This article first appeared in Forum, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on December 26, 2022 - January 1, 2023

During the Merdeka week this year, I wrote for this column an article titled “As we celebrate Merdeka, what kind of Malaysia do we want?”

Over the next few months, I asked friends, fellow professionals and students the same question and got a wide range of answers. Among the more popular answers was that they want to see a less corrupt Malaysia. Since no country has eliminated this scourge, they hope the problem can be better managed at least.

Others want a fair Malaysia that rewards honest, hardworking citizens and socio-economic inequality narrowed. Many want a country that can attain high economic growth by bringing in more development, and that will provide higher incomes for the people.

Many also want a more harmonious, multiracial, multicultural and multi-religious Malaysia. They want a people who understand each other better and bicker less about what divides us as a nation. Instead of taking a “them and us” attitude in everything we do, we must have an amicable meeting point. Why don’t we leverage our strength in diversity, they often ask.

Multiracial Malaysia was thought to have won the day in the 2018 general election (GE) when the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition took over the government from the Umno-led Barisan Nasional (and its predecessor, the Alliance Party) for the first time in 60 years.

But the changes that followed were too abrupt. Having non-Malays in the cabinet and government, in positions that were traditionally held by the Malays, and the push for immediate change in many areas deemed sensitive to Malay and Islamic interests rattled the community’s confidence in PH’s political outlook.

The crucial question they asked then was, had the Malays made the wrong choice by voting for PH? Along with this was the fear that this ruling party could not protect their interests. Many wanted to give PH a chance and sufficient time but irresponsible Malay politicians within PH itself and in the opposition seized the political opportunity by initiating the infamous Sheraton Move that toppled the PH government after just 22 months in power.

The raison d’etre of this group of Malay leaders was short and crude — they had seen enough and, in their view, PH could not and would not protect the interests of the Malays and Islam. Their own interests and position, and that of the Malays and Muslims in general, could only be safeguarded by a Malay-dominated cabinet and government.

So in came Perikatan Nasional (PN), which aimed to serve and protect the interests of the Malays and Islam. But what Malaysians got — in the midst of more than two years of the Covid-19 pandemic — was continual political manoeuvring that caused instability, which eventually saw power return to a prime minister from Umno.

The problems that the majority of the Malays wanted to remove — apart from ensuring that their interests are protected — did not seem to be solved even by a strong Malay-dominated cabinet and government. Political patronage remained, the economy did not seem to move, and there was economic hardship and a higher cost of living, which hit the bottom 50% of income earners, a group that is comprised mostly of the Malays.

And with racial and religious sentiments being continually fanned, the Malay community entered the last general election more fearful than ever of losing out. Somehow, the narrative that the uneventful 22-month PH rule was to be blamed for everything, including the greater influence of communism, influenced the voters, including the young ones.

This resulted in an unprecedented “green wave”, which saw Pas-led PN (along with Bersatu), making a clean sweep of four Malay states and winning the Malay heartland, which even Malay nationalist party Umno could not stop.

But even though the strong swing was evident, it stopped short of an outright majority. Likewise the case for a multiracial Malaysia. The nation now had a stark choice — to pick a multiracial or a Malay-Muslim-dominated government.

A merger between the biggest winners PH and PN was on the table but PN turned it down as it believed it could rule and had enough support from the members of parliament of other parties. In reality, with the anti-hopping laws in place, it didn’t.

After PN turned down the proposal, the King proposed a unity government led by PH and supported by Umno and the Borneo bloc. A “forced” unity government, criticised by some Malay ultras as undemocratic, was welcomed by the majority of Malaysians.

We now have a government endorsed and preferred by the King and Malay rulers, which has the support of many who believe that it can remove the uncertainties arising from political instability.

So, what now? The unity government seems to be working fast and getting things moving on the ground, and to have learnt from the lesson of 2018 to not initiate drastic changes that can spook the confidence of the Malay-Muslim majority. The immediate task ahead, apart from the house cleaning process, is to tackle the flood problems and table the 2023 budget.

We now have been given an opportunity for five years before the next GE — for politicians and Malaysians, in general, to work together to build a stronger and more stable nation. We, led by politicians, should not politicise everything in Malaysia into a race and religious issue. We must learn to be more tolerant of each other but, at the same time, the government must be firm in tackling racial and religious incitement and scaremongering, notably over social media platforms.

The Malay rulers have made their views known that political stability and a harmonious Malaysia that does not fan racial and religious sentiment is key to our economic recovery. And only a stable and strong government can initiate the much-needed structural reforms — ranging from targeted subsidies and a more diversified income tax base, to moving to the higher value-added and technology-based manufacturing, services and agriculture sectors — that are needed to propel our economy to the next phase of development.

With a global recession looming, 2023 will be a tough year for the economy. In fact, after Covid-19 and with Europe facing its first-ever major land war since World War II with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the editors of the Collins English dictionary have made “permacrisis” the word of the year for 2022. It describes an extended period of instability and insecurity that the world might be facing.

But I have confidence that common sense will prevail among many Malaysians and that we will move away from what divides us most and leverage our multiracial, cultural and religious strengths.

Last week, as I was about to cross the road after having chicken briyani at Mahbub restaurant in Lucky Garden, Bangsar, where I lived as a young journalist some 38 years ago, I came across huge banners at the entry of Bangsar Village shopping centre that remind us what Malaysia is all about.

They tell us of the spirit of 1Malaysia, to stand united as a country — one that is satu negara, satu hati — and that Malaysia is our pride.

Let us then work together to build a more dignified and united Malaysia. Salam, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.

Azam Aris is editor emeritus at The Edge

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