HALF of Malaysian voters polled have given a thumbs up to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s first-year leadership of the unity government, a recent survey found. 

Merdeka Centre’s nationwide survey, held from October 4 to 24 involving 1,220 voters of all ethnicities, however, showed that the popularity for PMX, the popular catchword for the country’s 10th prime minister, has dwindled over his tenure in office.

A previous survey by Merdeka Centre conducted from December 26, 2022 to January 15, 2023 indicated that 68% of Malaysian voters were satisfied with Anwar’s performance. 

The recent polls showed that Anwar’s performance bettered that of his predecessors Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Ismail Sabri Yaakob. 

Muhyiddin Yassin, the eighth prime minister who led the country for 17 months, however, had a better approval rating of his leadership at the time of his resignation – 58%. 

The survey on government performance found that the Muhyiddin Yassin and Ismail Sabri administrations were better at fighting corruption.  

On maintaining the rule of law, Anwar fared better than Ismail Sabri but was topped by Muhyiddin.  

On helping those in financial distress, both Muhyiddin and Ismail Sabri’s governments had positive scores while Anwar’s was in the red. 

Several other key performances indicators did not favour the Anwar Ibrahim administration, with people saying that it had underperformed on the following issues: cost-of-living, generating economic growth, improving integrity of government officials, and improving government efficiency.  

Anwar’s good scores came from his protection of Malay-Muslim interests, upholding of Islam, and efforts to improve ethnic relations.  

The unity government was formed in November last year after Anwar gained the backing of lawmakers from Barisan Nasional as well as Sabah and Sarawak parties. 

Anwar enjoys a strong two-thirds majority in parliament with 151 MPs backing him, including four from Bersatu. – November 22, 2023.