MALAYSIA needs political leadership that can pick it out of its quagmire rather than those who are more adept at just running down their foes. 

After all, there doesn’t seem to be any semblance of leadership since the Sheraton Move of 2020 that brought down the popularly elected Pakatan Harapan government. 

Right now, the nation has had two successive governments made up of foes working for their own political convenience rather than the people’s needs, or wants for that matter. 

Consider the following. 

DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke today said Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Umno will be punished if a general election is held this year. 

He told the PM to consider the people and the oncoming monsoon season and projected floods and avoid polls or get dumped at the ballot box. 

Wouldn’t that work for the DAP if Ismail did just that? Why help Ismail and Umno keep power by asking them to hold polls which are due by July 2023?

The same with the former prime minister of the Perikatan Nasional government and Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin. 

On one hand, he said Bersatu is part of the Ismail government and needs to be consulted on the dissolution of parliament and the election date. 

Then he said the government should step down as it can’t handle the economy. Which is which? 

Also, his government and Ismail share the same finance minister and policies; isn’t Muhyiddin the head of the National Recovery Council formed to handle the post Covid-19 economic rehabilitation? 

Perhaps it is time for veteran politicians from the 1980s to stop clinging to power and public service. They offer nothing beyond rhetoric. 

On that note, even a young politician like Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman needs to figure out the difference between public service and civil service. 

Insisting that polls must not be held due to the anticipated floods because politicians need to prioritise people over politics suggests a lack of faith in the civil service and authorities to handle any deluge. 

Politicians make policies and laws that should theoretically mitigate the worst effects of natural calamities. 

Otherwise it means politicians in power have not done their job. By now, the coalition his party wants to join should be able to overcome the worst of any floods in Selangor, where Pakatan Rakyat and its successor Pakatan Harapan have held power since 2008.

After all, state governments handle land and water, which means any development that affects the two is under the purview of the state authorities. 

At this point, Malaysia does not need a better government. It needs a government that works. None seems to have done the job well since 2018.

One more thing, Malaysia needs politicians who are quick thinkers, not fast talkers. – September 25, 2022.

* Jahabar Sadiq runs The Malaysian Insight.