Is a Parliament loaded with BN MPs bad for Malaysia?

The New Straits Times, Kuala Lumpur
28 December 2005


Is a Parliament loaded with BN MPs bad for Malaysia?
'Free to express views'

KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. 27 Dec 05

Is a Parliament loaded with Barisan Nasional MPs bad for Malaysia?
Does it
encourage a meekness and a yes-man culture? Prime Minister Datuk Seri
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi does not think so.

He believes that Malaysians live in a more open country, where
criticism is
not frowned upon and where different views are accepted for what they
are -
different views.

"Malaysians today are free to express their views and opinions,"
Abdullah
said in a recent interview with visiting foreign journalists.

"We have a very strong majority of 90 per cent plus. I have allowed my
backbenchers in Parliament to ask very tough questions.

"I have told them that your role is to be constructive in your
criticism."

An excerpt of the interview was was published in the Jakarta Post
yesterday.

Earlier this month, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad
noted that
a country should have a strong government, but he said a 90 per cent
majority in Parliament was too strong.

"We need an Opposition to remind us if we are making mistakes," he said.

During the interview, Abdullah was asked how he distinguished himself
from
Dr Mahathir.

"My emphasis has been on the development of human capital," he said.
"You
can give soldiers the best weapons but if they do not know how to shoot,
what's the use?

"Some people accuse me of taking Malaysia back several years by
turning to
agriculture.

"But now, with biotechnology, the possibility of making agriculture a
full
growth sector is there," he said.

Abdullah noted that the country was moving forward to becoming fully
developed by 2020.

"We are carrying Dr Mahathir's vision forward. This is a Government
that is
a continuation of the previous one (but) the styles of Dr Mahathir
and mine
are different.

"We are two different people. We ahve different ways of doing things,
differing perceptions of what needs to ne done and how things should be
done."

In the interview, Abdullah was also asked:

Whether the New Economic Policy was discriminatory:

"It's a policy of expanding the cake and distributing it equitably.

"If you're giving somebody more than what they had before, and you
have to
take that portion from somebody else's share, then you are robbing
Peter to
pay Paul.

"The approach is to level up those who are down without forcing the
others
to come down... It is just a matter of time before this policy will
not be
important anymore."

Whether Malaysia was trying to become the most Muslim nation in the
world:

"It is our duty to be good Muslims. We work hard. When we do the right
thing, people will look at us, give us some recognition. We have to make
sure that we continue on this path.

"We are happy if people say that Malaysia is emerging as a model of a
very
successful Muslim country with a Government that pursues a policy of
national policy."

On his leadership philosophy:

"The substance of decisions that leaders make must be fair to all.
Justice
and fairness must be strong reasons for why you want to do certain
things."

Ends