Answer to MP's question Week #18

This country came a long way in terms of democratic reforms during the last 2 years; more reform if not stunted by the Government’s hardball tactics such as mobilising the police in a provocative and aggressive manner to intervene protests. When we talk about protests, Malaysians have so far protested in a civil minded such as place card demos, peaceful street march, carnival-like gatherings, petitioning and blogging.

A question comes to mind when answering your question- how long can Malaysians be civilly obedient. The average Malaysian today is stretched. He/ she is challenged in meeting income with living expenditure. The thinking Malaysian wage earner also faces the terrible stress of prospective future unemployment. Wage earners and business owners alike know, that the easiest controllable cost component in times of rising prices is labor cost and headcount. Control these components, the downside effect is unemployment.

History shows continuous suppression and physical abuse will push people to rioting and hooliganism. When Lee Kuan Yew was building Singapore in its early years he recognized that physical well being and personal wealth played a key role in a country’s economic growth- the contented worker today works even harder for tomorrow, knowing what his daily toil brings in results for himself and country. But yet, across the causeway, the Malaysian Government deliberately does the opposite to its people, totally ignoring the critical success factors of its neighbor.

The only avenues to fight this cruel administration is via the Parliament and the streets. The question is how long CAN the average stressed out Malaysian remain quiet, not a matter of whether they WANT to keep quiet or not. The only avenue to fight this cruel administration is via the Parliament and the streets. Yes, the rakyat should not keep quiet, but instead should take demos to the next level. Demos should be held at personal residences of Cabinet Ministers for instance. As for the the rest of the points I would not mention them here.

As for the Parliament, some PR MPs like Fong Kui Loon, Nurul Izzah, etc should step up in performance. No simple majority, but the minority is not small in number either- make your voted position count like Wee Choo Keong.