Malacca general election seeing two contrasting phenomenon: daily Covid-19 cases and deaths rising in Malaysia since nomination day in Malacca on Nov. 8 while Election Commission over-zealous in banning all forms of physical campaigning

The Health Minister, Khairy Jamaluddin has urged Malaysians to remain vigilant as the Covid-19 national infectivity rate climbed to the highest level since August.

We are seeing two contrasting phenomenon in the Malacca general election – daily Covid-19 cases and deaths in Malaysia rising above that on Nomination Day in Malacca on November 8, 2021 while the Election Commission over-zealous in banning all forms of physical campaigning in the general election.

I agree with the call by the former Election Commission deputy chairperson Wan Ahmad Wan Omar that the Election Commission should review its campaigning rules in Malacca general election to meet the demands of democracy, as it is strange to allow coffee shops to open but all forms of physical campaigning banned.

The Election Commission has completely failed in striking a proper balance between ensuring that the Malacca general election is “free, fair and clean” and to prevent the spread of Covid-19 infections.

The daily Covid-19 new cases since Nomination Day on November 8 (when there were 4,543 cases) and Covid-19 deaths (when there were 35 deaths) have been exceeded in the last five days, i.e. 5,403 cases and 58 deaths on Nov. 9; 6,243 cases and 78 deaths on Nov. 10; 6,323 cases and 59 deaths on Nov. 11; 6,517 cases and 49 deaths on Nov. 12; and 5,809 cases and 41 deaths on Nov. 13, 2021.

This marks the continued failure of the Health Ministry and in particular the new Health Minister Khairy Jamalyuddin to end the longest Covid-19 wave in the world in Malaysia, the third Covid-19 wave in Malaysia which had started since the Sabah general election in September last year.

Malaysia paid a heavy price in the third Covid-19 wave for Bersatu precipitated the Sabah general election because of its greed for power and to capture the Sabah state goverrnment.

Now, UMNO has precipitated the Malacca general election in its mission to wipe out Bersatu in Malacca.

Neither Bersatu nor UMNO is prepared to put the interests of the people above their respective party interests – unlike the Pakatan Harapan parties which are prepared to sign a Confidence-Supply-Reform (CSR) Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Prime Minister Ismail Sabri because we want to end the crazy upsurge of Covid-19 cases and deaths to save lives and livelihoods in Malaysia in the Covid-19 pandemic.

If Bersatu and UMNJO continues to put their party interests above the interests of the people, it is unlikely that the CSR MOU could survive the test of time.

I am concerned that Malaysia continues to lose out to Indonesia in the Covid-19 pandemic as Indonesia recorded 359 new Covid-19 cases and 16 Covid-19 deaths yesterday as compared to Malaysia’s 5,809 cases and 55 deaths yesterday.