I am not one to go into political opinions as I have always stayed clear of politics. Consider this my contribution in how we can improve our current political system, without breaking it or siding with any political parties. At the end of the day, I am just a Malaysian millennial disillusioned with what is happening to the country that I was born in, and how I think we can push our country forward in spite of it.
There are basically 3 reasons why I am writing about the political situation in Malaysia this year.
- The jumping of politicians that happened right at the beginning of Covid-19.
- The jump in Covid-19 infections due to the decision to hold Sabah state elections.
- The adverse effects of not developing our voting system to one that can hold mail or electronic voting.
These reasons will be the core points with which I would like to build on and suggest how we can improve our political process. I am not a political scientist, so maybe the suggestions I have thought about might not be practical and realistic but I will still try.
Politicians who switch parties and allegiances, should be forced to forgo their seat for a snap by-election
I am very sure how distasteful it was for every Malaysians to see MPs jumping to form the government early in the year. The jumping of politicians from one party to another party is so common that our political system is consistently laughed at.
The Perak fiasco in 2009 was a laughing stock that a lot of Malaysians called it the Katak festival and the situation now in 2020 is no different. Our political system is so vulnerable to these kind of defections that it is mind boggling that we don’t have check and balances to this.
This matter should be seriously looked into and addressed. I am not an expert but one way to address this is to stipulate that for any politicians regardless of party affiliations, should be forced to forgo their seat. A snap by-election should be held to determine who should hold the seat. After all, most of us vote for the parties that we want.
Having this stipulation ensures that whoever wants to switch parties would have to go through the trouble of reestablishing his or her legitimacy in the eyes of the Malaysians that voted. If they are able to hold on their seat at the snap by-election, then so be it. Malaysians should not be ransomed by their politicians in this regard.
Push for postal voting for all Malaysians, and develop digital voting infrastructures
Let’s accept it, the Sabah state elections have happened and is now the big contributor to the rise in Covid-19 cases. Strict movement control orders are now in place in several states in Malaysia. While the higher income group can withstand this, the middle and lower income groups are losing jobs and income and we are struggling to make ends meet. Some are dying because of it. I am not going to point fingers but this obviously, could have been avoided.
Let’s all chip in and provide suggestions on how we can improve the voting process. First, during times of emergencies and pandemic, let’s push for postal voting for all Malaysians. There have been postal voting in Malaysia but they were mainly reserved for Malaysians out of the country. While this might be a strain on the postal system in Malaysia, the alternative of physically voting is inherently more dangerous for Malaysians during pandemics.
Secondly, it is high time that we consider electronic or digital voting. This idea came from the census that all Malaysians had to fill in from Department of Statistics Malaysia recently. We could fill in the data for the census through the online platform provided by DOSM. If we can help extend this to voting, that will eliminate the need to be physically present at the voting center to vote.
I do realise that digital or online voting is only feasible for states that have high internet connection penetration. For people who don’t have internet connection, we can enlist the help of our telecommunications company. We have seen how the Maxises, Digis, and Celcoms have provided almost everyone with a phone number with 1GB of free data during the pandemic, so it is possible to implement a similar policy for everyone with a phone during the voting season. For us, if we have that extra GB of free data, we can extend them to the people that need them during the voting season.
Conclusion
I am not an expert in how we can improve our political system, but from a Malaysian to another Malaysian, we do want what’s best for our country. We all have different ideologies and party affiliations but at the end of the day, nothing can be achieved if we keep supporting a political system that has proven to serve politicians more than it serves ordinary people like us. I have said what I wanted to say, and my political opinion quota is up for a long time.
