Bigger problems than paying off debt facing the nation

THE result of the 14th General Election was a great relief to most Malaysians. Many of us had feared a hung parliament which could have brought regressive political development to Malaysia, leading us to the road of a failed state.

I was grateful that the transfer of power was a peaceful one, thanks to our sensible citizens, apolitical civil servants and security forces, wise rulers and cool-headed politicians from both sides of the divide.

May 9 could be considered to be as momentous as our Merdeka Day. The unexpected result of GE14 has given us hope for a new Malaysia that would become a more progressive and respected nation.

But while many Malaysians are still in the euphoric mood, I am quietly worried about the mammoth tasks ahead for the new government. I was not unduly alarmed by the financial scandals exposed by the new finance minister as most of them were already being bandied around before and during the election campaign. They were a godsend for Pakatan Harapan and largely helped the coalition to win the general election.

To me, the financial scandals are not the biggest problems facing the country now as our economy is still fundamentally sound, according to the international rating agencies. I am confident that our prudent new government will be able to fix the problems especially with the people united solidly behind it.

The bigger problems facing the nation now are those that divide Malaysians especially on race, religion and education. The real challenges of the new government are in how it will institute social engineering and institutional reforms to chart the future of the nation.

I was perturbed by the news that fewer PTPTN borrowers are paying back their loans after the election, contrary to our new Malaysia’s vision to produce citizens who are more ethical and responsible.

I was also sceptical about the scrapping of GST which was already in place and running well. The implementation of GST is a global trend as it is a more broadbased means of collecting revenue for the country. The revenue lost in our three months’ tax holiday could have been used to pay for our financial losses or finance our infrastructure projects instead of having to set up Tabung Harapan to “save” our country.

Perhaps the new government should not be too worried about their election manifesto which was made with the ends justifying the means.

I am sure most Malaysians can understand and would be forgiving over the situation.

I am also looking forward to the development of a civil society in our new Malaysia where we will all learn to agree to disagree without resorting to uncivil language and mob behaviour.

I also hope the government will genuinely observe the rule of law without acceding to the tyranny of the majority. The true character of a society is judged by how they treat the minority and the weak.

Now that the full Cabinet has been appointed, I hope the government will move on quickly to address the real issues facing the nation. I pray that my dream for a new Malaysia will come true.

IR GAN CHEE KUAN Ipoh