Reforms will create confidence
MALAYSIA enters 2019 with expectations the country will move forward to correct the mistakes of the past and implement reforms to introduce integrity, transparency and accountability among the institutions of government. It’s important that the institutions provide checks and balances among the legislative, executive, judicial and administrative branches of government to make Malaysia a respectable democracy.
The highest institutions for law and order in the country are parliament and the judiciary. Parliament will soon establish standing and select committees as announced by the Speaker of Dewan Rakyat recently. The committees will monitor closely the functions of the Cabinet ministers and the execution of their powers and make them accountable for their actions.
This includes scrutinising draft bills with the help of advisers and experts before they are placed before the full house for voting. We hope that with the establishment of these committees, parliament will no longer be a legislative rubber stamp for the government.
The judiciary must be independent of the executive to ensure it will dispense justice without fear or favour.
It is encouraging that the Federal Court, in two landmark cases involving conversion to Islam, has ruled that the Constitution is the supreme law of the country and that any decisions made by the lower courts or government authorities that contravene federal law will not be allowed to stand.
This ruling sets the gold standard for our courts of justice to be the guardians of the Constitution and the guarantors of our freedom.
I hope the Judicial Appointments
Commission will be the sole authority in appointing judges without having to go through the prime minister to submit its recommendations to the Agong.
The media, civil society, academic community and student bodies are other important institutions that must be allowed to operate freely for democracy to work well for the people.
As can be seen in developed countries, all these institutions, especially the media, constitute a potent force in keeping politicians on their best behaviour and also provide checks and balances against the unethical use of power. There should be freedom of information so that the media can do investigative reporting, especially on matters of law and justice.
I hope that the government will abolish or amend laws restricting freedom of expression and association. Further, the government
should not yield to pressure from conservative groups that oppose reforms on human rights, claiming that they are advocated by liberal groups to sabotage the interests of the Malays and Islam.
Efforts should be made to open up public dialogue on Icerd (the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination) and human rights in general to make people understand that these universal values of justice are not a threat to the sovereignty of the country.
Another blot on our democracy is the rampant use of money politics – not only in national and state elections but also in party elections. As money politics is considered the root cause of all corruption, it must be dealt with by introducing strong legislation to regulate political financing and enforce strictly free and fair elections.
This has long been proposed by civil society, including the G25 group, but there has been no political will to carry out these vital reforms for clean government.
The elections are over. Most Malaysians know that past mistakes have been costly and agree with the government that those responsible must be made accountable. Despite the pain, it’s time to look ahead, stop the blame game and move forward with reforms to restore the rule of law, strengthen the system of governance, and improve human rights.
These reforms are important for achieving sustainable development. As Malaysia becomes a better democracy, it will help to stifle racial and religious extremism and strengthen ties to unite all races and make the country resilient to face the challenges in the global economy.
Malaysia has successfully carried out structural reforms in the financial, banking and corporate sectors in response to the two crisis situations that happened before. These reforms should be continued to deal with the problems in the government sector relating to the weak revenue base, the over-sized civil service, and the governance failures in statutory bodies.
In the light of global uncertainties and our problems of high debt and deficit ratios in the federal government, measures should be taken to review the size and role of the public sector in the economy. At the same time, there should be more emphasis on recognising the crucial importance of the private sector as the engine of growth for the economy, accounting for the bulk of the job and income creation. Efforts to reduce the government-linked corporations sector will help to provide more room for private sector expansion.
The success of the economy depends strongly on the education system to produce human resources that have the skills to seize opportunities in high-tech industries that use science, technology and English to power their growth. This is the new economy where the high-paying jobs will come from. We need an intelligent work force to produce quality growth with high productivity to pay for the high salaries.
The country generally agrees that the education system needs to be overhauled for the new economy. We hope the Prime Minister will take the lead on this most sensitive of all reforms and that he will not be deterred by those who bring up racial and religious threats to oppose good intentions. The Prime Minister must not hesitate, otherwise the whole reform agenda will be at risk.
All the reforms mentioned above will create confidence among business leaders, entrepreneurs and investors that, despite the ups and downs of the business cycle and the global uncertainties, Malaysia is still an attractive place to invest in.
Investors take a long-term view and if they are impressed that Malaysia is a progressive country with universal values of justice and tolerance for its diversity in race and religion, and has friendly policies towards the private sector, they will feel that the country has a stable future for their business. It’s this confidence that will inspire them to stay and grow with Malaysia.
With these hopes, let me wish all readers a Happy New Year, and may all our dreams come true. TAN SRI MOHD SHERIFF MOHD KASSIM Bukit Damansara, Kuala Lumpur