Malaysia’s slim budget vote win leaves PM Muhyiddin safe – for now
- The knife-edge victory disproved opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s claim that more MPs supported him than PM Muhyiddin Yassin
- The budget, which includes spending for Covid-19 vaccines, will be passed into law after it is cleared by the upper house and receives the king’s assent
However, the narrow margin – Muhyiddin won by three votes – was telling of the strength of both sides, said political scientist Wong Chin Huat of Sunway University.
“At any point, a defection of two or an abstention of four could cause his collapse,” he said. “He would remain a target of extortion from those within the government.”
Analyst Awang Azman Awang Pawi, of University Malaya’s Institute of Malay Studies, described the margin as “both fragile and uncertain”.
“It is, however, expected that Muhyiddin’s administration will last until parliament is dissolved through political bargaining,” said Awang Azman, pointing out that the budget vote may not necessarily have been a referendum on Muhyiddin’s government – rather, it may have been passed due to concerns regarding the economy and public welfare.
