Power in voters’ hands to boot out shameless politicians – Zulkarnain Md Saufi

I REFER to YB Ong Kian Ming’s media statement on Value-Added Leadership as posted on Facebook.

I wish to thank the Bangi MP and former international trade and industry (Miti) deputy minister for exposing the deceit perpetrated by the current Minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali.

I have no wish to repeat in detail about what Ong said – how Azmin took credit for the decades of hard work and sacrifices made by the bureaucrats to lift Malaysia to where it is, in terms of foreign direct investments.

To top it off, Ong revealed that Azmin has been most incompetent. If anything, Ong, of all people should know how Miti works, having been a deputy minister there himself.

The episode reminds me of my personal experience at work. I have seen how certain bosses take credit for the sleepless nights put in by their subordinates. These shameless bosses don’t even have the decency to give their staff a pat on their backs.

But when it comes to promotions or pay increments, these bosses pay themselves handsomely, while their subordinates get pittance, if any. Worst of all, these bosses can’t hold a handle to their subordinates when it comes to getting the actual work done, as all they are good at is curry-favour!

Hence, many leave such toxic workplaces for employers who can help them grow professionally. This is how companies lose good staff, and at the end of the day, these employers suffer long-term setbacks.

We can and should do the same towards politicians who are only good at stealing the limelight from their staff and try to pass off such accomplishments as their own. Just like how good employees leave toxic workplaces, we can also force toxic politicians out of the corridors of power.

We can write to these politicians expressing our disappointments and get our friends to do the same on social media. Never underestimate the power of the people who work in concert to do the right thing!

There may be a lot of public resentment towards Azmin now, due to his role in the Sheraton Move as well as the Four Points Hotel episode in Sandakan in 2019, where there was no closure to the case despite a sworn video confession by an alleged sexual assault victim.

But Azmin is not alone. The last thing we, the voters, should do is to concede such skulduggery and do nothing about it. We should not be taken for fools but do everything we can to stop these people in their tracks.

We should take up the cudgels at the ballot boxes and send a strong signal of the voters’ aspirations, starting with the upcoming Johor election and vote against those associated with people who are not fit to walk the corridors of power. – The Vibes, February 5, 2022

Zulkarnain Md Saufi is a reader of The Vibes