HAS MALAYSIA TURNED A CORNER?
With the new administration prioritising anti-corruption, economic growth, and international cooperation, investors have taken note of the medium- and long-term opportunities.
However, ordinary Malaysians have been slower to follow suit, as trust in government leaders have stayed low for the past few years.
According to the Edelman Trust Barometer 2024, governments are seen as far less competent and ethical compared to businesses and non-governmental organisations. Granted, this is not unique to Malaysia.
Global trust for governments and institutions has been low over the past few years, amid a more polarised world. What is particular to Malaysia, however, is its history of corruption, which has eroded public trust over the decades.
Studies on the correlation between corruption and low trust in institutions have been consistent across all jurisdictions and cultures in history, whether in post-Soviet countries, Latin America or Asia. Corruption has a unique effect to “sand the wheels” (rather than grease them) and its negative consequences on development of institutions and civil society is hard to reverse immediately.
Many transition democracies, like Malaysia, went through the same cycle, and the chances of democracy either breaking down, stagnating, advancing or eroding is not certain. In a study of third-wave transition democracies, between 1974 to 2012, only 23 out of 91 cases advanced their democracies. The vast majority broke down, stagnated or eroded entirely.
Malaysia also has another unique aspect to its transitional democracy. Before the first government turnover in 2018, Barisan Nasional was one of the longest ruling coalitions in the world. Attempts at changing the government before 2018 were unsuccessful, albeit increasingly close, which bred feelings of disappointment and scepticism.
Understandably, the 2018 turnover was euphoric for Malaysians, who raised their trust in institutions and reduced perceived corruption. But the post-election euphoria quickly turned into disillusionment as the country went into rounds of infighting that produced the highest levels of political turbulence with three changes of government in less than five years.
When Anwar Ibrahim became prime minister in November 2022, it was a second spring for Malaysia – a belated re-democracy. But the euphoria of 2018 is tempered, and the nation’s cynicism, stacked through the years, is its backdrop. This is not to say that the people’s trust can’t be repaired, but it at least provides an explanation to the people’s lethargy despite external excitement for the country.
A nation let down many times might be fearful to believe so readily, even when the numbers objectively look better. It is an understandable way of self-preservation. Trust takes time to rebuild, and the recent positive news are building blocks for the day the people will take the risk to believe again.
James Chai is a political analyst, columnist and the author of Sang Kancil (Penguin Random House).
