MP SPEAKS | Unethical political manoeuvring only creates problems for people

MP SPEAKS | The recent withdrawal of four state assemblypersons from the Malacca state government has sparked an unwelcomed political crisis in the state. 

The state assembly has been dissolved, but the crisis is still ongoing.

Conducting a state election may jeopardise our nation’s Covid-19 recovery efforts. On the other hand, there are rumours that the federal government may impose an emergency, similar to that in Sarawak, to defer the state election.

The four assemblypersons who withdrew their support from the government did so because of the internal conflict within the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government. 

Two of them were formerly from Pakatan Harapan and have betrayed us during the Sheraton Move in 2020, causing the collapse of the Harapan government in Malacca.

I wish to state that I am against any form of party-hopping, whether directly or indirectly, by any elected representative for his or her own political interest. Party-hopping must never be condoned or accepted in any way.

The past two years have clearly shown that unethical political manoeuvring and party-hopping would only cause further political instability and problems to our country. 

We should have learned the lesson from “Langkah Sheraton” and “Langkah Sabah”. Now, we can add this so-called “Langkah Melaka” to the list.

Party hopping creates distrust

There have been several discussions at various levels on this so-called “Langkah Melaka” in the past week. 

In the discussions that I was part of, I have stated to my colleagues and party leaders that we should not be associated with the four assemblypersons, or worse still, support one of them to be the chief minister.

Party hopping creates long-lasting distrust among the people towards our political system. It is sending a wrong message to the millions of young voters who would be voting for the first time in the next election. 

I believe many Malaysians are sick and tired of political games.

We should instead be engaging in constructive politics to strengthen our position and rebuild the people’s trust in our political system.

This also points to the urgent need for anti-party hopping legislation in our country. Otherwise, having an election now may just result in further party-hopping. 

The anti-party hopping act must be passed in the next parliamentary sitting as agreed in the MOU on Transformation and Political Stability.

To the people of Malacca – I hope we will not give up on our state and country. 

Politics is no easy task, but it is necessary to continue standing up, voicing out, and fighting for change.

KHOO POAY TIONG is Kota Melaka MP.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.