Should we get KJ to train all our ministers?

 

Have we become a nation that is just thankful for every small mercy thrown in our direction?

Is it because our lives are so tainted with the grandiosity of our politicians, the mismanagement of our nation, and the opaqueness of our government that we rejoice for every little thing that someone in a leadership position actually does properly?

I ask this question as a few days ago, social media was ablaze with an outpouring of gratitude, platitudes, and congratulatory messages when our newly minted health minister turned up unannounced at a hospital for a “look-see” visit.

Our charismatic, polished, and ever-so-refined minister of health went on an unexpected visit to the Kajang hospital to review, presumably the pandemic situation, and the conditions of patients and the hospital.

He was dressed casually and came with a pair of sneakers on. It was obvious that he did not have the usual ceremonial entourage, which we are accustomed to expect from our ministers.

It seemed like there were no minions calling ahead of time to curate and stage-manage the appearance of the man. There were no tents erected and no welcome party, which also means that there were no curry puffs and tea in a holding room specially for a select few who are allowed to interact with an esteemed member of the government.

Good on him, I say!

If he did it genuinely, and not for the optics of it, what an excellent example our health minister Khairy Jamaluddin, is. He demonstrated what it means to be a minister who actually takes his job seriously.

This is an illustration of a proper employee of ours, because government ministers technically work for us.

But why are we so impressed when a minister gets on with what they are literally being paid for?

It’s like being totally grateful and giving the postman a standing ovation when he comes to your house, and drops a letter into your mailbox. The guy is simply doing what he actually gets paid for.

Or is it that we get so excited, because all the other postmen keep losing our mail?

It seems like this, doesn’t it?

It’s a tell-tale sign when one of our ministers rolls his sleeves up and Malaysians collectively get so excited and hopeful about it.

Naturally, this means that we see the rest of our ministers as quite simply being ineffective. Perhaps, they do not do their jobs, and are just warming the seat while enjoying the trappings of power.

To be fair, in Malaysia, it is hard to be a visionary minister.

Currently, there are so many challenges. The most critical one being the ever-changing landscape of the balance of power in a volatile government.

In fact, even in stable governments around the world, longevity in a ministerial role is never guaranteed.

Ken Clarke, a British politician who is currently a member of the House of Lords, and served in many ministerial roles said, “… after two years, you are sitting in control now, behind your desk, where you are really going to do this, this and this. And then the phone rings and the Prime Minister is having a reshuffle and you move on to the next department and you are back at the beginning… panicking again”.

I realise that there is no “school for ministers,” and no other job really prepares anyone for the role.

Most ministers are by very definition, especially in Malaysia, smooth political navigators. They know that their tenure as minister is always on the line. And to be frank, this level of job insecurity can create serious performance anxiety for anyone.

This is possibly why many ministers are instinctively risk-averse. They tend not to rock the boat, fearing a misstep, and being thrown out of a plum job.

But for Malaysians right now, the harsh reality is that we need potent ministers who can combine good judgment with far-reaching vision. This is the only way we’ll navigate the fallout in a post-pandemic world.

If we look at the current crop of our bulging cabinet, many were appointed out of a political necessity to cobble together an uncomfortable alliance. And, many of the ministers have no connection to the portfolio for which they have been selected.

So, under these circumstances, how do we expect to be led by a cadre of effective people?

To be an effective minister, one has to work with a professional civil service. But our civil service, by its very nature, is simply designed to preserve how things stand.

If a minister cannot build trust and create a shared purpose with the career officials in their ministry, the bureaucracy will frustrate their ambitions.

In Malaysia, all too often, we get ministers who are big on ideas but short on implementation.

The execution of any idea is “outsourced’ to their ministries. An effective minister micromanages implementation. Maybe, this is why our health minister got to the ground himself to see how the hospital is run in Kajang.

What do we need from our ministers now?

Ministers need to be steadfast about prioritising goals, not just putting out fires in a crisis.

Malaysia does not need quick-fix bandages but real thought-through solutions. The main task of every minister is to empower people to build the capacity to get us out of this health and economic predicament.

As stakeholders, perhaps we can request that our health minister Khairy Jamaluddin run some short-courses for his colleagues on becoming effective and efficient ministers? - FMT

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