Pakatan Harapan Is Playing With People’s Lives And Livelihood

Pakatan Harapan is playing with the lives and livelihood of Malaysians in their bid to oust Muhyiddin and grab power. And they want to make it appear like their only concern is the “legality” of the COVID-19 stimulus package. When you are drowning you really do not care about the “legality” of how someone is trying to save your life. Your life is more valuable than words on a piece of paper.  

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Muhyiddin Yassin’s government will be caught in a spot if the opposition rejects the bill for the coronavirus economic stimulus package when it comes before parliament, constitutional lawyer Lim Wei Jiet said today. He said this could be a potential issue for the government as it has announced and delivered the three packages without tabling a supplementary supply bill in parliament. (The Malaysian Insight)

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Most workers, except employees of multinational companies and government-linked companies, are financially unprepared to face an extended movement-control order (MCO), according to a Statistics Department’s survey released today. The survey conducted between March 18 and 31 of 168,182 respondents nationwide found that among the self-employed, 81.9% said they are not prepared to face a longer MCO. (The Malaysian Insight)

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No nation can win the war against the Covid-19 pandemic until an effective vaccine is developed, said Lim Kit Siang. Therefore, he reiterated that Malaysia must develop its own exit strategy, which must meet the purpose of ensuring that the Covid-19 virus is sufficiently contained to allow the economic engine to restart and for lives to return to as much normalcy as possible. (Malaysiakini)

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Amid the coronavirus pandemic, trade, travel and commerce halted while borders, xenophobia and geopolitical tensions heightened. Will this eventually cause global depression and will it end globalisation? The world economy is getting a bad hit. It is a lot worse than a traditional war, financial crisis and recession.

In a regular war, there are still demands and the supplies are still moving. The coronavirus has created a “non-movement” phenomenon. I call it Economic Coma, putting everything on sleep mode. The world has never had the experience to deal with this situation. Looking forward there is nothing in sight. (Malay Mail Online)

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Muhyiddin and his government have their hands full with the COVID-19 pandemic crisis

Those are just some of the comments and views today after everyone finally realises that the COVID-19 pandemic crisis is as much (or more) an economic issue as it is a health issue. If we try to turn this COVID-19 pandemic into a life-and-death issue and impose a total lockdown on the entire country, maybe 10,00 or 20,000 lives will be saved. However, 10 million or 20 million souls will be suffering from lack of money.

So, what should prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin and his Perikatan Nasional government do? Should they focus on saving lives or should they focus on ensuring that Malaysians can still leave home to earn a living but risk death in the process?

Around 7,000 to 10,000 Malaysians who leave home die every year in traffic accidents (not sure how many more die in work-related mishaps or industrial accidents). From 1990 to 2020, an estimated 200,000-250,000 people have died on Malaysian roads.

Yes, Malaysians are amongst the most idiotic, irresponsible and inconsiderate people in the world. Put them behind the steering-wheel of a car or the handlebar of a motorcycle and see the beast emerge in a chronic case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde syndrome. Hence if they do not die of COVID-19 they are going to die of road-rage anyway. So why bother to force them to stay home?

More seriously, though, Muhyiddin and his Perikatan government have an almost impossible task ahead of them. They need to balance between saving lives and ensuring that Malaysians can still earn a living. Overcompensate on one and you risk compromising the other.

This is going to be a thankless job and you are going to be cursed never mind what you do. Even Winston Churchill did not receive the thanks and gratitude of the British people. After WWII, they kicked him out. And, mind you, if not because of Churchill, I would be writing this article in German instead of English.

So, perish the thought if you think Malaysians will be grateful to Muhyiddin even if he keeps the COVID-19 deaths to below 10,000. At the end of the day, it is going to be about money. Whatever Tun Dr Mahathir might say, Malaysians only care about money and nothing else. Hence Mahathir is wrong. And Mahathir is the problem, not the solution.

Pakatan Harapan is more focused on ousting Muhyiddin than on saving Malaysians

Can you see how silent Pakatan Harapan has become lately? Even Lim Kit Siang comes out with a very safe “water is wet” statement. “Malaysia must develop its own exit strategy, which must meet the purpose of ensuring that the Covid-19 virus is sufficiently contained to allow the economic engine to restart and for lives to return to as much normalcy as possible,” said Kit Siang.

Okay, so water is wet. We all know that. But WHAT exit strategy? Bagitahulah! Kit Siang is saying what we all know but stops short of telling us what to do or how to do it. So, what must the government do? End the lockdown? Continue with the lockdown? Increase the RM250 billion stimulus package to RM750 billion or RM1 trillion? Cakaplah!

They want parliament to be convened so that the RM250 billion COVID-19 stimulus package can be approved by parliament. They want to make it “official” and “legal”. When someone is dying of hunger do you think they care about “official” or “legal”?

Nak debate apa lagi? Bila tak bagi duit, complain kerajaan tak peduli rakyat. Bila bagi duit, complain tak “official” and tak “legal”. If you are so concerned then reject the money lah. Jangan ambil duit tu. Duduk kat rumah dan ikat perut. Wear one size smaller pants.

We all know they want parliament to be convened so that they can reject the RM250 billion COVID-19 stimulus package and treat it as a vote of no confidence against Muhyiddin so that the Perikatan Nasional government collapses. They don’t care about the rakyat. They want to torpedo the RM250 billion COVID-19 stimulus package even if the rakyat suffers.

Okay, they want the lockdown ended. Why? Why are they so opposed to the lockdown? The reason they want the lockdown ended is so that the COVID-19 deaths will increase — say to 10,000 or 20,000 — and then they can use this as the excuse to bring down the government.

They want to turn the COVID-19 deaths into Muhyiddin’s “1MDB”. The RM250 billion COVID-19 stimulus package is making Muhyiddin popular. The only unhappy ones are the SMEs, which are mainly Chinese-owned businesses (but that, too, is being sorted out). If parliament is convened AFTER the Covid-19 is over, no way they can oust Muhyiddin through a vote of no confidence.

Pakatan Harapan is playing with the lives and livelihood of Malaysians in their bid to oust Muhyiddin and grab power. And they want to make it appear like their only concern is the “legality” of the COVID-19 stimulus package. When you are drowning you really do not care about the “legality” of how someone is trying to save your life. Your life is more valuable than words on a piece of paper.