If I say the cabinet meeting, chaired by the PM (or in his absence, by the DPM), is held every week, many would probably think I am raising a no-brainer issue. But it is not. In Malaysia we do have an elaborate system of government. Sometimes, I think we have lost track of our system. Even cabinet ministers are in dire need of a reminder.
The cabinet is the apex of executive power in the country. This is where major decisions and policies are deliberated, considered and made. The cabinet is the conduit that provides coherence and unity of government decisions and policies across ministries and agencies.
The recent controversies over the proposal to allow housing developers to extend loans to buyers are really unnecessary if cabinet ministers fully understand their roles and responsibilities under our system of government.
Ministers are entrusted with policy making responsibility but not without proper consultation and collective cabinet decision. Ministers pronouncing policies at their whims and fancies could cause lots of anxiety and apprehension among the people.
Ministers are no expert in everything. They are politicians first and foremost. That is why they need specialists and civil servants at the ministries to help them.
Perhaps it is opportune to remind our ministers that they have not become more knowledgeable or clever the moment they are appointed to the cabinet. It is always better for them to seek consultation and advice. For more complicated policy proposals, they should in fact direct the professional to do a study first.
Under our system of government, ministers do not make policy decisions unilaterally. Usually, a cabinet paper spelling out the backgrounds, proposals, justifications and the ‘prayers’ sought are needed. It is for the cabinet to decide jointly and collectively whether the decisions/policies sought are accepted or rejected.
I think it is neater for the ministers to play by the ‘rules of engagement’. Shooting from the hip will only bring embarrassment to themselves, in addition to causing confusion and anxiety among the people. Once the damage is done, it is quite useless for a minister to claim that the proposal was only a suggestion or he was misquoted. -Mkini
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