Malaysia has been the worst performer in the Covid-19 pandemic on the world stage, jumping 22 rankings among countries with most cumulative total of Covid-19 cases from No. 83 to No. 61 since December 1 - even worse than US, Brazil, UK, France, Turkey, Italy and Spain

On 1st December, 2020, I asked: “Will Malaysia overtake China with more cumulative total of Covid-19 cases before or after the end of the present Parliament meeting?”

Unfortunately, Malaysia overtook China before the end of the Parliament meeting on December 16, 2020, with Malaysia positioned as No. 79 with 87,913 cases while China was ranked No. 80 with 86,770 cases (worldometers.info), when China with 1.4 billion population has 40 times the population of Malaysia.

On December 1, Malaysia was ranked No. 83 in the world with 65,697 Covid-19 cases but we have deteriorated by leaps and bounds and today, we are ranked No. 61 with 158,434 Covid-19 cases and 601 fatalities.

As a result, Malaysia is the worst performer in the Covid-19 pandemic on the world stage jumping 22 rankings among countries with the most cumulative total of Covid-19 cases from No. 83 to No. 61 since Dec. 1, 2020 - even worse than United States of America, Brazil, UK, France, Turkey, Italy and Spain.

From Dec. 1 to now, the global total cumulative of Covid-19 cases increased from 65 million Covid-19 cases to 95.5 million cases, an increase of 1.46 times, but Malaysia increased from 65,697 cases on Dec. 1 to 158,434 cases, an increase of 2.4 times – the worst case among the top 100 nations with the most cumulative total of Covid-19 cases.

Why is this so? What is the real problem?

One thing is clear. Without malice or finger-pointing, let us own up to the fact that despite calls for an “all-of-government” and “whole-of-society” strategy and approach to the war against the Covid-19 epidemic, these calls have fallen on deaf ears for the past year.

It is only now that the Ministry of Health is engaging with discussions with the private health sector on a joint effort in the war against Covid-19 pandemic, when this should have been done many months earlier.

But it is better late than never.

The Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin should be commended for his response to the Open Letter to the Prime Minister by 46 public health experts on the Covid-19 pandemic, but it raises new questions.

When will the Prime Minister reply to the Joint Open Letter which Dr. Mohamad Rafick Khan and I sent to him on January 10, 2021?

As the Prime Minister’s reply to the Open letter was dated yesterday (Sunday 7th January, 2021), it is clear that the Prime Minister had not acted on my suggestion on January 9, 2021 that the government “fully consult the private health sector before drawing up its new strategy in the Covid-19 pandemic” which was announced by the Prime Minister (on the re-imposition of the MCO) on January 11 and the declaration of emergency.

The Prime Minister revealed that on 15th December, 2020, he had met with five of the signatories of the Open Letter, and the very fact that these five public health experts had joined 41 other public health experts to send the Open Letter to the Prime Minister on January 7, 2021 showed their concern that there must be drastic change in the strategy to fight the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is most unfortunate that the Prime Minister had not given the proper response by meeting with the 46 public health experts before announcing the new strategy, as the 46 public health experts had expressed “much apprehension and concern” with regard to the current status of the Covid-19 outbreak in the country.

I do not believe that anyone of the 46 public health experts had suggested that the declaration of emergency and the suspension of Parliament and the State Assemblies were necessary measures to address the Covid-19 pandemic.

In their Open Letter, the public health experts proposed ten “urgent and critical actions lest Malaysia slips into Covid-19 intensive care”, particularly Proposal 9 and 10, viz:

“9. A Covid-19 Task Force comprising a cross-sectoral and empowered team of subject matter experts must be immediately formed to provide evidence-based advice on a harmonised whole-of-government response across ministries and agencies. The Covid-19 Task Force will help steer the nation out of this pandemic by regularly presenting its recommendations and audit of the health economic impact of key decisions to the cabinet. To ensure independence of the Covid-19 Task Force, the Malaysian Medical Association, Academy of Medicine Malaysia, Malaysian Public Health Physicians’ Association and Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia are best positioned to select the members.

“10. Do not politicise the pandemic but instead secure a bipartisan consensus and approach to flatten the pandemic curve, accelerate efforts to achieve herd immunity as a form of community protection to co-exist with the coronavirus. The GE15 in the midst of an uncontained pandemic is an unmitigated disaster waiting to happen as the Sabah state election has exemplified.”

Both these proposals have not been acted upon, instead we have a declaration of emergency and the suspension of Parliament and the State Assemblies.

There is considerable debate firstly, as to whether an emergency should be declared, and secondly, whether Parliament and the State Assemblies should be suspended in such an emergency.

The Prime Minister, in his reply, gave an interesting revelation that the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic started on 20th September 2020.

Is the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic the fault of the Executive or Parliament?

If the third wave was the fault of the Executive, and not the Legislature, what is the rationale for the suspension of Parliament and the State Assemblies?

Article 150(3) of the Malaysian Constitution provides that a proclamation of emergency and any ordinances under the proclamation shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament and, if not sooner revoked, shall cease to have effect if resolutions are passed by both Houses annulling such Proclamation or ordinance.

Clearly, the drafters of the Malaysian Constitution did not envisage that Parliament would be suspended as this would make it impossible for Parliament to revoke the proclamation of emergency, bringing about a dictatorship completely contrary to all tenets of parliamentary democracy.

The Prime Minister had acted wrongly and unconstitutionally in advising the Yang di Pertuan Agong to declare an emergency and to suspend Parliament and the State Assemblies, and he should undo these wrongs.