Beyond the Ballot Box

It's been almost four years since the MADANI government formed after the 2022 General Election. As we know, while Pakatan Harapan won the most seats, no coalition or party reached a simple majority, so parties that had spent years on opposite sides of the political divide found themselves governing together, with former rivals now sharing power in the name of stability. But as we approach the next general election, questions remain about how much this government, which is led by Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim, has delivered on its promises of reform, and whether it has managed to improve the lives of ordinary Malaysians. 

As we approach the next general election, how should we assess the MADANI government? Has it made the most of the opportunities available to it, or has the pursuit of stability come at the expense of meaningful reform?

In this conversation, we discuss:

How has the MADANI government navigated Malaysia's fractured political landscape?

The formation of the unity government required parties that had spent years campaigning against one another to find common ground. We examine the political manoeuvring behind this arrangement, the importance of stability after the upheavals of 2018 to 2022, and more.

Has the government compromised too much in the name of political stability?

We discuss whether Pakatan Harapan has sacrificed too much of its reform agenda to remain in power, and whether the government has adequately explained what its coalition partners can realistically agree on.

What has happened to the Reformasi agenda?

After decades of campaigning for institutional reform, Anwar Ibrahim is now Prime Minister. Yet questions remain about progress on reforms such as parliamentary term limits and the separation of powers, as well as the government's willingness to spend political capital on difficult changes. Has the government moved in the right direction, and how should we judge its record against the promises that brought it to power?

Has the government improved the lives of ordinary Malaysians?

Political stability and institutional reforms matter, but so do wages, affordability, fuel subsidies, taxation and economic opportunities. We examine the government's economic direction, its efforts to ease cost-of-living pressures, and whether its policies are making a meaningful difference to the everyday lives of Malaysians.

Does the MADANI government have a compelling political vision for Malaysia?

Beyond managing crises and balancing coalition interests, what kind of country is this government trying to build? We discuss whether Anwar has articulated a vision capable of capturing the public imagination, particularly on questions of national identity, economic development and the common good. Has the government allowed its political narrative to be defined by its opponents, or can it offer a more convincing alternative to exclusionary identity politics?

Should power be more decentralised, and what does that mean for Malaysia's future?

From empowering local councils to reconsidering federal-state relations, we explore whether greater decentralisation could make government more responsive to people's needs, and what reforms would be necessary to make it work.

Ultimately, how should we rate the MADANI government?

As GE16 approaches, we consider what the government has achieved, where it has fallen short, and what its record tells us about the possibilities and limitations of governing through a broad coalition.

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For decades, many developing countries have relied on exporting raw materials to drive economic growth. But when countries export commodities without developing the industries to process them, how much of the wealth actually stays in their economies?

Indonesia is attempting to change this through hilirisasi, or downstream industrialisation: a strategy to move beyond exporting raw materials towards domestic processing and manufacturing. 

In this episode, we speak to Faris Abdurrachman, Executive Director and Lead Economist at Industrial Policy Lab Indonesia, about Indonesia's development strategy.

In this conversation, we discuss:

Why is it so difficult for developing countries to move up the value chain?

Many countries in the Global South remain heavily reliant on exporting commodities and raw materials. We explore the barriers to developing more sophisticated industries, including access to technology, financing and foreign expertise, and why moving into higher-value production matters.

What is Indonesia's downstream industrialisation strategy, and has it worked?

Indonesia's hilirisasi strategy aims to capture more value from its natural resources by processing them domestically rather than exporting them in their raw form. We examine the country's nickel export ban, the investments that followed, and the expansion of its nickel-processing industry. 

Who benefits from industrialisation and who pays the price?

Indonesia's nickel boom has brought substantial investment and manufacturing capacity, but it has also contributed to deforestation, pollution and disruption to communities previously dependent on agriculture and fishing. 

How do we ensure industrial policy creates broad-based prosperity?

Attracting investment is only part of the equation. We explore how governments can use tax incentives and other forms of public support to secure wider public benefits, from better jobs and stronger environmental protections to reforestation requirements. 

Should developing countries rely on foreign investment or build their own industries?

We discuss the importance of building domestic firms, developing local skills and strengthening productive capacity, drawing lessons from Indonesia's nickel industry and South Korea's experience with industrial development.

Can ASEAN countries industrialise together?

We explore the possibility of regional industrial champions and what deeper cooperation could look like in a world increasingly shaped by industrial competition between major powers.

Can development become a more powerful political vision for Southeast Asia?

Economic development is not just a matter of policy; it is also about the ideas and aspirations that shape politics. Have Malaysia and its regional neighbours lost sight of a developmental vision centred on infrastructure, industrial capacity and shared prosperity, and how the region might move beyond political debates dominated by race, religion and identity?

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Voting is often seen as the cornerstone of democracy, giving ordinary people a say in who governs them and the direction their country takes. But what does it mean to participate in politics beyond casting a ballot every few years? And how much can voting actually change when political parties must navigate coalition politics, competing interests and the realities of governing?

In Malaysia, the 2018 general election showed that votes can bring about historic political change. Yet the years since have also raised questions about the limits of electoral politics, the role of grassroots organising, and whether political parties can offer a compelling vision for the country's future.

In this conversation, we discuss:

Why do we vote, and what gets us interested in politics?

From the Bersih movement and Reformasi to personal experiences with educational inequality, we explore the different experiences that draw people into politics.

How much can voting actually change in a liberal democracy?

The 2018 election showed that voters can bring down a government that has held power for decades. But subsequent political upheavals have also tempered expectations about what a vote can achieve. We discuss whether voting remains a meaningful tool for change, and how we should think about its possibilities and limitations.

Is voting enough, or do we need to organise beyond the ballot box?

From trade unions and grassroots movements to community organisations and political parties, we examine the importance of organising between elections. What can organised groups achieve that individual voters cannot? And what can we learn from PAS's decades of grassroots organising, which helped build a political movement long before the Green Wave became a national talking point?

What actually determines how people vote?

Do voters choose the party that best represents their ideals, the candidate they trust most, or simply the lesser of two evils? We explore the role of political literacy, emotions, fear, charisma and personal relationships in shaping voting decisions.

What makes a good politician: principles or pragmatism?

Should we judge politicians by their ideological convictions and willingness to stand by their principles, or by their ability to negotiate, build coalitions and deliver results? As Malaysia's political landscape becomes increasingly fragmented, we discuss the tension between holding the line on political ideals and making the compromises necessary to govern.

How do political parties build trust and offer a compelling vision?

People may want better healthcare, more affordable housing, walkable cities and protection from flooding without necessarily seeing how these everyday concerns connect to electoral politics.

Can Malaysian politics move beyond identity and moral superiority?

As political competition increasingly revolves around questions of identity and which side is more morally righteous, we consider whether parties should focus more on tangible questions of development, public services and economic wellbeing.

Reading/watching/listening list:

• Don't Think of an Elephant! by George Lakoff [Book]

• Sang Kancil: Sang Kancil: A Tale about How Ordinary Malaysians Defied the Odds [Book]

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Since 2006, the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report has measured how far countries have come in closing the gaps between men and women across four areas: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment.

This year marks its 20th edition, covering 145 economies. Among the economies tracked since the very first edition, the overall score has risen from 64.2% to 69.4%, its highest yet. But at this rate, global gender parity is still estimated to be 120 years away.

So, what does this index actually tell us, and what does it leave out? And what does it mean for Malaysia?

In this conversation, I speak to Sivananthi Thanenthiran, who’s the Executive Director of the Asian-Pacific Resource & Research Centre for Women (ARROW). 

In this conversation, we focus on:

 • What the Global Gender Gap Index measures, and what it leaves out

 • Why do the Nordic countries and Namibia rank so highly?

 • Why does Malaysia rank below Singapore and Thailand?

 • Why has political parity in East Asia and the Pacific not kept pace with economic progress?

 • Career breaks, care, and the case for parental leave

 • Can AI reproduce existing gender inequality?

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We live in a world grappling with growing inequality, political polarisation, a climate crisis and rapid technological change. From socialism and liberalism to nationalism, conservatism and fascism, political ideologies offer different explanations for what’s wrong with society and how we might fix it. 

In this episode, we discuss whether ideology is still relevant today and whether it can help us navigate the problems of the 21st century.

In this conversation, we discuss:

Can we ever be non-ideological?

Whether our political and economic choices are always shaped by an underlying set of beliefs and values, even when we claim to be acting pragmatically or staying out of politics. From public healthcare to private insurance, we explore how seemingly practical policy decisions reflect different ideas about how society should work.

Ideology versus pragmatism: Is it a false dichotomy?

Why pragmatism is often presented as the alternative to ideology, and how this framing can make the existing economic order seem natural while alternatives are dismissed as unrealistic. 

Can the ideas of the 20th century solve the problems of the 21st?

From climate change and nuclear conflict to great-power rivalry and artificial intelligence, we explore whether socialism, liberalism, and other established political traditions can help us confront today's existential challenges. Or do we need to move beyond these ideological frameworks to find new ways of understanding and solving our problems?

Can we tackle climate change without tackling inequality?

The climate crisis raises difficult questions about the relationship between human welfare, economic growth and the limits of the planet. We discuss the unequal distribution of responsibility for carbon emissions, the obstacles facing developing countries, and whether public transport, green infrastructure and the redistribution of wealth can help us build a more sustainable future.

Is human equality compatible with planetary survival?

Can we create a more equal world without reproducing the consumption patterns that are driving ecological destruction? We examine the tensions between human development and environmental protection, and whether a different economic system could move us away from endless consumption towards a society organised around public goods and collective needs.

Do we need ideology, or do we need better problem-solving?

As the political centre loses ground and both right-wing populism and democratic socialism gain renewed attention, we consider whether we are entering a new age of ideology. Can political ideas provide a framework for collective action without becoming rigid dogma? And how do we balance long-term political objectives with the practical compromises needed to achieve them?

Reading/watching/listening list:

Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative? by Mark Fisher [Book]

Know Your Enemy [Podcast]

Savitri Devi Mukherji — exploring the intellectual journey of the Nazi ideologue and her contradictory combination of animal rights activism, vegetarianism and fascism [Further reading]

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Last Friday, the MADANI government unveiled Budget 2027, proposing RM459.8 billion in spending for the year ahead, up from the revised RM444.1 billion for 2026. With plans to raise the minimum wage to RM2,000, expand cash assistance and increase tax relief for individuals, the government says it wants economic growth to translate into better living standards. But with housing affordability, stagnant wages for graduates and the rising cost of living continuing to weigh on households, does Budget 2027 do enough to address the needs of regular Malaysians?

We speak to Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj, Chairperson of Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM).

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Over the past decade or so far-right parties and leaders have moved from the fringes to the forefront of global politics. Figures like Donald Trump, Marine Le Pen, Giorgia Meloni, Narendra Modi and the BJP, Nigel Farage in the UK, AFD in Germany and more who’s views were once seen as outliers or shrugged off altogether, now command mass followings, win elections and shape global political discourse in a big way. Most recently, the AFD in Germany won a state election, something a far-right hasn’t done in the country since World War II and Hitler. 

The far-right is now concretely in the mainstream. 

So, why is the far-right gaining ground? 

In this conversation, we discuss:

What actually is the far right?

The difficulty of defining the right across different countries, the role of exclusionary politics and nativism, and why concepts developed from the European experience do not always neatly apply to countries like Malaysia.

Why is right-wing populism rising now?

We explore the economic and political conditions behind its resurgence, from neoliberal globalisation and inequality to declining trust in established political parties, and the sense that the promises of liberalism have benefited elites more than ordinary people.

Has the left abandoned the working class?

How centre-left parties have moved closer to professional and college-educated voters, depoliticised the economy and hyperfocused on cultural representation, creating a political vacuum that the right has been able to exploit.

Why does economic frustration become a culture war?

If people experience stagnant wages, insecurity and declining living standards, why are they often drawn towards questions of migration, race, religion and national identity rather than economic reform? And how do political movements give shape to these anxieties?

Can the left reclaim nationalism?

What would a more inclusive form of nationalism look like? One based not on ethnic or religious purity, but on sovereignty, decolonisation, economic development and bringing different communities together around better jobs, healthcare, housing and public services?

What can actually defeat the far right?

Whether left-wing populism can offer a meaningful alternative by combining economic transformation with multicultural politics, and whether political movements need to demonstrate their values through material improvements in people's everyday lives rather than simply arguing about ideology.

Reading/watching/listening list: 

• Minority Rule: Adventures in the Culture Wars by Ash Sarkar [Book]

• Tyranny of Merit by Michael Sandel [Book]

• War for Eternity by Benjamin R. Teitelbaum [Book]

• The German Word That Explains Why Young Men Are Moving Right [Substack]

• The Left Is Speaking a Dead Language [Substack]

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Budget 2027 will be tabled in Parliament this Friday. In the lead-up to it, former Klang MP Charles Santiago who also runs the think tank Monitoring Sustainability of Globalization (MSN), has been calling for the government to put household prosperity at the centre of its economic policy with stronger wages, social protection and action on the cost of living. He argues that economic growth means little if it isn’t translating into better incomes and greater security for ordinary Malaysians. Separately, Charles is also calling for systemic reforms, including greater government accountability and a more permanent institutional framework for Indian affairs specifically. 

We unpack all of this and more with Charles Santiago. 

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We’re living through a period of enormous uncertainty. Great power tensions are rising, from the US and China to Russia and Europe. The climate is warming, bringing more extreme heat, floods and disruption. And AI is developing at a pace that has left even the people building these systems debating where all of this could ultimately lead.

And perhaps what makes all three particularly frightening is that they’re no longer just science fiction. These are real developments happening right now, and they raise very real existential questions on the future of humanity.

So, are these genuinely existential threats? How worried should we be? 

In this conversation, we discuss: 

Are we sleepwalking into World War Three?
Rising tensions between major powers, particularly the US, China and Russia, and the danger that a conflict could escalate through miscalculation or momentum rather than deliberate intent.

Is the decline of US hegemony making the world more dangerous?
Challenging the idea that a multipolar world automatically means a more balanced world, and that the decline of a dominant power could instead produce renewed great-power rivalry and competition over spheres of influence.

Can diplomacy and international institutions prevent catastrophe?
The role of the UN, diplomats, and multilateral institutions in navigating global conflicts, alongside the question of whether the existing international order is still capable of containing conflicts as global power shifts.

The climate crisis may be the most immediate existential threat.
Rising temperatures, extreme weather, and potential cascading crises such as food failures and mass displacement severely impact the Global South, despite having contributed much less to historical emissions.

Is AI really the threat — or is it who controls AI?
Rather than focusing only on the “AI takes over humanity” scenario, we dissect ownership, capitalism, automation, and inequality. If AI dramatically increases productivity, who actually benefits? Will AI liberate people from work, or simply give more power to those who own the technology?

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Across Asia-Pacific, women continue to shoulder a disproportionate share of unpaid care work. The situation is becoming increasingly challenging as societies age, birth rates decline, and demand for elderly care grows. These pressures are further compounded by migration, the climate crisis, and rising economic insecurity, all of which are reshaping care needs across the region. The economic implications are significant: the UNDP estimates that recognising the value of women’s unpaid care work could add around US$3.8 trillion to the regional economy.

Spogmay Ahmed is the Deputy Director of the Feminist Foreign Policy Collaborative, a shared space for feminists working across government, civil society and philanthropy to collectively strategize and advance feminist approaches to foreign policy. Recently, they organised a roundtable on: Sustaining Feminist Foreign Policy Through a Shared Care Agenda… with diplomats and civil society from across the world to discuss how governments can build on growing international momentum around care and translate it into coordinated action through multilateral institutions and processes.

In this episode, we speak to Spogmay Ahmed about the link between care and foreign policy.

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