diff --git a/m4/ax_debug.m4 b/m4/ax_debug.m4
index 769d48d5e..5c63daa11 100644
--- a/m4/ax_debug.m4
+++ b/m4/ax_debug.m4
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ AC_DEFUN([AX_DEBUG],[
     AC_ARG_ENABLE([debug],
       [AS_HELP_STRING([--enable-debug],
         [Add debug code/turns off optimizations (yes|no) @<:@default=no@:>@])],[
-      ax_enable_debug=yes
+      ax_enable_debug=$enableval
       AC_DEFINE(DEBUG, [ 1 ], [Define to 1 to enable debugging code.])
       ],[
       ax_enable_debug=no