Anwar to limit Malaysia PM term in reform push to ‘re-energise’ supporters

The move could ‘excite core supporters’ and help project the image that the ruling coalition remains committed to reform, analysts say

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Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim says his government aims to pass a law this year capping a prime minister’s tenure at 10 years or two terms. Photo: Reuters

Published: 6:55pm, 5 Jan 2026Updated: 9:23pm, 5 Jan 2026

Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim on Monday said his government would seek parliament’s nod to impose a term limit on the country’s prime minister tenure, in a move seen as an attempt to regain the support of his core voter base ahead of the national polls in two years.

Anwar’s ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition has been battered politically since he took power in 2022, as supporters censured his administration for failing to live up to its reform pledges by accommodating corruption-tainted former rivals and leaning rightward in a bid to win over conservatives among the Malay-Muslim majority.

But reform was at the top of the agenda when Anwar gave his first public address of the year, announcing that his government would aim to make law by this year a limit of not more than 10 years or two full terms for a prime minister.

“Everyone has a limit. Even the [chief secretary to the government] cannot stay for decades, and this applies to all,” he said in his monthly address with members of the prime minister’s department.

While in opposition, Anwar’s PH coalition had for years made a two-term limit one of its key reform pledges, pointing to the decades of alleged plunder and abuse of power during his arch-rival Mahathir Mohamad’s first 22-year term in power from 1981 to 2003.

Anwar Ibrahim supporters wave Pakatan Harapan flags in Kuala Lumpur in November 2022. The next general election is due by early 2028. Photo: Reuters

The fresh push for a term limit would help project the image that PH was still committed to its reform agenda, said Adib Zalkapli, managing director of geopolitical and public affairs firm Viewfinder Global Affairs.

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Anwar to limit Malaysia PM term in reform push to ‘re-energise’ supporters

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The move could ‘excite core supporters’ and help project the image that the ruling coalition remains committed to reform, analysts say

The move could ‘excite core supporters’ and help project the image that the ruling coalition remains committed to reform, analysts say