MELAKA: Former Melaka chief minister Idris Haron says the state would be better off under a multiracial and clean administration rather than a Malay-Muslim state government that was corrupt and incompetent.
In an interview with FMT, the former Sungai Udang assemblyman noted that the previous Barisan Nasional-led government had been touted as the first Malay-Muslim state government in Melaka.
“Yes, they’re Malay and Muslim, but what choice do we have?” he said.
“On the one hand, a government that claims to be Malay-Muslim but is rotten, corrupted, incompetent, (subject to external) interventions, which discriminates, among other traits.
“On the other hand, a government of various backgrounds which possesses racial unity, that is more Islamic and capable of ensuring the welfare of the people of Melaka.”
Idris claimed that aid programmes of the previous state government had discriminated against people of different political backgrounds, citing as an example how aid from the Melaka Islamic Religious Council (MAIM) was distributed at a hall with party flags hung around.
“We don’t want party politics to take over the government, where one is asked which party they support when receiving aid. Then if you don’t support me, you won’t get the aid.
“That is a sickness that burdens the people of Melaka today. I’m confident that the MAIM aid distributed recently was an agenda that was not pure in heart and irresponsible… advising recipients to support them and so on.”
On the contrary, he said, Islam taught its believers to help all of those in need, regardless of their backgrounds.
“Islam doesn’t distinguish between races. Islam doesn’t distinguish between political backgrounds. If we really say that we are a Malay government that upholds Islam, then there should not be any political discrimination in giving aid to the people of Melaka.”
Idris believed that Pakatan Harapan would be the best choice for Melaka voters when they cast their ballots to elect a new state assembly. He added that the election were not about who was the coalition’s candidate for chief minister.
Being the chief minister, he said, was no heroic business achieved by individual exploits, but required the backing and consensus of (at least) 15 members of the state assembly.
“In this context, anyone can become (chief minister), as long as they have the right attitude to lead a clean, responsible, efficient and transparent government that has no external intervention in its affairs and does not discriminate.”
He also said he believed that the potential combination of him and PH’s former chief minister Adly Zahari in the state government would be the best “offer” available to Melaka, adding that they would be able to govern the state with integrity and transparency.
“We will prove that the government that will take over next will be a more responsible government, one that does not discriminate and that distributes the economic pie proportionately.” - FMT
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