Former deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin said numerous quarters believe that the government is facing a serious trust deficit.

"The people's trust in the government has eroded," he noted.

Muhyiddin said the people are growing concerned as the principles of integrity and accountability appear to be on the slide.

"The services of dedicated government officers are terminated, they are transferred, threatened and subjected to action.

"The freedom of important institutions such as the Attorney-General's Chambers, police, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and Bank Negara appear to be stifled.

"It is unimaginable, in the history of the civil service, that dedicated senior officers are willing to voice out against those higher up who attempt to violate the principles of the civil service, which is to be fair, firm and non-partisan," he added.

Muhyiddin also noted in his Merdeka message that some politicians have threatened to curb the freedom of the people to voice their views, especially on social media because these leaders are no longer willing to hear the criticisms and reprimands from the public which are growing louder by the day.

"Apart from this, those who reprimand these leaders are called traitors and accused of wanting to topple the government.

"It is clear they can't differentiate between reprimanding a leader and toppling a government," he added.

Above all, Muhyiddin said the credibility of the country's leaders have now come into question.

Accept the reality

Furthermore, he said the current democratic institutions for change appear to be incapable of functioning anymore.

"I am worried that as long as this major leadership crisis is not resolved, the country and government will continue to be weighed down by severe trust deficit problems that are worsening.

"For me, the issue of trust can be resolved if the country returns to the path of leadership with integrity, accountability and responsibility to the rakyat," he said.

Muhyiddin added the trust deficit was not only political but was also affecting the country's economy.

"The trust of investors and business community in the country's economy is fading.

"The ringgit has declined to its lowest in 17 years against the US dollar, the stock market has fallen, the country's foreign reserves are depleting and consumer sentiment is at the lowest in seven years.

"True that external factors such as the fall in commodity prices is affecting the financial market and economy, but our performance is the worse in the region.

"This is a reality that we must accept and overcome immediately," he said.