Social Science Research December 2022

Unity Government of Malaysia on Wisdom of

His Majesty The King

BN Lee
Faculty of Psychology and Education
University of Malaysia Sabah

Abstract

This article is about a coalition government formed through cooperation between

previously conflicting parties. There are several scenarios that require the formation
of a coalition government. These include emergencies caused by war, natural
disasters or economic crises; the ruling party does not have a majority and there is
no need to postpone the election. The country's political deadlock for nearly a week
is worrying, but for those interested in politics or democracy, it can be a good
learning space. Over the past few days, some terms have been negotiated. From
hung parliament, simple majority to sworn statement (SD), these terms are
important to understand the country's political turmoil after GE15. The Yang di-
Pertuan Agong, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah has proposed
a unity government to address the lack of seats in any existing political alliance.

Keywords: coalition government, politics, democracy

Introduction

Although Perikatan Nasional chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin reportedly rejected
the proposal, it is still worth knowing what the coalition government means. A
coalition government is defined as a government formed through the cooperation of
political parties that were previously in conflict. There are several scenarios that
require the formation of a coalition government. These include emergencies caused
by war, natural disasters or economic crises; the ruling party does not have a
majority and there is no need to postpone the election. In a coalition government,
two or more political parties in different directions form a coalition and join the
government together.

Examples of Unity Governments Around the World

Greece

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In November 2011, economist Lucas Papademos was appointed Prime Minister of

Greece to help the country out of the economic crisis. One of the conditions set by
Papademos is the formation of a government made up of the leaders of Greece's two
main parties, the New Democratic Party and the Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement
(PASOK).

Afghanistan

Afghanistan's 2014 presidential election was deadlocked amid allegations of fraud in

Ashraf Ghani's victory over Abdullah Abdullah. US Secretary of State John Kerry
proposed a coalition government, which both candidates eventually agreed to. Asraf
was named president, while a new position, chief executive, was created and
awarded to Abdullah.

Israel

Israel is one of the countries that often forms a coalition government. Since 1967,
the country has had 10 coalition governments. His current government, the 36th
government, also known as the Bennett-Rapid government, is said to be the
friendliest coalition government ever formed in Israel, involving right-wing, center-
left and Islamic parties.

Italy

The 67th Italian Cabinet, the Draghi Cabinet, was formed to face the challenges of
the health, economic and social crisis caused by the spread of the Covid-19
epidemic. Following the resignation of Giuseppe Conte, the cabinet is headed by
former ECB President Mario Draghi. The cabinet has been described as a
technocratic cabinet, with the participation of many independent technocrats
alongside leaders of different orientations from different political parties.

Kenya

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From 2008 to 2013, Kenya was ruled by a national unity government joined by two
warring parties, the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and the Party of National
Unity (PNU). Negotiations were held between the two parties to end the political
crisis sparked by the 2007 presidential election.

Malaysian unity government

This is not the first time the unity government issue has been raised in Malaysia. In
2009, PAS Chairman Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang proposed a coalition government
between Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

The proposed coalition government is modeled after Indonesia's coalition

government under President BJ Habibie.

According to Wafdi Auni Mohamed (2019) in Ku Syafiq (2022), the unity government
model without opposition is based on four things, namely:

1) BN as the ruling party coalition shares power with the PR opposition coalition at
the federal level.
2) Each ministry must have joint control and policy must be determined politically
through consensus.
3) Pakatan Rakyat's position in the coalition government does not mean that it is
under the control of BN, but on an equal footing with BN.
4) The ruling and opposition parties will form a ruling team to manage the
country's administration without sacrificing the ideology of their respective
parties.

However, the proposed coalition government was rejected especially by PAS's

partners in Pakatan Harapan, namely PKR and DAP.

In 2020, due to the fall of the Pakatan Harapan government, Tun Mahathir, the
interim prime minister, also proposed to form a coalition government.

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This is to deal with the political turmoil that hit the country regarding the event
known as the Sheraton Step. However, the proposal was not welcomed by other
members of parliament ( Ku Syafiq , (2022).

Unity Government of Malaysia on the Recommendation of YDP Agong

Istana Negara issued a statement saying that no political party had the majority to
allow the appointment of the prime minister. This is because the letter sent by the
BN chairman has denied any party getting a majority. Therefore, YDP Agong has
ordered the combination of Perikatan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan to hold a
meeting at 4.30 pm. After the meeting, PN announced through its chairman,
Muhyiddin Yassin, that he had rejected the YDP Agong's order regarding the idea of
a unity government. The chairman of Pakatan Harapan agreed with the idea of
forming a unity government.

Next, Istana Negara ordered 30 Barisan Nasional Members of Parliament to attend in

turn starting at 10 am on November 23. At 8pm, the Supreme Council met again,
followed by a meeting with all 30 members of Parliament. BN asked to postpone the
meeting of its 30 members of Parliament separately following the meeting and rally.
Notifications from the National Palace are emailed at midnight.

On Wednesday, 23 November 2022, the Agong still ordered the BN Chairman, BN

Vice President and BN Secretary General to meet with His Majesty the Agong at
11am. In the face-to-face meeting, Barisan Nasional made a commitment to agree
with the State King's order to form a unity government. The meeting was attended
by GPS party leaders. Istana Negara announced the appointment of Datuk Seri
Anwar Ibrahim as the 10th Prime Minister after PH, BN and other parties managed to
secure a majority of over 112 votes following a special meeting of the Council of
Rulers on November 24 (PH: 82 and BN). : 30); Take the oath at 5 pm.

GPS, which has 23 members of Parliament, also announced a change of support for
Anwar Ibrahim in favor of PH and BN. The GPS chairman issued a statement
expressing his regret for being deceived by certain parties who portrayed BN as
supporting joining the PN coalition. On Nov 23, GRS and six members of Parliament
announced that they had left Perikatan Nasional because they supported Anwar and
were ready to take action because they were members of Bersatu.

Tuanku Agong carries out His Majesty's duties according to the Constitution with full
wisdom and meticulousness to ensure that the process of appointing the Prime
Minister is carried out fairly and takes into account the positions of all parties

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involved. There is no palace manipulation and no sabotage attempt by any party to

usurp the constitutional right of any individual to form a government (Asyraf, 2022).

The People Have Great Expectations To the Unity Government

After the controversial appointment of Datuk Seri Anwar Anwar as the 10th prime
minister, the focus has returned to the relationship between the unity government
and the public sector. Certainly the synergy of new government relations brought the
narrative of the coalition government together with civil servants to attract the
attention of the audience. This is because the public service is the backbone of every
government that governs, especially in ensuring that every plan, initiative and policy
that is introduced is implemented effectively so that it can benefit every target
group. Therefore, the most important thing now is how to ensure the formation of a
new government without doubting the loyalty and support of civil servants to the
prime minister and the coalition government.

Doubts that arise between these two entities will lead to mistrust, creating a gap
between members of the executive branch and the public service. This not only
hinders the recovery efforts of all countries and measures to restore the economy of
the people, but also interferes with all the daily work of various government
ministries. Ironically, the government needs to have faith and trust in public servants
who today consistently stand up and support the government in power. Chief
Secretary to the State (KSN) Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali stated this commitment in a
media statement following the results of the 15th General Election (GE15), explaining
that members of the public service will continue to commit to supporting the
administration that has been set. government. concept of justice. It is important to
ensure that the public service can perform its functions efficiently and normally, the
government should give due freedom according to the rules and procedures
contained in the public service.

The new government should be independent and avoid any form of political
interference in the appointment and management of each government ministry and
agency. As suggested by Tan Sri Abdul Halim Ali, chairman of the Administration and
Diplomat Alumni Association (PTD Alumni), in an open letter to the Prime Minister,
the matter is important because the findings of the audit reveal the continuous
leakage and huge losses incurred by the government before. as a result of the
interference of politicians with the government. Accordingly, the government needs
to give "freedom" to the chief secretary (KSU) and heads of ministry departments to
properly manage their functions and responsibilities as "civil servants" according to
rules and procedures without fear or favoritism.

In return, the government needs to assure civil servants that there will be no political
interference in the affairs of their essential duties and that they will be free to
perform their duties with full trust and integrity. The new government is also

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expected to be more open, respectful and continue to view the public service as an
important strategic partner in national development. What is more important, any
decision taken and implemented by the government is not so radical as to cause
controversy or controversies deemed to undermine the position, status and welfare
of civil servants. Among the things that often happened before was the replacement
of senior officers and heads of departments in ministries such as KSU, supposedly it
was "not in line" with the ruling government's wishes.

This happened after the 14th general election, when the then-formed government
reshuffled the top ranks of several departments and threatened to reduce the
number of civil servants on the grounds of austerity. This is one of the sensitive
issues that will lower the standard of civil servants and the people's trust in the
government because they are seen as insensitive to their welfare and sacrifices over
the years. At the same time , the new government should not hinder or prevent the
previously announced government schemes, initiatives and incentives, but should
continue to empower and protect the welfare of civil servants. The incentives
involved include the payment of a special additional annual salary increase (KGT) of
RM100 from January next year, an additional 5 days of special rest leave, bringing
the total amount of special rest leave for education service officers to 15 days each
year. Serving for over 10 years. In addition, increase the maximum number of days
of leave available for cash reward (GCR) from 160 to 180 days and provide special
financial assistance (BKK) to members of the class 56 and below in 2023 in the total
number of government retirees and next year 1 Veteran who cannot receive pension
will receive RM700 and RM350 respectively.

Conclusion

These initiatives and incentives were promised to civil servants as employers by the
leadership of the previous government and should not be withdrawn just because of
a change of government. Ironically, CUEPACS chairman Datuk Adnan Mat said that
he did not want the same thing to happen in 2018, when the initiatives promised by
the previous government did not materialize after the change of national leadership
in the post-GE14 government. Thus, it is hoped that the newly established unity
government can bring to life the "new book" in building a closer relationship synergy
by prioritizing the national process and working hand in hand with civil servants,
based on high trust and confidence. development and welfare of the people.

References
Ku Syafiq Ku Fozi. (2022). What does unity government mean? Kuala Lumpur:
Related

Ashraf Wajdi Dusuki. (2022). Chronology of the formation of the unity government of
Malaysia with the wisdom of YDP Agong. Kuala Lumpur: Umno

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Nur Mohammad Shakir Hamid. (2022). High hopes for unity government, frustrated
with "sad event 2018". Kuala Lumpur: Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM)