ON MARCH 1, 2020 Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was sworn in by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as Malaysia’s 8th Prime Minister amid a chorus of “betrayal”, “double-cross”, “backdoor entry” and “treachery” among others.
On March 9 Muhyiddin announced his cabinet line-up. It is a set of old and new faces, but projecting a Malay- and Islamic-centric line-up nonetheless. This may not augur well for a multiracial Malaysia as her diversity is a comparative advantage in the eyes of investors.
Externally on the same day, international oil price collapsed to below $30 per barrel due to a supply disagreement between the Saudis and Russians. This will have serious implication on Malaysia’s revenue as our Budget 2020 is based on oil price hovering between $62 per barrel.
In the meantime, Malaysia’s Covid-19 infection cases have exceeded 100, indicating that it will get worse before it gets better. As it is, the pandemic has already wreaked havoc in the country’s tourism industry scuttling the Visit Malaysia 2020 projected revenue. If the pandemic spreads to the manufacturing sector, which is highly likely, the country’s economy will be badly impacted as more than 20% of our GDP is generated by the sector.
In a nutshell, Malaysia is possibly sailing into the perfect storm.
