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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has received a high rating from voters, according to a poll released on Wednesday (September 2), on his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and higher majority representation. ethnic Malay in his administration.
Muhyiddin received a 69% approval rating in a poll by independent pollster Merdeka Center, six months after taking office in March following a power struggle that saw the collapse of the previous multi-ethnic government led by Mahathir Mohamad.
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Respondents also gave a 93 percent approval rating for the government’s handling of COVID-19 and rated it highly for helping those in need and managing the economy during the coronavirus-induced crisis.
Malaysia has reported just over 9,300 coronavirus infections.
In the latest popularity poll released by the Merdeka Center in April last year, less than half of Malaysians approved of then-Prime Minister Mahathir as concerns about rising costs and racial issues plagued his administration.
Merdeka Center Executive Director Ibrahim Suffian said Malaysian voters indicated a strong preference for managing the administration of the pandemic and subsequent economic fallout and for bringing together long-disputed Malaysian political parties.
“The results also indicate a significant shift in support from Malaysian voters towards a unified Malaysian political coalition,” Ibrahim said in a statement.
Ethnic Malays make up about 60% of Malaysia’s population of some 32 million, with the remainder mainly made up of ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.
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Muhyiddin, who leads the Malaysia-based Bersatu party, secured the post of prime minister backed by two of the largest parties representing Malaysian interests: the scandal-stained former ruling party, the United Malaysia National Organization (UMNO). and the Pan-Malay Islamic Party.
But it has a slim majority in parliament.
In July, UMNO, which forms the largest bloc in the Muhyiddin administration, withdrew from the prime minister’s political alliance, although the party said it would continue to support the government in parliament.
