Malaysia mulls Anwar’s last chance to rule

Opposition icon says coming polls will be his last as new-generation leader Rafizi Ramli proving to be a worthy successor

Malaysia’s political reformers, now seemingly accustomed to defeat after losing power more than two years ago, are holding out hope for another surprise win when the country goes to the polls on November 19. While victory for the Pakatan Harapan (PH) opposition coalition is not inconceivable, it will certainly be a tall order.

Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, 75, has acknowledged the coming polls will be his last attempt at becoming prime minister, an office that has long eluded the leader of Malaysia’s “reformasi” movement. Anwar has hinted he will retire to allow a younger generation of leaders to sustain and lead his party’s struggle if he falls short at next month’s election.

Among them is a figure already seen as his potential successor: 45-year-old Rafizi Ramli, a former Petronas executive turned tech entrepreneur known for his sometimes testy ties with Anwar. He was elected as Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s (PKR) deputy president in May, comfortably beating out a loyalist candidate backed by Anwar, who retained the party presidency unopposed.

“Sometimes I don’t necessarily see eye-to-eye with Anwar,” said Rafizi, who spoke with Asia Times earlier this year. During an interview in June, Rafizi said that “political disillusionment” born of PH’s short-lived tenure in government and Anwar’s failed subsequent bids to return to power would be the opposition’s biggest electoral hurdle.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.

Singapore dollar the world’s other safe haven

Singapore’s central bank tightens monetary policy in move expected to buoy one of Asia’s already best-performing currencies

In the latest salvo in its fight against inflation, Singapore’s central bank tightened monetary policy on Friday (October 14), allowing the national dollar to appreciate to curb domestic cost pressures in a move likely to bolster the currency’s increasingly favored status as it demonstrates resilience against the fast-appreciating US dollar.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said in a statement that it would raise the mid-point of the Singapore dollar policy band “up to its prevailing level,” a less aggressive move than some observers expected. Specifically, MAS refrained from adjustments to the slope or width of the currency band, both closely watched policy tools it could have used.

The MAS uses exchange rates, managed against a trade-weighted undisclosed basket of currencies from Singapore’s major trading partners, as its primary monetary policy tool to ease import costs, the main contributor to inflation in a city-state that imports almost everything it consumes, leaving domestic interest rates to shadow those of the US Federal Reserve.

“By not changing the slope of the band, [the MAS] took the calibrated approach of not allowing the pace of currency appreciation to quicken further. This is especially given the fact that the Singapore dollar is already one of the strongest performing currencies against the US dollar so far this year,” said Cheryl Chan, senior vice president for capital markets at digital securities exchange ADDX.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.

Ismail floods Malaysia with cash then calls snap polls

Malaysian leader flip-flops his position by calling early elections just days after tabling nation’s biggest-ever ‘feel good’ budget

Malaysia is headed toward a controversial early general election at a time when parts of the nation are expected to face heavy flooding due to monsoon rains. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob confirmed the dissolution of parliament in a televised address on Monday (October 10), paving the way for snap polls to be held within 60 days.

The announcement follows days of speculation that the legislature would be dissolved soon after the tabling of the biggest-ever Malaysian government budget worth 372.3 billion ringgit (US$80 billion) for 2023 on October 7. The record spending plan has not yet been passed, raising questions about the country’s fiscal roadmap in the event of a change in government.

Elections could have been held at the latest by September 2023, but Ismail has been under intense pressure from his United Malays National Organization (UMNO) to call an early vote to capitalize on recent state election victories by the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition and get ahead of economic headwinds that are expected to worsen next year and potentially hit UMNO and BN’s popularity.

The premier said that by dissolving parliament, the public will have a chance to cast off years of political uncertainty by voting in a new, more stable government. But by rushing to hold an election, Ismail is disregarding flood warnings from Malaysia’s Meteorological Department and advice from climate experts who recommend that polls should be held only after the monsoon season.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.

Top lawyer who busted Najib faces vengeful legal fire

Ex-Attorney-General Tommy Thomas under investigation on PM Ismail’s orders for claims and allegations made in his best-selling memoir

Tommy Thomas, the lawyer who set in motion the landmark prosecution and ultimate imprisonment of an ex-prime minister for massive corruption, could be regarded as Malaysia’s most consequential attorney-general. But a new government probe into a book he published about his time as the nation’s top prosecutor is widely seen as a setback for good governance and the fight against graft.

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob ordered an investigation into possible misconduct by Thomas, who served as attorney-general between 2018 and 2020, on September 30, instructing enforcement agencies to further probe various allegations made in his memoir, My Story: Justice In The Wilderness, which sparked a right-wing backlash after its publication last January.

More than 100 police reports were reportedly lodged after the book’s publication. The 500-plus-page memoir shed light on Thomas’ decisions that led to the charges leveled against ex-premier Najib Razak for his role in the multi-billion-dollar 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal, among other high-profile cases.

The former private lawyer-turned-government top counsel and public prosecutor was questioned by police about the book, but the Attorney-General’s Chambers did not press charges, nor was the memoir banned. It has since become a national best-seller. But that didn’t stop Ismail from forming a special task force last December to investigate the book and its various revelations and allegations.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.