Is Parliament lockdown Muhyiddin’s answer to the worsening Covid-19 Pandemic situation?

I find no pleasure whatsoever but great sadness that my predictions about the worsening Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia have been proven true – that today, Malaysia breaks the 1.1 million-mark for Covid-19 cases setting a new daily peak of 17,786 new Covid-19 cases, breaks the 9,000 mark for Covid-19 deaths and is No.28 among countries with the most cumulative cases of Covid-19 cases.

We were ranked No. 31 at the start of the five-day Parliament special meeting, but we have over taken Pakistan, Romania and Sweden, and tomorrow will be ranked No. 27 after overtaking Belgium in having the most the cumulative total of Covid-19 cases.

But is the Prime Minister, Muhyhiddin Yassin bothered?

In fact, if 235,952 Covid-19 cases and 551 Covid-19 deaths on January 10, 2021 was justification to declare emergency to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, then today’s figures of 1,113,272 Covid-19 and 9,024 Covid-19 deaths would provide even more reason to continue the emergency – as the Covid-19 cases is five times and Covid-19 deaths is 16 times more than when the Emergency was first declared.

But the emergency was not the solution to the Covid-19 pandemic, but a subterfuge for Muhyiddin to hang on to power just as the Parliament lockdown on Monday was an excuse to use the Covid-19 pandemic to extend his rule without parliamentary majority support.

Just as Hitler in 1933 contributed to global parliamentary lore with the German Reichstag (Parliament) first, it would appear that Muhyiddin is fully intent on contributing to infamous parliamentary lore with a Malaysian Parliament lockdown allegedly because of Covid-19 pandemic.

It is a tragedy for Malaysia that Muhyiddin thinks a Parliamentary lockdown is now the answer to the worsening Covid-19 pandemic situation in Malaysia.

Lim Kit Siang MP for Iskandar Puteri