KUALA LUMPUR – Newly minted Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob has extended an offer for opposition leaders to become members of the National Recovery Council (NRC) and the Special Committee to Manage Covid-19.
In his inaugural address today, the Bera MP said this was in line with Istana Negara’s wishes that the government and the opposition must put aside their political differences and work together in battling the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting economic crisis.
“During the party leaders’ audience with His Majesty recently, he decreed that all of us forget our differences to achieve harmony for the benefit of the public.
“All parties should be ready to work together for a term to recreate a harmonious environment. In other words, we must hold tight to the principles of unity.
“I understand that the political crisis that has plagued the nation has created agitation amongst the people. Therefore, political stability must be achieved through unity. This includes cross-party cooperation.
“Thus, I would like to offer the opposition leaders a place in the National Recovery Council and the Special Committee to Manage Covid-19,” said Ismail Sabri.
Ismail Sabri said that with only 21 months left until the next general election, the country has gone through two administrations and prime ministers, which he said had hurt the country.
He added that to move forward, the country must resolve its political power struggles in order to fight the pandemic as a “big family”, which includes civil servants and the private sector.
He used the term “keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian family)” several times in his address.
Earlier in his speech, Ismail Sabri said the Covid-19 pandemic is the country’s main enemy, with the coronavirus’ variants constantly evolving.
Therefore, he said, his administration will continue to consolidate the strategy implemented by the previous government, while taking into account the views of public health experts in the country.
“I will ensure every intervention and effort of the government to lower Covid-19 cases will be done more comprehensively.
“It will be implemented through cross-government strategic cooperation. with the involvement of stakeholders, government agencies, and the private sector to ensure the country’s health system returns to stability.”
Ismail Sabri reiterated that the vaccination rate in Malaysia is among the fastest in the world, with inoculations exceeding 500,000 doses a day.
He said the efforts would assist and appreciate the sacrifices of frontliners still struggling to ensure Malaysians can live their lives under the new normal.
“We are optimistic that through the success of the vaccinations, many can return to their hometowns to visit their parents, celebrate festivities, and travel within the country.
“The youth will be able to enjoy recreation activities, return to higher learning institutions, and most importantly, our children can return to schools.”
Ismail Sabri said this was not wishful thinking, as the country had successfully lowered its Covid-19 caseloads previously.
He pointed to Labuan, which on August 20 showed a consistent decrease of patients to single-digit figures over seven days, after vaccinating 90% of its adult population.
The prime minister said with this in mind, the government has also purchased an additional six million doses of vaccines to be delivered next month. – The Vibes, August 22, 2021
