By Charles Santiago
THE “Turun Anwar” protest brought together thousands of ordinary Malaysians: students, workers, retirees, united not by ideology but by frustration.
For them, the act of showing up on the streets was driven less by partisan politics and more by empty wallets and mounting bills.
In a country where food inflation, stagnant wages, and an impossibly low minimum wage collide with the rising costs of housing, healthcare, and transport, this was not a protest of privilege. It was a collective sigh from a people slowly drowning in an affordability crisis.
For many, this crisis isn’t theoretical. It’s lived daily in skipping meals, working multiple jobs, delaying healthcare, pulling children out of school, or sinking deeper into informal debt.
The middle class is shrinking. The working class is breaking. And there is a growing sense that politicians across the aisle are far removed from the lives of ordinary citizens. The protest was therefore a cry for policies that prioritise survival over politicking.
There is no doubt, therefore, that the Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s remaining term must be urgently recalibrated to address this cost-of-living crisis.
Structural reforms are necessary: targeted subsidies must be better designed, wage floors must rise, public healthcare must be affordable to the poor, and real investments must go into education and rural development. Enough with stopgap cash handouts and optics. What people want is dignity and a fair shot at a decent life.
Now, let me tell you what they do not want: charity and slogans!
But it would be disingenuous to ignore the fact that some of the protest’s organisers are far from altruistic. Many of the loudest calls for resignation come from a coterie of disgraced politicians and their operatives: people who once drained the public purse, weaponised race and religion, and now masquerade as reformists simply because they’ve been shut out of power. Their rallying cry isn’t justice. It’s vengeance dressed in street theatre.
We must not mistake opportunism for leadership. A protest loses moral authority when it is hijacked by those with dirty hands and no vision beyond their personal vendettas.
It is not enough to shout slogans about corruption if you are silent about the kleptocrats funding your megaphones. Nor can we take seriously the calls for reform from those who have never shown any interest in equal rights, institutional integrity, or rule of law until it served their revenge.
That said, protest remains a legitimate democratic tool. And if the organisers were truly motivated by collective pain, if their demands reflect a wider consensus about weeding out corruption, ending racism, protecting civil liberties, and uplifting all marginalised Malaysians they would have my full respect.
But, this moment should serve as a wake-up call not only for those in power but also for those who aspire to replace them. If the current government cannot deliver on the promises of economic justice, inclusivity, and clean governance, it will continue to haemorrhage public trust no matter how corrupt its critics are. Malaysians are tired of being asked to choose the lesser evil. They want better.
In the meantime, Prime Minister Anwar still has time. He was elected on a promise of reform and accountability. The urgency of the affordability crisis leaves no room for distraction. The remainder of his term must be spent on bold, redistributive policies that protect the most vulnerable and restore faith in the State.
That and not personality clashes should shape Malaysia’s political horizon. - July 28, 2025
Charles Santiago is a former MP and SPAN chairman
