Anwar-led oppn faces sliding fortunes in key Malaysia poll

Bloomberg

Voters in Malaysia’s biggest state are set to reject the opposition alliance in elections, increasing pressure on Anwar Ibrahim to step aside as de facto leader and forcing a rethink in strategy ahead of a national vote that may be called as soon as next year.
The polls in Sarawak in Borneo island is expected to present another major defeat for Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan. That’s a given because the local parties that have controlled the state since independence are aligned with the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO).
The opposition has already been thrashed last month in a state election in peninsular Malaysia thanks to an UMNO campaign led by disgraced former premier Najib Razak who focused on reviving a pandemic-battered economy. Najib criticised the opposition for harping on his corruption trials linked to troubled state fund 1MDB, although an appeals court upheld a guilty verdict soon after the polls.
UMNO won’t contest in the Sarawak polls, preferring to back local parties in the resource-rich state. Their certain victory will help it consolidate its power after the pro-Malay party returned to the top seat of government four months ago and could bring forward the next general election that must be held by 2023.
Blaming Anwar’s leadership alone for Pakatan Harapan’s inability to make any headway in Sarawak would be “hoping for a quick fix, but little would change,” said Wong Chin Huat, a professor of political science at the Jeffrey Sachs Center on Sustainable Development at Sunway University in Malaysia.
Pakatan Harapan needs to transform into a policy-based coalition instead of a mere election-based alliance and form a shadow cabinet if it wants to compete, Wong said. “With a shadow cabinet, Anwar’s potential heirs will naturally emerge. Without that, a new captain without a functioning team will not keep any excitement for long.” Anwar’s own fortunes are also seeing a slide along with that of the opposition coalition.
There have been calls for him to resign and make way for younger leaders after the dismal showing at the Malacca state election that saw his own party completely wiped out. Anwar has acknowledged the calls within the opposition coalition to step down but has brushed aside the need to do so immediately.
Anwar has struggled for decades to take power in Malaysia. He was seen as Mahathir Mohamad’s successor in the 1990s before he was fired and spent six years in jail for abuse of power.