an alliance for the polls.

This is despite Perikatan Nasional’s repeated claims that the public, especially the Malays, do not support BN and PH working together in the unity government.

The opposition has also alleged that Islam was under threat and that the Malays have been left behind under the unity government.