THERE were doubts in the past year that the unity government — cobbled together from an unlikely hotchpotch of parties — would stand the test of time.
One year hence has proven the doubters wrong. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has just unveiled a reshuffled cabinet which has generally won plaudits.
Despite the pell-mell of political intrigue, the reshuffle at least shows that the business of running the country can withstand what appears to be political de rigueur post 2018.
As some analysts noted that the reshuffled cabinet shows it to be one the prime minister wants, not one forced on him by political exigency. To be sure, the demands of high political office expect nothing less.
Our challenges are manifold and dare we hope that as the revamped cabinet gets down to business, at least some of these challenges will be more properly addressed?
Not least of these is the state of the economy and the need for reforms not just now, but yesterday!
Our labour market, the state of education and keeping the national budget and debt in a straitjacket are sometimes competing imperatives that must be resolved with great finesse.
It is, therefore, a relief that Anwar heeded the call for a full-time finance minister, at least partially, with the appointment of a non-partisan second finance minister of proven technocratic ability.
Driving the new digital economy will be the focus of a familiar face who handled the same back in 2018. The new human resources minister will hopefully bring renewed vigour and energy to a critical portfolio in which much about whether the country gets stuck in the middle-income trap may be decided.
Sabah and Sarawak loom large in the overall scheme of governance, and that seems to be the rationale for Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof to also assume the portfolio for Sabah and Sarawak affairs.
Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg, who has been touting his state as the hub for the green economy, seems pleased that Fadillah will also head a newly created portfolio on energy transition.
Sabah and Sarawak appear determined to press any advantage and leverage they have to reshape the federation more to their liking, and in the low-key and thoughtful Fadillah, Anwar may have found a good fit to finally let it be known that the recalibration will be largely owned by the two Borneo states.
Given the high stakes involved, Sabah and Sarawak are making a big ask and the prime minister seems willing to concede as much.
Malaysians crave nothing more than the political stability they had taken for granted pre-2018. Whatever may be their political affiliations or sympathies, they should welcome a respite from the incessant politicking of the recent few years.
As the prime minister said, he expects his current cabinet to last for the duration of the parliamentary term. The government will and must rise and fall on its promise of a better Malaysia for all.
The opposition must likewise re-focus by holding the government to its promises and highlighting where it may fall short.
Only by such a yardstick will the nation know that it also has the makings of a maturing parliamentary democracy and any government stays or falls only when its electoral mandate ends, and a fresh one called, not before.
The government must be given the space to build a record (or not) and held to account on that and that alone come the 16th General Election.
The writer views developments in the nation, region and wider world from his vantage point in Kuching
