In an exclusive interview with FMT, Subang MP Wong Chen said he would personally award the government a “B+” rating for its handling of the economy and maintain the “D” for political reforms, thus giving it a “C” overall.
In the economic sphere, the finance ministry announced last month that Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) for the third quarter of this year grew by 5.3%, up from 3.3% recorded in the corresponding quarter last year.
Job figures also improved, with the statistics department revealing that the unemployment rate for September fell 0.2% to 3.2% compared to the same month in 2023.
Anwar, Ismail governed under different circumstances
Wong, however, acknowledged that Bersih was likely to have applied different criteria given that it tends to prioritise the implementation of wide-ranging structural reforms.
He said Bersih’s grading was premised on an assessment of the government’s performance in 37 areas encompassing electoral, institutional and civil liberty reforms, whereas the government works in a pragmatic political space.
Wong also said it would be erroneous to compare Anwar’s and Ismail’s administrations, given the different circumstances under which they operated.
He said Pakatan Harapan’s reform-minded MPs make up only 37% of the lower house, whereas Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s administration had more MPs united on similar policies.
Bersih must understand that PH at the moment doesn’t have the numbers to unilaterally push for reforms, he added.
Wong also pointed to the fact that although the unity government makes up 67%, or two-thirds, of the Dewan Rakyat, its component parties may not share the same priorities when it comes to their respective reform agendas.
Challenges faced by the unity government
“We (PKR) have been fighting (Umno-BN for certain reforms) for 25 years. It takes time (for the parties to become friends),” he said, adding that while the process has been tough, unity within the government has improved better than expected.
He also said the groundwork required to pave the way for the implementation of reforms was substantial and would require extensive negotiations among the various partners within the government over the “details”.
“(It also depends on) how far our partners are willing to concede in terms of reforms,” he added.
Last month, Bersih issued a mid-term report on the unity government, calling out its limited progress in the implementation of reforms as well as the gap between its rhetoric and action.
At the same time, the electoral watchdog praised Ismail for his government’s willingness to allocate equal development funds to opposition MPs, a move which paved the way for bipartisan support that saw key reforms passed, including the anti-hopping law and a lowering of the voting age from 21 to 18.
Wong said PH played a major role in pushing those reforms through.
He said the allocation of development funds only came about after PH agreed not to move to topple the government. “It wasn’t given by Ismail’s government out of interest for reforms.”
Wong also pointed out that the anti-hopping law had been championed by PH. “In fact, I drafted the bulk of the memorandum of understanding, which was based on milestones for reforms.”
He also called Bersih’s assessment methodology “superficial” and “incomplete”. He said that, unlike the previous prime ministers, the Madani government was tested against a long list of 37 reforms.
Thus, he said, the comparison was neither “scientific” nor “standardised”.