Malaysian PM defends record ahead of polls

Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi defended his record on battling corruption, crime and inflation as he seeks a new five-year mandate in general elections likely to be held next month.

Abdullah, whose popularity has dwindled since taking office in 2003, acknowledged in an interview with the Star newspaper that unhappiness among ethnic minority Indians would hurt support for his ruling coalition. The interview was published yesterday.

Indians are demanding economic equality, saying they have suffered because of an affirmative action program for Malays, who represent around 60 percent of the country's 27 million people. In November, some 20,000 Indians marched in an unprecedented anti-government demonstration.

Abdullah denied there is discrimination against Indians, who make up about 8 percent of the population.

"There are not just poor Indians, but also poor Chinese, Malays ... this is why eradicating poverty among Malaysians, and I stress the word Malaysians, has been on our agenda and remains one of our priorities," he said.

"More evident than before, we have corrected the social imbalance by providing better infrastructure, basic needs and quality of life. In both rural and urban areas, necessary steps have been taken to ensure there is steady growth regardless of race or religion," Abdullah said.

Elections, which are not due until next year, are widely expected to be held next month. Among the biggest challenges facing the government are inflation, rising crime, corruption and tensions in society because of the Indian unrest.

Given the problems, the National Coalition is not likely to repeat its record 2004 election performance when it won 96 percent of parliamentary seats.

A recent poll by the Merdeka Center showed Abdullah's approval rating slipped to an all-time low of 61 percent in December, from 91 percent in late 2004.

Abdullah said rising inflation and high fuel prices were a global phenomena and the government would be forced to cut fuel subsidies, which cost the treasury about 40 billion ringgit (US$12 billion) a year.

"It is convenient to blame the government, but people should really look at it as a global issue," he said.