Kuala Lumpur: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim scored a 68 per cent approval rating in a recent survey released Friday, which was lower than when Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad took office in 2018 and 2020.
According to independent pollster Merdeka Centre’s latest survey titled “Perceptions Towards Economy, Leadership and Current Issues Post GE15”, 53 per cent of respondents said they were “somewhat satisfied” which Anwar’s performance while 15 per cent were “very satisfied” with his performance thus far.
The survey took in 1,209 respondents aged 18 and above across the country and was conducted from December 26, 2022 until January 15, 2023.
Meanwhile, Anwar suggested that a proposal to establish an Asian Monetary Fund (AMF), first mooted by Japan, be revisited but with some revision to help countries in the region.
The AMF, which was proposed by Japan to combat the 1997 Asian financial crisis, was meant to strengthen the buffer against economic crises affecting member states, Bernama reported.
“We cannot have the international infrastructure being decided by outsiders. We can work with them but we should have our own domestic, regional and Asian strength. Not necessarily to compete but to have a buffer zone (against economic crises),” he was quoted as saying.
He said the region stands to gain substantial benefits from any revision to the proposed AMF.
Speaking at the “Future of Asean” lecture organised by the Malaysian-Thai Chamber of Commerce, in Bangkok, Anwar proposed that the AMF also include countries such as China, Japan and South Korea. The AMF proposal by Japan in 1997 did not materialise following opposition from the United States, and China’s reluctance to support it.
Meanwhile, Anwar said Asean nations should collaborate with each other for mutual economic benefits.
“Asean nations tend to compete with one another. For example, in the automotive industry, with Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand all competing to build cars. “This was due to each nation’s fierce independence and protectionist policies of the 1990s.
“It is a better approach that each country focus on a single type of vehicle. For instance, Malaysia could have built cars while Indonesia and Thailand could focus on buses and trucks,” he said
