Anwar, who had campaigned on eradicating corruption, also gave enforcement officers from various departments and agencies a week to reflect on whether they were prepared to go all-out against graft.

“In this one week, you need to ask yourselves if you are prepared to carry out your duties.

“If you don’t think you can do it, step aside so others can,” he said in a keynote address to heads of departments and enforcement agencies involved in combating financial crimes.

Also present were home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief Azam Baki.

Anwar said he was losing patience with the shortcomings in the war against corruption.

He said the public wanted to see real progress.

“We must seriously ask ourselves whether we are ready to implement reforms and do what is right to save the nation,” he said. “And I say this because my patience is wearing thin.”

He said treating corruption, smuggling and organised crime as a norm would negate the achievements the country had notched up.

He called on the relevant departments to work as a team and urged officers not to act half-heartedly and not to treat such issues lightly.

Later, chief secretary to the government Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar said enforcement efforts would be intensified, with a renewed focus on tackling corruption and abuse of power within the public service.

“This year, we will do more enforcement, and we will (aim to) eradicate corruption and abuse of power,” he told reporters after the event.

He also said 2026 was about stronger execution to ensure compliance and governance were followed.

In August, Anwar admitted that the war against graft was challenging, saying that greed and the tendency to abuse power remained entrenched among those who were politically influential.

Eradicating corruption on a large scale, he had said, was not easy because these people “will try to sabotage and prevent action being taken”.