Will 2026 be the year PH fulfils its reform promises?

Anwar Ibrahim’s Jan 5 assurance that PH’s promised reforms will be implemented is good news for Malaysians hungry for changes that will further improve governance and set the nation on a more progressive trajectory.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s New Year address at the monthly assembly of the Prime Minister’s Department in Putrajaya on Jan 5 has renewed hope that several promised and long-awaited reforms may materialise this year.

Although some are still sceptical about Anwar’s reiteration of PH’s promises, like most Malaysians, I am hopeful that they will materialise.

Anwar announced on Jan 5 that the long-awaited bill on the separation of powers between the public prosecutor and the attorney-general would be the first bill to be tabled this year.

This is something that rights groups have been advocating for decades as questions have arisen over the manner in which a few AGs have handled certain politically sensitive cases. The independence of the AGs has been questioned because they are appointed by the prime minister.

Anwar also said a bill limiting the prime minister’s tenure to 10 years would be tabled this year.

In addition, he said a freedom of information bill – to improve transparency in public procurement, contracts and government decision-making – would be tabled and passed in Parliament this year.

Also, an ombudsman bill – to strengthen public accountability and create an avenue for citizens to lodge complaints against public authorities – is to be tabled in 2026.

Anwar also reiterated that the government would further toughen enforcement against corruption in politics, the civil service and elsewhere, as promised in the PH election manifesto.

Cost-of-living concerns, one of the main planks on which the PH campaigned, would continue to be addressed, Anwar said. This includes the continuation of targeted assistance programmes such as cash aid and in-kind support for lower-income households.

While we have to wait and see if the promises are fulfilled in full or come truncated, certainly Anwar’s Jan 5 statement is good news for Malaysians hungry for changes that will further improve their lives – such as by enhancing democracy, openness and governance – and set the nation on a more progressive trajectory.

Most of those who voted for Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan in the last general election did so on the promise of structural and policy reforms made by Anwar and PH.

PH and Anwar supporters were overjoyed when Anwar was sworn in as prime minister after he cobbled together an agreement with several other parties to form the government.

However, the excited expectation of reforms has begun to fade after more than two years of PH in power. Some disillusioned supporters and critics have even turned the “reformasi” tagline of PKR to “reformati”.

There are those who feel that policies which handicap non-Malays or are seen as infringing on their rights as equal citizens are still in force and that the promised “new Malaysia” has yet to take shape.

Many feel he is too slow with the promised reforms.

Even some of his hardcore supporters, and supporters of the DAP which is part of PH, have given up hope as Anwar seems more occupied with pleasing Malay-Muslim voters, most of whom did not vote for his PKR party or the PH coalition.

Some have pointed out that Anwar has been calling for reforms on the global stage but has yet to deliver at home.

For instance, on Sept 1 last year, speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Plus summit in Tianjin, China, he called for urgent reforms to global governance, saying that the UN lacked the will to reform, in talking about the atrocities in Gaza.

Earlier, on July 7, 2025 he called for reforms to the World Trade Organization.

Anwar and his PH allies have found out that it is easy to make any number of promises when you are in the opposition but implementing them once in power is not so simple, or even desirable if you wish to retain authority over certain areas of political and administrative life.

For instance, they were dead against the Sedition Act and promised to repeal it, but today continue to use it, saying it is still needed in some instances, such as for protecting royalty. Human rights groups accuse Anwar’s government of using it quite freely.

Anwar acknowledged the disillusionment among voters when he said, on Jan 3: “Sometimes, we forget that Pakatan Harapan only has 82 parliamentary seats when PKR’s 30 seats are combined with the rest of the coalition’s seats. We speak as if we control all 222 seats.

“Reforms must be pursued, but they must be implemented wisely, sensibly and through proper negotiations. Obtaining consensus from the leadership of all parties in government is not easy as each party has its own priorities.”

That’s true.

Juggling the different priorities of his coalition partners is certainly an immense task, especially in an environment where the slightest change may result in claims that the Malays and Islam are under threat or being sidelined.

Added to that, he also has to navigate through a network of vested interest groups and political and economic elites created in the wake of the implementation of major policy shifts such as the New Economic Policy and its successors.

It is, therefore, not just about policy changes but about a mindset change too.

My optimism about the promises is based on the fact that Anwar’s government has fulfilled a few of them in the past couple of years.

For instance, the Public Finance and Fiscal Responsibility Act – which requires the finance minister to present growth projections and reduce the national debt level for Parliament’s approval – is now in force.

The government has abolished the mandatory death penalty, allowing judges the discretion of whether to impose the death sentence for capital crimes. It has also expanded investigative powers and improved oversight mechanisms for the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.

Anwar’s government has also taken measures to restore the rights of Sabah and Sarawak, as contained in the Malaysia Agreement 1963.

Also, I believe the forthcoming state elections in Melaka and Sarawak – where the terms of the state legislative assemblies are set to expire in December this year and February next year respectively – will weigh on Anwar’s mind.

If PH were to fare badly in these state elections – coming on the heels of the poor showing by PH in the recent Sabah state polls – it won’t be good for morale when the next general election, due by Feb 2028, comes.

That is why we can expect to see more reforms being implemented this year. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.