Malaysia is currently facing some real challenges, over and above lower oil prices, the

falling value of the ringgit, and a slowdown in the rate of economic growth. This has lead
some expats to ask us whether this is a bump in the road or a more serious problem.
The answer depends on who you talk to. We continue to be optimistic, but certainly
some events are cause for concern.
The recent arrests of over 100 people who were willing to either join Islamic State or
support them through terrorist acts in Malaysia had many expats worried. Fortunately,
so far the Malaysian police have shown themselves to be very efficient at countering
terrorism.
The efforts by the opposition party, PAS, to introduce strict sharia law including
amputations and stoning to death was strongly opposed by most expats we talked to.
Even though PAS stated it would only apply to Muslims, many people questioned how
long it would be before they extended it to non-Muslims. This fundamentalist segment
has also been getting a lot of publicity for trying to place greater restrictions in a number
of areas ranging from live pop concerts to the clothes worn by Malay female gymnasts.
For some reason, they did not make the same fuss about the tiny outfits worn by male
Malay bodybuilders.
The fact that the government seems reluctant to openly state their opposition to these
proposals caused some concern among expats. There is little doubt that if Malaysia
makes a clear shift towards more fundamentalist Islam, the country will see a fall off in
foreign investment and tourism, as well as less interest in the Malaysia My Second
Home programme.
It should be noted that every time these radical views are expressed, large numbers of
Malaysian Muslims voice their opposition to them on social media. The G25, a group of
prominent Malays, mostly retired senior civil servants, have been active in articulating

their concerns about what they see as increasing Islamisation in Malaysia, which they
are convinced will be detrimental for the country.
The political scene has been equally turbulent and has some expats worried about
which direction the country is heading. Former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir has been
waging a war of words against the current Prime Minister, Najib Razak, and is
determined to see him step down. Tun Mahathir firmly believes the party will lose the
next general election, scheduled for 2018, if Najib remains as leader of the party. Both
gentlemen have their own group of powerful supporters and it is not yet clear who will
emerge the victor.
The 1MDB scandal receives daily coverage in social and mainstream media. Questions
and answers fly back and forth, with critics claiming the answers do not adequately
address the questions asked, and the government and 1MDB insisting they have
adequately responded. Hopefully the audits currently being conducted of 1MDB will be
able to provide answers which satisfy everyone.
Despite these problems, the Malaysian economy is still growing, albeit more slowly now.
Prime Minister Najibs highly ambitious Government and Economic Transformation
programmes have shown real progress and the country seems on target to achieve
many of its 2020 goals.
In truth, Malaysias problems are not unique. Many countries contend with racial issues
and business scandals, and of course political acrimony is par for the course.
Malaysias economic growth is the envy of many countries and the continuous
infrastructural improvements are evident to regularly visiting the country.
Malaysia has faced significant issues before and pundits who predicted doom and
gloom were proven wrong. We continue to be optimistic about the long-term outlook, but
hope the government will take a firmer position regarding any tendency to move away

from being a moderate Muslim country and will work hard to ensure it retains its positive
image as an inclusive, multiracial, multicultural society