GEORGE TOWN – Malaysia is at greater risk of becoming a failed nation, as the Dewan Rakyat at present has become a place for selfish aims instead of championing the rakyat, said Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah.
The 84-year-old Umno veteran said Parliament is the most important constitution-based institution in the current political system.
“However, it is now riddled with politicians who only think of their parties, factions, or themselves.
“Without a respected and functional Dewan Rakyat, Malaysia is a failed state,” Tengku Razaleigh, better known as Ku Li, said when opening a unity forum at Universiti Sains Malaysia here today.
Ku Li said there are now several ways Malaysia can become a failed nation through the convergence of three crises, namely Covid-19, the digressing economy, and weak political leadership, all three of which are going into their third year.
He said that Malaysia's food security continues to weaken due to the continued import of essential food such as rice.
“This means we need US dollar reserves to pay for imports, but the ringgit is also falling.
“This is a great unknown, but there are many reasons why we are likely to have a shortage of the US dollar as the ringgit will further weaken.
“If the ringgit devalues more, the country could possibly encounter a collapse of the food supply chain, leading to a shortage of essential food, especially rice.
“There would be high inflation in tandem with a food shortage. The unemployment number of about 1.5 million people will naturally rise,” said Ku Li.
To arrest this, Ku Li said that extraordinary leadership is required to urge the people to undertake their national duty and responsibility in preventing the country from becoming a failed nation.
“The country is facing a dangerous cumulative political and economic crisis at present.
“It has seen a failure in leadership and of political parties to stand up to the challenges, in some cases only wishing to address problems when it is too late,” he said.
To bring back an effective leadership, he said, Parliament must act as the centre stage, but has unfortunately become more dysfunctional.
“The Dewan Rakyat in its present stage is no longer representative of the voters, and elected representatives no longer behave as representatives of the voters.
“To reclaim both democracy and good governance, there is a need to restore strong leadership,” said Ku Li, who said he hopes he can be proven wrong, but added that Malaysia’s downturn is becoming more apparent. – The Vibes, February 6, 2022
