Confidence and supply deal better than 'inferior' unity govt option - Analyst

 

A series of confidence and supply agreements between the current government and opposition is the way to move forward, said political analyst Wong Chin Huat.

He claimed that a unity government is an inferior option for two reasons, namely the abundance of political parties and the rivalries between them.

“With many parties, the line-up of ministers and deputy ministers (will be) bloated.

“(Besides), with so much antagonism and distrust across parties, the rivalries between ministers may hamper (the unity) government's effectiveness, especially when it is closer to the election date,” Wong said in a Facebook post today.

He claimed, however, that with confidence and supply agreements, a larger working majority may be formed, ensuring that the government survives confidence votes, votes of no confidence, and the passage of budgets.

“This will also give the prime minister the power to remove any unfitting minister without fearing that this may trigger (the government’s) collapse,” he added.

Wong said that the confidence and supply agreements should cover basic institutional reforms, citing Bersih 2.0's 10-point proposal as a good framework for parties to adopt during negotiations.

The proposal was also endorsed by Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (Abim), Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia (GBM), and the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH).

The electoral watchdog proposed for a tripartite federal-state council to coordinate key decisions on the pandemic and economy, term limits for the prime minister, various parliamentary reforms, and a Political Financing Act, among others.

Longer timeline

Meanwhile, Wong (above) said that an interim government should not be mistaken for a caretaker government.

While the former has limited mandates, mainly on health and economy, the latter would be unable to make any key decisions.

“If a stabilising web of confidence and supply agreements can be achieved, even with limited mandates, the interim government’s term should not be too short."

He said the government should be in force for at least 12 months or until next July to ensure it will not be tied narrowly to vaccination rollouts.

“We need to make longer-term policies now and not wait until six to eight months later. These longer-term policies can be achieved if the confidence and supply agreements can produce a cross-party policy-making mechanism.

“Additionally, with a longer timeline, ministers can focus on governance instead of worrying about elections. In other words, unhealthy cross-party competition can be delayed as late as possible,” said Wong. - Mkini