3-time election loser as deputy minister? An insult to voters

 

When a person loses his deposit in three state and parliamentary elections but ends up being appointed as a deputy minister, we can safely assume that “something is rotten in the state of Denmark” so to speak.

I hope readers will not construe this as a personal attack: the whole process of Guan Dee Koh Hoi’s appointment has nothing to do with him or his character, but shows how low government leaders continue to stoop so that they stay in power.

Guan Dee, who is secretary-general of Sabah’s Party Solidariti Tanah Airku (STAR), was appointed as deputy minister for tourism, arts and culture on April 16 after being appointed a senator.

He stood for election to the Sabah state assembly in 2004 and 2008, and for a parliamentary seat in 2013. Each time, he contested under a different party ticket. Each time he fared miserably.

His last outing in 2013 was the most pathetic: he obtained a mere 409 votes or 1.6% of the total votes cast in the parliamentary constituency of Beaufort in Sabah.

One can’t be wrong to assume that such candidates have been totally rejected by the people, whose votes are a strong signal that they don’t want this kind of politician to make laws that run our lives.

By bringing politicians into the government through the “backdoor” via the senate, the politicians of the ruling Perikatan Nasional don’t seem to care how desperate they appear to be.

Guan Dee’s party STAR, led by Jeffrey Kitingan, holds six key seats in the Sabah assembly – if the party pulls out of the PN-led Gabungan Rakyat Sabah coalition, the Sabah government could collapse.

Muhyiddin Yassin’s coalition is in such a fragile position at the federal and state levels that it seemingly accepts without question anyone nominated by component parties to hold office, just not to rock the boat. Such desperation is damaging and probably that is why we have such a weak government, and lack of talent.

It is ironic that the PN-led government has been described by some critics, including Umno leaders, as a failed government when it appears that it is Umno that is keeping the coalition in power. - FMT

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