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#kerajaangagal150: Malaysia must get out of the trajectory of a failed state just as we got ourselves out of the trajectory of a kleptocracy in the 14th General Election in 2018

Malaysia ended June 2021 with quite a disastrous bang – we overtook Jordan and now ranked No. 35 among nations with the most cumulative total of Covid-19 cases with 751,979 cases and 5,170 deaths from Covid-19.

We will next overtake Japan, ranked No. 34, presently with 798,159 Covid-19 cases and 14,740 Covid-19 deaths well before the Tokyo Olympics scheduled for July 23 – August 8, 2021.

At the rate of current Covid-19 infections in Malaysia, we will overtake Japan before the middle of July.

At present, there are three countries with over 800,000 Covid-19 cases and two countries with over 900,000 cases.

If the present rate of Covid-19 infection in Malaysia is not checked, we will join the “million club of nations” with over one million Covid-19 cases to mark our 64th National Day on August 31, 2021.

Is this what we want?

Is it possible to pull Malaysia back from the brink of deep polarisation along racial and religious lines because of lies, fake news and hate speech and for Malaysia to become a great nation?

Is it possible to save Malaysia from the perdition of the Covid-19 pandemic?

It has been said that Malaysians must choose whether they want to become cow herders or pig herders.

Malaysians do not want to be cow herders or pig herders but want to be a great nation on the cutting edge of technology, leveraging on the best values from the four great civilisations which meet in confluence in Malaysia - to build a world top class nation.

It is a great fallacy that the political choice before Malaysians is whether to be cow herders or pig herders.

But increasingly, we are showing the marks of a failed state, as illustrated by the following:

  • The immediate failure of the National Recovery Plan (NRP), with Covid-19 cases projected to remain in the 6,000 cases zone in the first half of July when Malaysia should be making the transition from Phase One to Phase Two of the NRP by achieving the threshold of less than 4,000 cases at the end of June;
  • Malaysia falling 35 places from 16th rank in January 2021 to a catastrophic 51st position in the June 2021 Bloomberg Covid Resilience Ranking out of 53 economies of more than US$200 billion;
  • Malaysia falling 50 places from the 85th rank on November 18, 2020 among nations in the world with the most cumulative total of Covid-19 cases to 35th position on 30th June 2021 in a matter of 26 weeks;
  • The world’s previous worst performing nations like the United States, India, France, Russia, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain and Germany recently turning the table on Malaysia and performing better in “daily Covid-19 cases per million population”;
  • These previously worst performing nations in the Covid-19 pandemic like United States, India, France, Russia, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain and Germany in recent times doing better than Malaysia even in the category of Covid-19 “deaths per million population”; and
  • Malaysia losing out to China in having more cumulative total of Covid-19 cases and Covid-19 deaths, although China has 44 times the population of Malaysia.

Malaysians must lift ourselves out of the trajectory of a failed state, and this is possible just as we had lifted ourselves out of the trajectory of a kleptocracy in the 14th General Election in 2018.

I have called for a one or two years of political moratorium and a “Win the War Against Covid-19 Pandemic” (WACOP) coalition at all levels of Malaysian society to save the country from the devastation in lives, economic losses and societal damages of the pandemic.

We must find the political will and ingenuity to remove all factors which undermine the national objective to reverse the tides of defeat and to win the war against the Covid-19 pandemic.

The #kerajaangagal, #“Kita Jaga Kita”, #KerajaanBodoh, “#BenderaPutih, #PMCirit(Diarrhoea PM) and #KerajaanCirit (Diarrhoea government) hashtag campaigns on the social media are a reflection of the deep sense of frustration, anger, disappointment, hopelessness and even despair at a government which has lost its way with the Covid SOP flip-flops, U-turns and double-standards and the selfish pursuit of self-interests instead of the national good.

We must restore a sense of national purpose and mission starting with a winning strategy to win the long, invisible but lethal war against the Covid-19 pandemic, comprising the following elements:

  • Restore public trust and confidence in the national strategy in the war against Covid-19 pandemic. The reason the National Recovery Plan and the RM150 billion Pemulih economic package are not game-changers in the war against Covid-19 pandemic are because of the unprecedented deficit in public trust and confidence.
  • An “all-of-government” and “whole-of-society” strategy and approach in the war against Covid-19, which had been noticeably absent in the 18-month Covid-19 pandemic.
  • “War mentality” by all Malaysians to unite to win the war against the Covid-19 pandemic, based on a Covid moratorium and coalition with a single-minded focus by all in Malaysia, including the Executive, Parliament and all sectors of society that the only national priority is to win the war against the Covid-19 pandemic and all other considerations must be subordinated to this objective.
  • Unite all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion, region or politics in the war against Covid-19 pandemic and the end of extremist, intolerant and toxic politics of race or religion.
  • Removal of factors which detract from winning the war against Covid-19 pandemic like incompetent Ministers, corruption and the end of Covid-19 SOP flip-flops, U-turns and double-standards.

There must be a new start in the war against Covid-19 pandemic where all political and other differences are temporarily put aside so that the country can win the war against the coronavirus to save lives, livelihoods and the country’s economic future.

It must be a WACOP coalition of the Malaysian society, regardless of race, religion, region or politics, that can reach and provide help to every vulnerable Malaysian who needs help and end the shocking statistics of an average of four suicide cases every day for the first three months of the year – and most of all, end the spiral of fatalities from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Lim Kit Siang MP for Iskandar Puteri