Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim delivered a New Year’s address for 2026 during the Prime Minister’s Department monthly meeting on January 5, 2026, stating that the Malaysian government plans to propose a bill to limit the prime minister’s term of office to no more than two terms, with each term lasting five years, or a maximum of 10 years in total. The proposed legislation would not apply to state governors or chief ministers and is expected to be tabled within January 2026.The proposed term-limit bill will be submitted alongside a draft law to separate the powers of the Attorney General from those of public prosecutors, aimed at ensuring the independence of criminal prosecution and preventing political interference.

Currently, Malaysia’s political system does not impose term limits on the prime minister, allowing the incumbent to remain in office as long as he or she continues to receive parliamentary support. Although a similar proposal to limit the prime minister’s tenure to two terms was introduced in 2019 to prevent abuse of power, it failed to gain parliamentary approval.

Since gaining independence in 1957, Malaysia has had a total of 10 prime ministers. The longest-serving prime minister was Tun Mahathir Mohamad, who held office from 1981 to 2003 and again from 2018 to 2020, with a combined tenure of approximately 24 years.

Source: National Intelligence Agency
Photo Credit: Bernama