Where do we go from here?

 

From Ulya Aqamah Husamudin

It’s clear that the government has failed miserably. Covid-19 cases are still up, consistently hitting around 6,000 new cases daily and sadly, the number dying each day has become scary. Making the whole situation worse is that more people are going into depression to the point of opting to end their own lives or attempting to do so.

The economy is bad and Malaysia has been projected to be among the worst by global agencies when it comes to how we are going to fare post Covid-19. Here comes the hard question.

So, where do we go from here? I personally see three possible scenarios taking place.

The first is blithely ignoring everything and allowing this failed government to continue its tenure while we watch angrily with frustration.

The second option is pretty straightforward, allow a new coalition to take over and run the government. But there is a catch here – who really has the numbers?

Pakatan Harapan, according to news reports, is relying heavily on Umno to secure the majority. But Umno MPs and the party itself seem to be directionless or making U-turns quite so often. I find it really ironic how we are still relying on the defeated kleptocrats to be back governing.

Some say it’s okay to just convene Parliament and continue debating with the current regime because strategically, it would be easier for the opposition to defeat them in the next election by doing this.

This may be true to an extent but the act is wrong. Why? An election is completely impossible under the current environment and if we allow this extremely weak government to continue until 2023, more lives will be lost, and more people will lose their livelihood. If you think in a political framework this is the way to go, that is your call, but if you truly care about the people, you will disagree.

Hence this brings us to the third option, which I think may be the most unpopular. An immediate action to take over from the current incompetent Cabinet and replace it with a professional functioning body focusing on the recovery of the nation. This should be called Majlis Pemulihan Negara (MPN) as suggested by Pejuang and Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Isn’t it the most viable option that exists right now? We solve problems that exist and prepare the ground for what’s coming. This body can replace the current bloated executive whose salary bill amounts to quite a bit. We save on these expenses as the MPN members won’t be paid because this will be considered as national service.

This will also help cool down the country’s political climate and, most importantly, save the people and the economy.

There are hurdles to this though, the first one being that the emergency has to continue. However, in the proposed MPN, although the emergency continues, Parliament will still be open to act as a check and balance on MPN’s administration. MPN members must be answerable to Parliament which will still be supreme.

For this to happen, MPs and the royals will have to play their part. How can we help the rakyat? We should use all possible avenues to try and convince them by applying pressure. Show them that we need a way out of this horrendous situation.

So, ponder deeply on what is going on now. If I’m selfish, I would just wait it out and wait for the next election, then use the incompetence of the current government as my war cry to the voters. But that is not who I am. And this is not what Pejuang is about. We are offering a non-political but viable option.

We have supported the white and black flag campaigns. We know and, more importantly, understand that this is the way the rakyat could express their frustrations. However, we are politicians in a party, no matter how big or small our influence is, and we need to think 20 steps ahead.

So, again, I ask you. Where do we go from here? This is a choice which is ours to make. As the rakyat express their distress, the politicians should plan the way out of this dire situation without hurting anyone. As a young new lad in politics, this is what politics means to me.

I think we had enough of just being the person calling out a fire. We need to be the one to put out the fire. - FMT

Ulya Aqamah Husamudin is the information chief of Pejuang.

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