Youths aged 16-25 were given the opportunity to assume government and opposition benches as they took part in the third instalment of the Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2023 on Aug 26.
Debating before several politicians, the youths spoke on the motions of political education, sustainable forest management, the Climate Change Act, and cost of living.
Four politicians - Raub MP Chow Yu Hui, Bukit Bendera MP Syerleena Abdul Rashid, Bakri MP Tan Hong Pin, and Tasek Gelugor MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan - took turns as speakers in the four different sessions, as the youth’s debates echoed common arguments heard in the Dewan Rakyat.
A panel of judges from the event’s collaborative partners – The Body Shop Malaysia, Malaysian Timber Certification Council (MTCC), and the Malaysian Institute of Debate and Public Speaking (MIDP) – decided on the best debater at the end of each session.
The winners were awarded a lifetime subscription to Malaysiakini as well as a trophy sponsored by MTCC.
Political education in schools
In the first session, the youths debated on whether politics should be integrated into the country’s education system, either as a sole subject or as an added module to an existing one.
The government bench advocated that integration is highly necessary, taking into account the implementation of Undi18 and the rising demand from youths to strengthen their political knowledge.
The opposition contended that even secondary-level students are unprepared for such a vast topic, asserting that introducing another subject would only further burden their learning.
The government’s Muhammad Mahdiyen Nafiz then questioned when the opposition believed it was the right time to introduce politics to youths.
“The minute the students turn 18 after sitting for SPM, they will be automatically registered by the Electoral Commission’s (EC) system and then thrown into polling stations without any knowledge of who to vote, how to vote, and what benefits they get if they vote.
“Many countries have integrated politics into their education system while Malaysia is lagging. Before we let ourselves fall behind even further, we must ask ourselves why we need to understand the comprehension of democracy,” Mahdiyen said.
Chow, who was this session’s speaker, chose to pass the government bench’s motion after a verbal vote. Mahdiyen was also awarded the best debater for this session.
Forest management
In the next session, the government argued that the system of forest management is sustainable and moving to a more environmentally friendly outcome for the timber industry.
The opposition’s Nasiruddin Hanif said despite the government’s claim, flash floods and landslides still occur on a yearly basis.
His fellow opposition member Muhammad Khaidi Abdullah also argued that even with the policies of the MTCC and the Malaysian Timber Certification Scheme (MTCS), illegal logging companies remain rampant within the industry.
The government should instead move towards zero deforestation, they argued, though Benteny Ooi Si Quan from the government bench said this would cause those in the logging industry to lose their jobs and severely affect the country’s economy.
“The government bench would support your motion but the opposition should explain the mechanisms and the logic of being able to transition to a new industry in a year.
“It can be considerable in the future but right now it is not practical for us to go for zero deforestation,” Ooi said.
After a gruelling debate, the opposition won this session while Ooi was named best debater.
Climate Change Act
While the government bench advocated its motion for the Climate Change Act, opposition leader Ameer Hazeem said the government’s plans to combat climate change were too vague.
“A carbon budget was listed as one of the steps to be enacted once the act is implemented but how can you impose a budget on an issue that has yet to be dealt with in Malaysia?
“At this moment, there are no motions to control the carbon emissions… The government drastically needs to come up with a more holistic approach to the matter,” Ameer added.
Despite the opposition’s argument, the government bench won this motion while Muhammad Haikal Hairee was recognised as the best debater.
Rising cost of living
The focus shifted to the rising cost of living in the last segment of the debate.
The government bench’s Lisa Amanda Mae highlighted the necessity of the minimum wage to empower low-income earners amid economic conditions.
Visibly nervous, the 16-year-old managed to rebuff all attempts by the opposition to interrupt her speech.
The opposition then countered that the minimum wage alone might not suffice as the sole solution to the escalating cost of living.
Mohamad Firdaus Kasah Hamid @ Kasmidy from the opposition also said affluent conglomerates will take advantage of the minimum wage, ignoring any window to rightfully increase the wages of their employees while small businesses will continue to suffer from the benchmark.
His colleague Mohamed Adam Mohamed Ashraff advocated for increased subsidies along with a rise in the top marginal income tax rate.
“In Malaysia, it (income tax rate) is 30 percent but when we compare it to other countries such as Thailand, it is 35 percent and South Korea which is 45 percent.
“So we (must) tax the rich, redistribute that and we will ease the burden of the rakyat,” Adam said.
Ultimately, Wan Saiful, who was the speaker for this session, passed the government bench’s motion while Adam was named best debater.
The third instalment of the Youth Parliamentary Debathon 2023 was a collaborative effort between Malaysiakini’s events arm KiniEvents, The Body Shop Malaysia, MTCC, and MIDP.
On May 27, the inaugural episode of the Youth Parliamentary Debathon took place in the Metaverse, utilising the first-ever 3D Dewan Rakyat environment, where 10 youths from across the country engaged in a debate centred around parental leave policies.
On July 29, the second instalment was held revolving around the topic of a Youth Shadow Cabinet. - Mkini
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