Time to heed Dr M’s call for unity cabinet

 

From Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali

It is with interest that I read the latest Letter to the Editor by Hafiz Hassan (Time for a War Cabinet) apparently in response to another letter by Dr Venugopal Balchand (100 Malaysians dead in 3 days – it’s a Covid-19 war!).

At first glance it seems crazy to suggest we are at war. But what both these writers suggest seems true. In the very real sense, we are at war. And our enemy is the current coronavirus causing a health pandemic that is now exacerbated by the stagnant if not plunging economy coupled with the growing political instability which the prime minister faces.

It is high time we called a spade a spade. Only by realising that the current government has by all accounts failed can we as a nation move forward. This reality must be accepted not only by those in power but we the rakyat must make it known.

If the social media buzz currently trending as #KerajaanGagal is taken as a barometer, then it seems clear the bell has tolled for the prime minister and his Cabinet.

The bloated size of the Perikatan Nasional-Barisan Nasional Cabinet is definitely not suitable for the times we live in. Our ministers are now making waves in food delivery, breach of SOPs, posing for the cameras, cleaning of the holy mosque and other works singularly devoid of any relation to their capacity and responsibility of the relevant ministries they head.

More recently the confusion stemming from differing SOPs and the flip-flop of announcements has led netizens to vent their frustrations. Some even questioned how decisions were diametrically opposed to those taken at a single meeting. One also questions whether these ministers share a WhatsApp group. Tongue-in-cheek perhaps, but it makes you wonder nevertheless.

The fact that Parliament is still not allowed to be in session further fuels problems. The inability of the many members of Parliament, chosen by all of us on May 9, 2018 to attend the Dewan Rakyat and question the many deficiencies we see and hold the government to scrutiny is frustrating.

If in the first instance it was the prime minister and the Cabinet that advised the King to hold off the Dewan Rakyat sitting, will they now revert otherwise? That is an acid test which to date the prime minister is reluctant to take.

This culminates in exactly what the previous two writers have stated, the need for a wartime cabinet or council tailored to ensure the country is safely driven out of this current slump, with drivers capable of ensuring that Malaysia goes through unscathed.

Legally this is sound. The executive power of the federation is with His Majesty the King. In a situation of emergency, that power can be passed on to any person or body of persons capable, deemed qualified and have been tested. It has to be helmed by the best of Malaysians among us. Evidence thus far shows that our current Cabinet does not merit that label.

It cannot be overemphasised that the current government has not been able to solve the problems the country is facing. Its inability has been laid bare for all to see. Every other action is best seen as a knee-jerk, something that has been common for the past year or so.

If the current trend is unabated, Malaysia is steadily heading towards a failed state. That is something that the King will be more than keen to avoid.

Handing over the reigns of Putrajaya to a unity cabinet or wartime council is obvious.

This unity cabinet must have within its remit the power to resolve the three-pronged crisis Malaysia is in: health crisis, economic crisis and the political limbo. And this council in whatever shape or form must be allowed full leeway to bring us out of the doldrums.

It is worthwhile to note that the idea of a unity cabinet was presented to us via a nationwide address on Feb 26, 2020 by Dr Mahathir Mohamad when he was interim prime minister. It seems that it is now the opportune time to take up that idea and bring back the roar of the tiger of Asia.

Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali is an FMT reader.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKTT.