THERE was a time when honour meant everything. A firm handshake between two persons was enough to seal a deal that would be upheld.

It’s known as the gentlemen’s agreement, and while it was informal and legally non-binding, the details were expected to be implemented.

There’s even a proverb that tells of honour among thieves, about how they won’t steal from each other because there is supposed to be some code of honour.

Well, that’s all gone now, and even contemporary movie makers will tell you that honour no longer exists. Even friendship and loyalty can lead to treachery of the unkindest. Where politicians, their henchmen and operatives are concerned, don’t expect honour of any kind.

It’s common knowledge that taking oath to tell the truth and nothing but the truth, with the hand on holy books in places of worship, means little these days when people don’t fear retribution in the afterlife.

The culprits are more concerned about saving their own skin, and other vital parts of their bodies, in the present life. Anything to escape punishment!

Perhaps, one day, they will feel remorseful and ask for their sins to be forgiven when they finally find God.

Last week, Malaysians found out that statutory declarations were back in business. It was a hot debate about a decade ago, but it has come back to taunt us.

Like old political tricks and plots, the SD script has been recycled in Malaysia.

In 2008, a private investigator, P Balasundram, appeared in public having signed an SD alleging, amongst other things, that Abdul Razak Baginda told him Datuk Seri Najib Razak had introduced Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu to him in Singapore.

That was SD number One, signed on July 1, 2008, and of course, we were expected to believe that it had to be the truth, or bear some semblance of it.

But three days later, on July 4, 2008, Balasundram retracted those parts from the first SD, and submitted a second one, saying the first was signed under duress.

He then disappeared, purportedly leaving the country, but he reappeared in November 2009, and claimed it was the second SD that was false and that the contents in the first were true.

Balasundram, a former Special Branch officer, suffered a fatal heart attack in 2013. He had sworn he would make sure the Pakatan Rakyat would come to power.

Although a third SD was supposed to surface upon his return home, there was none.

It’s debatable which of his SDs were true, or if at least one was true, or both even, but ultimately, they were conflicting.

It’s hard to tell if those who have made SDs are aware that according to the Statutory Declarations Act 1960, making a false statement contravenes the Penal Code’s section 199, but we know how the allegations were later dismissed as a pack of lies.

Now, the Altantuya case has come back to haunt us, so SD is now back in fashion.

Five years after the Federal Court upheld his conviction and death sentence in 2015, former police special action force personnel Azilah Hadri has made an appearance via SD.

In his SD, Azilah claimed that Najib and Abdul Razak ordered the killing, claiming that Altantuya was a foreign spy and threat to national security. The former Prime Minister brands the story a lie.

Before that, there was another controversial SD. Former researcher Muhammad Yusoff made a statutory declaration, accusing PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim of sexual misconduct on Oct 2 last year, claiming the abuse took place while he was still working for the party about a year ago.

It isn’t clear why he only decided to make these allegations a year later, and more so, so near the PKR party congress.

But he has taken a polygraph test to determine the veracity of his claims against Anwar. His lawyer said the polygraph test was one of the things he wanted to do to prove his claims. Anwar has denied the allegation and has given his statement to the police.

While SDs can be made and retracted, putting its value on the line, a polygraph test is another story all together.

According to a report, studies have shown that a well-trained examiner of a polygraph test can detect lying with relative accuracy, but a polygraph is not perfect, and an examiner’s interpretation is subjective, and the results are idiosyncratic to the person being tested.

Writing in the New Straits Times, Datuk Seri Akhbar Sattar said it was impossible to cheat in polygraph tests conducted by certified examiners, but said that “even so, the instrument is not truly a lie detector. It produces only graphs. The polygraph examiners are the lie detectors and they determine whether the person is deceptive or truthful.”

The American Polygraph Association has conducted over 250 studies which showed the accuracy of the polygraph at 98% when examined by certified examiners, and added that the polygraph is widely used in more than 80 countries, as it is regarded the best choice, rated highest in terms of widespread use by government as well as the private sector to detect lies, especially in security situations.

“In Singapore, the police, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau, Ministry of Manpower, Prisons Department, Customs, Central Narcotics Bureau, Security and Intelligence agencies and the military use it for personnel screening and investigations.

“The prosecutor’s office also uses it to decide whether or not to file charges. Agencies like the CIA, FBI, National Security Agency, US Secret Service and the US Department of Defence and most US police departments use polygraph tests in investigations or to determine links with terrorist activities.”

But the director general of the National Centre for Governance, Integrity and Anti-Corruption, Tan Sri Abu Kassim Mohamed, stressed that while the polygraph test can be used as evidence in a court case when administered by qualified examiners, it’s up to the judiciary to accept it.

President of the Shariah Lawyers Association, Musa Awang, said based on existing law, the polygraph test may be used as evidence in court, but ultimately, it’s the judge’s decision to allow it.

“Currently, there is no precedent on the admissibility of polygraph evidence in Malaysia and Singapore,” wrote Akhar, who holds the professorial chair at Institute of Crime and Criminology, HELP University.

But the law has a clear warning for those who’ve made false SDs – a jail sentence awaits.

It stipulates that “whoever intentionally gives false evidence in any stage of a judicial proceeding, or fabricates false evidence for the purpose of being used in any stage of a judicial proceeding, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine; and whoever intentionally gives or fabricates evidence in any other case, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term, which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine.”

It’s clearly stated, so it won’t even take a lawyer to decipher the warning. It’s time those who flout the law and abuse the legal system for a political fix, including making false SDs or committing perjury, be made to face the consequences of their actions.

We need our leaders to set the tone and directions right, as no one should experiment our children’s future as the whims and fancies of our ministers.

Education has kicked into high gear in most parts of the world, yet in Malaysia, we’re still aimlessly cruising the neighbourhood.

A FEW years ago, I visited a school in Guangzhou where I was privy to the scenes of a robotics lab where students were busy trying their hand at operating some of the models. In the class next door, the teacher was guiding teenage students on 3D printing processes, which is used to create three-dimensional objects from a computer-aided design model.

The school administrator also impressed upon me that they were using the STEAM education approach to learn the uses of Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics as access points for guiding student inquiry, dialogue and critical thinking. By no stretch of the imagination was the modern education facility a representation of schools in China, because it’s an elite school in an urban setting. However, I was told the Chinese government is very focused on what they want, and this is the way things are taking shape.

It’s refreshing to see that’s the kind of education reforms China has been working on. They spend little time on irrelevant education issues like Malaysia is famous, or infamous for.

So, it comes as no surprise that a global education study has revealed that Chinese students in most of the country’s cities have outstripped their counterparts in nearly all parts of the world, as far as important skills in the information age is concerned.

According to the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ranking in 2018, some 22% of the 15-year-olds surveyed in Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, showed they could handle abstract concepts and discern facts from opinions in what they read by achieving a reading level of at least 5 out of 6. Only Singapore fared better, with 26% of the city state’s students reaching the mark, while the overall average was 8.7%, according to test results released recently.

Pisa says this skill is becoming increasingly important as technology allows easy access to information. Reading, on the other hand, has become more about building knowledge, thinking critically and making well-founded judgments, rather than extracting information.

By now, most of us have read about Malaysia having moved up into the middle-third of the international assessment for participating countries, having advanced from being in the bottom-third in previous cycles.

Thank goodness we have improved, and it’s commendable that we are vying to improve our ranking by the next two cycles.

Education director-general Datuk Dr Amin Senin said Malaysia is headed in the right direction of education system reform.

According to him, its performance in the 2018 PISA was deserving of a significant improvement in ranking for all three domains – Science, Mathematics and Reading literacies.

Based on results released by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), he said Malaysia scored 440 in Mathematics, 415 in Reading and 438 in Scientific literacy in PISA 2018.

This charts a course of improvement for Malaysia from PISA 2012 and 2015, when our country achieved below the global average score.

“Overall, Malaysia’s achievement showed significant increase in all three domains.

Some of us have found pride in that, but when looking at how Malaysia has ranked in the overall list, it shows that we’re barely at the races, and that we have an uphill battle ahead, even as we do all we can to catch up. Honestly though, it’s simply not good enough.

The Malaysian media conveniently omitted the entire ranking table of the participating countries, which would have given us a proper perspective of where we stand in the world.

We were quite content to report these findings for having walked the talk. It’s not wrong, of course, and we should encourage our educators as they connect the dots of our education system, while doing their absolute best under such testing circumstances.

But in Australia, the media was outraged that it’s falling behind other countries, lambasting themselves for their ranking and even branding themselves dumb. It was the hottest news, and that’s understandable because Australia prides itself as a global education hub attracting students from around the world.

In Malaysia, it isn’t Maths and Science that we’re struggling with, but English proficiency at global level.

Last week, it was reported that Malaysia has fallen four places in this year’s annual Education First (EF) English Proficiency Index, which measures the development of English proficiency in the world.

It was revealed that while it’s third in Asia, behind Singapore (66.82) and the Philippines (60.14), Malaysia’s score of 58.55 has seen it slide from the 22nd position to 26th in the latest edition of the rankings produced by international education firm EF Education First.

While it didn’t elaborate, the report stated that in Malaysia, men outscored women in English proficiency by a significant margin.

The index, currently in its ninth year, was created after analysing the EF Standard English Test scores of 2.3 million adults from 100 countries and regions.

The future is in robotics, artificial intelligence and machine learning, all of which are inextricable from various occupations.

In Singapore, driverless vehicles are seeing trial runs in campuses. Malaysians, though, have been left to wonder when such scenes will appear in our many local universities, since some have been pathetically engrossed in allowing racists to rant insensitive communal remarks with no real economic programme produced in academic form.

Is our education system, be it in schools or universities, preparing our students for the next stage, where job demands have changed, or, are the same teaching modules and lecture notes being recycled?

Is it surprising when we read about our graduates being jobless, and we know that many of them lack the soft skills required in the private sector – proficiency in English, and now Mandarin, talent in leadership, creativity, innovation and communications, and even ethics?

Those of us who studied for the Malaysian Certificate of Education (MCE) and Higher School Certificate (HSC) are aware that standards then were high, and a distinction was equivalent to the O and A levels, which are still intact in the UK.

Today, we have compromised, and some would even say, tampered with our grading system to the point that the string of distinctions obtained by our students at SPM and STPM levels are unceremoniously ignored by international institutions. An “A” in English is probably a “D” by UK standards.

And so, we have a false sense of achievement, and worse, unrealistic expectations, whether as students or parents, for believing we’ve done well and deserve rewards in return, when, in truth, we haven’t done enough at all.

Sarawak announced that it will now use English for Maths and Science, but does it help when state Education, Science and Technological Research Minister, Datuk Sri Michael Manyin reportedly said that students should not bother about English grammar.

Of course, it matters. It’s the basics in learning English. We can’t accept compromises with such comments like “don’t bother about English grammar. Don’t bother about the Queen’s English, just use Sarawak English.” So, let’s nip this in the bud from the start.

We need our leaders to set the tone and direction right, as no one should experiment with our children’s future based on the whims and fancies of our ministers. When we should be emphasising the importance of science, maths, AI and robotics, why are we, instead, telling students in schools to wear black shoes, or learn martial arts, regardless if it’s silat or kung fu?

Sure, more peculiar things may have happened in this country, but this ranks up there in the strange stakes.

Youth power: The next election will feature voters even younger than these young adults casting their ballots in a previous general election. — Filepic

THREE years from now could seem a lifetime in this fast-paced world we live in, but 2022 isn’t that far off, especially with our Parliament members passing the Bill for Malaysians aged 18 and above to vote in the next general election.

A 15-year-old kid today will reach that age by then, and that young adult will have the power to dramatically influence political changes. They can also run for MP or state assembly positions by 2023. But most importantly, is the current democratic landscape prepared for such a paradigm shift?

The key concern is, how many of our existing political parties are ready to deal with the aspirations and wishes of these eight million new voters, who are expected to be automatically registered in the electoral rolls over the next five years?

The line-up of our present leadership is chockful of Baby Boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964. Gen Xers come next, and then the Millennials (Gen Y). Gene-ration Z is the newest to be distinguished and applies to those born from 1997 onwards.

Besides these super millennial voters, there are also the 3.9 million 21-year-olds who haven’t yet registered to exercise their democratic rights.

The government expects this change to increase the total number of voters to 22.7 million by 2023, compared to the 14.9 million in GE14, reads a Bernama report.

So, political parties which want to capture the hearts and minds of our young voters must design programmes that matter to them. And they’re best served using non-formal political structures to reach out to them, too.

The bulk of our current politicians, who range from being in their 50s to 90s, are not tuned in to the frequency of the young, resulting in a lack of empathy between the two generations.

Some of these know-it-alls just don’t know how to release the reins of power and retire rest assured of the younger generation’s abilities.

As much as our founding fathers must be recognised and treasured, rolling out the history of our Merdeka era leaders won’t help win votes – that’s fact. They are ideal for National Day fanfare but matter little in an election campaign.

Young voters, or any voter, for that matter, would want to know what their candidates can do for them, and not what party leader contributions to the cause constitute, even if track records matter.

The truth is, Malaysia desperately needs to see the faces of more young leaders at all levels. But for whatever reason, we seem to give the impression we are short of young heroes.

We still, understandably, talk about the late P. Ramlee, Mokhtar Dahari and Sudirman Arshad, but our global names are confined to Jimmy Choo, Michelle Yeoh, Nicole David and Lee Chong Wei.

Where are our Malaysian icons, and why are they not on international platforms proudly representing our country?

Hopefully, we will see young political leaders aged between 18 and 25 soon, if not by the next general election.

If our political parties twiddled thumbs in their pursuit for new talent, we’re likely to continue seeing the same old faces, literally, and that’s not going to entice this large group of young voters.

Previously, Malaysia’s youngest MPs were former PM Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Batu MP P. Prabakaran, who were elected at 22 years old.

The youngest MP currently is Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman, who joined the Cabinet at 25.

The Bill to allow 18-year-olds to vote would mean putting pressure on the government and MPs to address issues such as education, job opportunities, housing and public transportation.

Climate change and the environment are important concerns for the young, too.

Singapore unequivocally backs its younger generation’s concern on climate change, a problem with major implications for billions of people if not slowed down.

“We are on their side, because this is something that is going to happen in their lives and is going to affect them.

“It is very much something in young people’s minds – this demonstration of young people around the world,” said Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

It’s good we have an Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry, but not great that it isn’t part of regular dialogue among the seniors. This is where our politicians have second-guessed our young ones in them having become more mature, politically aware and well-informed.

If our politicians spent more time listening instead of talking and plotting, they would learn more.

The Hong Kong protest is a textbook lesson. The country’s leaders refused to communicate with the young, who consequently demonstrated the intensity of their power.

We can choose to support or condemn them, but no one can argue that they have shown that they are a force to be reckoned with, and their votes certainly count.

This wakeup call to be more appealing isn’t limited to politicians, and should involve the media, too. None of the current media can cover themselves in glory for having been the voice of these new voters.

Media with youth platforms would be able to reach out to their peers more effectively, though.

In an age where the young (and even old) share content they believe in on multiple platforms, political and media stakeholders clearly have their work cut out.

Ultimately, they had better be ready to face the country’s most unprecedented general election ever.

MOST of our Members of Parliament wax eloquent about transparency and accountability, and their speeches are always filled with never-ending promises, likely as a display of devotion to their constituents.

And yet, none of us have been able to get full disclosure on the many absent MPs.

So much for transparency and accountability then.

Why can’t Parliament management reveal the attendance of MPs to us, instead of protecting them as if they were top secret officials who could undermine the nation’s security?

Ironically, we are also expected to swallow the bureaucracy of constituents from the 222 areas having to report their attendance to Parliament.

Deputy Speaker Datuk Rashid Hasnon was quoted saying that constituents could write to the Parliament management to have an MP’s attendance checked.

He also said it’s not appropriate for Parliament to publicly reveal the attendance of MPs.

“We can get their names, but it isn’t proper for us to spread their names. Whoever wants to know (about MPs attendance), they can meet the Parliament management,” he said.

It appears that the Parliament management is just avoiding embarrassing these lawmakers and making it much harder than need be for the media to snag that list.

As taxpayers footing MPs’ allowances, we surely have the right to know their attendance record, and the Parliament management’s salaries.

We must be privy to the identities of these recalcitrants, who are either too busy with their own businesses or simply indifferent to the affairs of the Dewan Rakyat to attend proceedings.

Honestly, they just find sittings unimportant and unnecessary for themselves.

Such indifference wasn’t the case during the election campaign, though, when they passionately rallied their audience, convincing them they would be the voice of the people.

Well, many haven’t showed up since, and that clutch who projected themselves as daring, and vocal politicians, have turned timid lately as they look up to their political masters while enjoying the power and perks of being in government.

It’s unbelievable that Mohamed Hanipa Maidin said it was a tall order for MPs to remain in the Dewan for long hours because of the temperature.

“It’s not easy for us to stay for a long time. It’s very cold sometimes,” said the Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, who added that such occurrences were normal.

“I think everywhere in the world, you cannot expect MPs to stay in there all the time,” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby on Wednesday.

“That’s why we have a bell for the Speaker to ring. For me, it’s a small matter,” he said, adding that he isn’t worried about the poor attendance of Pakatan Harapan MPs in Parliament.

Well, YB, I don’t think Malaysians will find that reason acceptable at all! Come up with a better excuse, please!

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has pledged that MPs who failed to attend enough Dewan Rakyat sittings would get a dressing-down.

The Prime Minister said Parliament attendance would figure in his decision-making for dropping MPs when he reshuffles his Cabinet.

“We will have to have a talk with the parliamentarians, as they were very anxious to be candidates.

“But after being elected, they are behaving as if they are not serious about serving the people,” Dr Mahathir lamented.

But there’s little room for him to affect a change. Politicians have thick hides and can even smile when being reprimanded, and that’s just about all Dr Mahathir can do.

After all, the absentees also include the front benches comprising ministers and deputies. What can the PM do to them? Precious little.

Recently, only 24 of 222 MPs were present; a quorum requires a minimum of 26 MPs. The Dewan Rakyat sitting was delayed by the Speaker under Dewan Rakyat Meeting Standing Order Number 13 (1). The same thing happened in October, too.

In fact, in July, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Mohamad Arrif Md Yusof had to order the House to stand down when Datuk Alexander Nanta Linggi (PBB-Kapit) noted that the number of MPs present was insufficient.

“There are no ministers or deputy ministers in the House, so can we proceed as there is a lack of quorum?” Alexander asked when the House resumed at 2.30pm following lunch break.

MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong weighed in, saying it was the government’s duty to ensure they have enough MPs present to endorse the Budget.

“Out of 127 government lawmakers, why can’t you get 40 to 60 MPs at any one time in the House if you don’t want the Opposition to ambush you?” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby on Wednesday.

He said it was the duty of Opposition MPs to keep the government on its toes.

“It is our duty to teach them a lesson, and I hope they have learned it,” he added.

Dr Wee, who is Ayer Hitam MP, also condemned the reasons bandied to justify Pakatan MPs’ absence during voting on the budget.

“There is no excuse for them to say they are new and have no experience, or they are fatigued. To me, this is rubbish and nonsense.

“Don’t find excuses for your weaknesses,” he asserted.

It’s not difficult for most MPs and reporters to pinpoint serial absentees, but unfortunately, they don’t have the stats to corroborate visual findings.

The only effective way to curb this malaise is for Dewan Rakyat to provide the attendance list of MPs, as appropriately suggested by Subang MP Wong Chen.

He also pointed out that a typical daily attendance rate is an abysmal 20% to 30%, while the minimum requirement for proceedings to progress is 26 MPs, or 12% of the entire Dewan Rakyat.

“Bottomline is, Parliament should publish a list of daily attendance. There is no greater cure to tak apa and sluggishness, than some transparency. Then let the absent MPs explain why they couldn’t be there. Sick leave and those overseas on official business/conferences can be excused,” he was quoted.

And if any of us truly believes that attendance is likely to improve soon, then we will believe in everything these MPs have promised us, too.

We can only hope our MPs don’t earn a rep for Mari Ponteng because of their notorious record for truancy.

Time to deliver: The public is counting on and holding accountable all promises made by the Pakatan government.

OUR politicians don’t seem to get it. Malaysians are exhausted from their endless politicking at the expense of homing in on pressing issues affecting the people.

The message of the people from the Tanjung Piai by-election is clear, but it looks like that reality hasn’t set in as it should have.

Politicians succumb to amnesia easily and develop dementia much earlier than the rest of us, which probably explains why promises pledged in their manifesto can even quickly be forgotten.

A clutch of politicians from previous elections have even placed an expiry date on their manifesto – the voting deadline of 5pm on polling day.

But things have changed. For the first time in the country’s electoral history, promises made and broken are being discussed, even 18 months after the general election.

The public is counting on and holding accountable all promises made by the Pakatan Harapan government.

Sure, three years are needed for these promises to be realised but breaking them is another thing altogether.

Reneging on promises is worse than not fulfilling them, and that has become a significant source of resentment for the people.

So, imagine the disgust of Malaysians when reading about a plot – real or imagined – executed in the dead of the night to meddle in the country’s leadership transition.

It’s unprecedented in the nation’s politics for party allegiance to be cloak and dagger affairs, and solidarity to have little meaning. But that’s indicative of the kind of politicians in our midst these days.

Before this, we knew exactly who we were dealing with – they were either with the Government or the Opposition. There were no perforated lines and the distinction was clear.

Now, we have the Opposition – namely PAS and some Umno leaders – that has pleaded with the Prime Minister to remain in his post until he turns 98. Yes, two years shy of a centurion, that’s how old Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad will be by the next general election.

So now, we have the Opposition rooting for the head of the government to keep his post instead of wresting it from him, which is the primary ambition of normal opposition parties.

The mind-boggling situation has come under sharper focus with former Umno vice-president Datuk Hishamuddin Hussein and PKR deputy president Datuk Azmin Ali singled out for plotting to ensure status quo.

Now, it’s apparent Azmin isn’t rooting for his party boss but Dr Mahathir instead, the leader of another party, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, a component party of PH.

Within Umno and its 37 seats, consensus have split nearly down the middle as to whether Dr Mahathir should continue, or the reins be handed to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim instead.

This is likely what’s happening – Umno probably doesn’t have a candidate in mind from its ranks to sit in the hot PM seat and form the next government. Isn’t that what an opposition party is supposed to do, offer the alternative?

So, the best they can hope for is to have someone who is prepared to, at the very least, be sympathetic to them.

It’s complicated, and unfortunately, there are no hand guides. So, are you following so far? Welcome to Malaysia’s paradoxical politics.

Bersatu, which won only 13 parliamentary seats in last year’s polls, had the privilege of heading the federal government and most state governments. PKR has 50 seats, DAP 42 and Amanah 11.

Bersatu, however, gained seats after a series of defections, going from 13 to 27. It lost one following the Tanjung Piai byelection, though.

Dr Mahathir, of course, was given the job because without him, PH would never have been able to knock Barisan Nasional out of government.

He was the super glue that bound everything together while Anwar was still languishing in prison. Anwar wasn’t a Member of Parliament, so he certainly couldn’t become the PM.

So, for peculiar reasons, Bersatu now has more Mentris Besar in states where the combined PKR-DAP seats number higher.

And DAP, which has the sizeable 42 parliamentary seats, has cleverly stayed clear of the issue, so far.

For all the bravado, no one in PH can hope of becoming the PM without the support of the DAP, because Cabinet revamps would be impossible without the approval of PH component parties.

Dr Mahathir’s hands are tied. He failed to implement his Cabinet changes and even when he attempts the next one, he will find that juggling party and geographical factors won’t make the job any easier.

When Dr Mahathir was the PM first time around, he was the most powerful man in Umno and Barisan. He had full control and could choose who should succeed him.

The scenario is far different now. Most members of the press, and even veteran politicians, seem to overlook the new political determinants.

Besides being the smallest component party, there is also an agreement, signed by representatives of PH, that Anwar will succeed Dr Mahathir. His name is specifically mentioned.

But there is no timeline for how long Dr Mahathir stays. The two-year tenure was mentioned by the leaders but was eventually omitted in the agreement since many didn’t want Dr Mahathir to be a lame duck PM.

So, it will be the PH presidential council that will have to enforce the agreement because their leaders are signatories. The council also has the power to decide how long Dr Mahathir stays.

The agreement was inked by representatives of the four parties at midnight on July 14,2017, at the PKR headquarters in Petaling Jaya.

But the agreement may not be enough, and that’s why the move by Anwar’s nemeses include – even if these dramas are mere optics – tying his hands and cutting deals to ensure their political relevance.

If anyone thinks that politicians spend their time working for the people, then they must have been born yesterday, or live in a dream world.

Here’s what Anwar faces – the Federal Constitution stipulates that the PM must be a member of the Dewan Rakyat who, by the decree of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, commands a majority in Parliament.

PKR rebels have sent a message to Anwar that they can cause much mischief – with the help of PAS and some Umno MPs – if they command enough numbers to support a motion for Dr Mahathir to serve the full five-year term.

Obviously, it’s not because they love him dearly or want him to be in the pink of health, as the top position has a way of chipping away precious minutes and seconds of one’s life given the demands of the job.

Anwar is stuck, in a way. He can’t sack his defiant PKR leaders, and for these recalcitrants, starting a new party would hardly be an ideal solution. In fact, it could even tear apart the PH coalition now under heavy criticism from the people.

Anwar’s image and leadership have taken a beating by his inability to keep the party together.

His nemeses were once his fanatical supporters, but now, they have turned against him.

They were on the front lines of the Reformasi protests and movement of 20 years ago when they took the streets.

Surely there must be something very wrong somewhere for this change of heart?

So, everyday people are caught in what has is now known as the Great Unhappiness, where we grapple with the cost of putting food on the table, struggle to pay bills, and deal with the lack of job opportunities and a weakening ringgit.

Reforms and good governance may top the priority list of the PH, but this new culture doesn’t fill the people’s stomachs – only Perut Economy matters at the minute.

It doesn’t help that the public sees some ministers as either incompetent or arrogant. Perception is everything in politics, after all.

We haven’t seen any shared prosperity, but what we do know is that politicians are busy fighting among themselves for positions, party and government, all at our expense.

Even with all the signs pointing to unity being our greatest asset, some quarters continue to sow divisive politics as part of their delusions of grandeur.

STRANGE as it seems, the only schools with a multi-racial student enrolment and teachers are vernacular ones, specifically Chinese primary schools. For doubters, especially politicians, they only need to visit these grounds of education and see for themselves.

I have visited many schools across the nation in my time, particularly during the run-up to the National Day celebrations to drum up patriotism with a fervour, and in those many years, I’ve noticed a steady increase in non-Chinese students in Chinese primary schools.

Reports say the non-Chinese made up more than 50% of the new intake at SJKC Masai, Johor Baru, last year, making it perhaps the Chinese school with the highest ratio of non-Chinese pupils down south. According to a news report, the school accepted 233 new pupils, of whom 130 are non-Chinese. The school has a total of 1,559 pupils at last count, and 667 (or 43%) are non-Chinese.

SJKC Tionghua Kok Bin, a small school in Klang with an enrolment of only 379, has an amazing multi-racial make-up of 50% Chinese, 42% Malays, 6% Indians and others making up the balance.

Speaking from a neutral standpoint, being an advocate of re-introducing English as a medium of instruction into our schools, this can only bode well for unity, what with the benefits that come with it.

I am the product of a time when English was the main language in teaching. I also belong to the last batch which sat for the Malaysia Certificate of Education, or the equivalent of the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia.

Likewise, I took the Higher School Certificate examination as the entry examination for local university seats.

It was my years of education at St Xavier’s Institution in Penang that shaped my world view, which provided the right dosage of liberalism. But more importantly, it’s where I made firm friends of all races.

Not just Malays and Indians, but many Eurasians, too, a community more familiar to those living in Penang and Melaka.

These multi-racial schools were neutral grounds, where real friendship with various races were truly forged. And time has proven that they weren’t superficial relationships or mere professional ties, either.

There was also another factor – England was then a real economic powerhouse and China and Taiwan were second-class citizens. And just when education had seemed sacred ground, the degrees from their universities weren’t recognised and even seen as inferior.English was the language of the elite and Mandarin was confined to the working class and blue-collar workers.

But the situation has turned on its head now. Anyone who has visited Beijing, Shanghai and the top tier cities of China, will attest to how much the Asian powerhouse has overtaken the United States, Britain and many European cities.

If we are unfamiliar with China, know that the situation is worse in western countries, where they still have superior views of themselves.

It should be frightening to see how far we’ve lagged as the world around us has evolved. We should rue missed opportunities and be annoyed at how we’ve drawn ourselves out of the loop of progress.

Vietnam are on our coattails, even at Asean level, while Indonesia and Thailand are easily on par.

While our politicians are preoccupied with their aimless and unproductive politicking, other nations have raced ahead with their determination and focused goals in achieving economic advancements.

And maintaining commerce with China is a top priority, what with its huge market and growing population of wealthy people.

The ace up our sleeve is our people’s ability to speak Mandarin and other Chinese dialects. Excluding Singapore, no Asean country can match us in this realm.

Doing business in China involves plenty of relationship building, and it’s done through guanxi (pronounced gwon-she). It’s simply a Chinese term meaning “networks” or “connections”, which opens doors for new businesses and facilitates deals. A person with a lot of guanxi will be in a better position to generate business compared to someone lacking it.

To compensate for the inability to speak Mandarin, I have tried to capture their hearts with my ability to drink endless rounds of distilled Chinese liquor with them while staying sober.

Basically, knowing to read and write in Chinese – the language of the world’s biggest customer market of all business types – is a tremendous advantage.

Mandarin has economic value as a language. So too Bahasa Malaysia, Hindi and Tamil, especially to the Indonesian and Indian markets, what with their humongous markets. And Arabic is just as essential.

In many European countries, national language apart, students are expected to learn and pass English, French and German language exams. We know kids are completely capable, but the self-appointed champions of race and religion are the ones making it difficult for others to learn.

So, we must bear with a lawyer’s nonsensical attempt to portray the existence of vernacular schools as unconstitutional.

Rightly, the Chief Judge of Malaya dismissed Mohd Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz’s leave application, on the grounds that it was within the Parliament’s power to form such schools.

Mohd Khairul’s lawyer Datuk Shaharudin Ali said he was “surprised” by the court’s decision and said his next step might be to file a new motion on the issue at the High Court.

Well, we’re surprised that he was shocked, and in keeping with the current theme of humour going around, many Malaysians are surprised that he was surprised.

If he has chosen to pick on vernacular schools, then he should also challenge the existence of so many international schools that essentially use English as a medium of instruction.

It seems acceptable for those who can afford it to study at these schools which use English, while the rest of the country remains out of reach of such a luxury.

It’s counterproductive to spend time cooking up plots to derail, or even to eradicate vernacular schools, when these institutions have proven to be assets with how they’ve produced many of our finest leaders, businessmen and community leaders.

It’s part of wilful imagination, and it’s fictitious to claim that vernacular schools have threatened national unity.

At these vernacular schools, racial harmony is heavily promoted. However, that tenet can’t be attributed to politicians and groups who claim these schools are the source of unity problems.

A year-and-a-half into new governance, and the economy has shown little sign of improving. It’s time to up anchor from stagnation and brave the waves with conviction.

JUST over a year ago, the Pakatan Harapan coalition swept into power and dethroned Barisan Nasional, which had been the ruling party for over six decades.

The nation was in a state of euphoria as Malaysians welcomed a new era, with promises of fresh approaches to governance and ideals under a New Malaysia.

The victors guaranteed everything under the sun because they never imagined they would be in government, and that has been the open admission of Pakatan leaders.

The exuberance that once greeted Pakatan politicians at every mammoth ceramah during the General Election has unceremoniously faded. Their cause hasn’t been helped by some ministers fumbling and struggling after a year in office.

In some situations, these ministers have been simply incompetent. Had they been in the private sector, they would have got the boot after the probation period.

The Prime Minister’s attempt to revamp the Cabinet has failed to take off, forcing him to live with the hastily cobbled together line-up. However, if his officials have been honest with him, the murmurings of discontent must surely have reached his ears.

Yes, positive achievements have been recorded in the past year-plus – integrity and public accountability in our institutions have been restored, and once-untouchable corrupt figures have been apprehended by the long arm of the law and hauled to court.

But Malaysians are also tired of ministers blaming the past government for the country’s shortcomings. Sure, the claims are probably true, but they should just zip it and fix the holes. That’s why they were elected in the first place.

In fact, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s popularity has taken a beating, and one only needs to look at the comments on social media to gauge the disenchantment on the ground. A formal and more structured survey will likely reveal the same assessment, too.

While racial and religious sentiments have been employed to beguile the crucial and decisive Muslim-Malay electorate, there is also an equal amount of unhappiness among the non-Malays.

DAP leaders are used to being treated with near-idolatry status by Chinese voters, but of late, some party bigwigs have been heckled and booed at gatherings.

From being champions of the Chinese community, they have now found themselves branded apologists of Dr Mahathir. It’s as if the DAP and MCA have traded places, as the latter was severely criticised in the past while under the Barisan government.

While the recovery of the nation’s money from the 1MDB looters has given Pakatan brownie points, it’s obviously not enough to sustain the desired level of support.

Any political science student will know that in any uprising and toppling of a strong government, there is always a level of growing expectations. And often, the sentiments are even unrealistic, but that’s the price populist politicians must pay when elected.

Unfulfilled expectations have caused the Pakatan government to lose its ratings with the electorate. In the digital age, where politicians’ promises are recorded in the public domain, Pakatan leaders have now found themselves unable to meet these expectations. Even if the reason is real, such as empty coffers, it’s difficult to explain to the electorate.

We can’t say we are short of money and yet spend anything from RM800mil to RM1.67bil to provide meals to all primary school children, especially when it should be channelled to only needy students, particularly those from rural areas.

And why are we planning to build an airport in Kulim costing RM1.6bil when the Penang International Airport is just 26km away?

The failure to get recognition for the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) – the school leaving certificate of the Malaysian Independent Chinese secondary schools – as stated in Pakatan’s GE14 Manifesto remains a sore point among Chinese voters who view education and economy as two primary concerns.

It was also a bitter pill to swallow when Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, for two Budgets in a row (2019 and 2020), denied Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TAR UC) its annual matching grants of RM30mil, totalling RM60mil.

The decision has drawn continued flak from the Chinese community, simply because the grants are meant to keep the tuition fees affordable for low and middle-income groups.

In a video that has gone viral, Lim is depicted declaring to the audience at a ceramah during the GE, that each of TAR UC’s 28,000 students would get RM1,000 if Pakatan formed the government.

The promise wasn’t fulfilled, and rubbing salt into the wound, there’s now no matching grant either. The justification given was that the government would direct the funds to the private higher education institution if the MCA was willing to relinquish its ownership of it.

Lim said this was in line with the government’s stand that public funds shouldn’t be channelled to politically-owned organisations.

But the explanation hasn’t convinced most Chinese because TAR UC has never been an MCA-indoctrinated institution, and any TAR UC graduate can attest to that.

MCA has had to finance these institutions with the support of the Barisan government, tycoons and ordinary people.

While the DAP and MCA are enemies, the general feeling is that when it comes to matters of education which benefit the Chinese, its community is left disappointed because the students and families have become victims of a political rivalry at a time when Malay unity is being openly promoted.

It’s a known fact that several DAP leaders are alumni of TAR UC, and all its campuses are in constituencies which have come under the control of Pakatan since the last General Election.

In Kampar, Perak, where Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) is located, the constituency is now under the DAP despite the large number of student and lecturer voters.

The UEC is perhaps a much more complicated matter. While the Chinese community wants instant recognition, the examination has unfortunately turned into a highly racialised and politicised issue, and its subtext now is about the fear of losing Malay support.

UEC task force chairman Eddin Khoo said the final report on the recognition of the examination certificate is currently undergoing an internal discussion.

But the UEC issue has been dragging on for decades and wasn’t recognised even during Dr Mahathir’s first tenure as PM.

Obviously, Pakatan won most of the Chinese votes during GE14 mainly because, among other promises, its manifesto and leaders pledged to recognise the UEC.

So we have an odd situation where the UEC is recognised by the top universities in the world including the California Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Oxford University, University of Cambridge, University of Toronto, University of Tokyo, National University of Singapore, University of Hong Kong, University of Melbourne, Peking University and Kyoto University, but not here.

Based on The Times Higher Education World University Rankings Top 200 of 2014, more than 70 of these world-class universities have accepted the enrolment of UEC graduates to pursue tertiary education.

And yet, we see these mulling and delaying tactics being applied despite the bravado pledges of recognising the UEC.

The education débâcle apart, the continuing weak economy, the declining value of the ringgit, the increasing cost of living, the lack of economic programmes and taxation of all forms, have all become a source of discontent for the Chinese at all levels.

It’s still too early to predict the outcome of the Tanjung Piai by-election, and difficult to suss out if the huge crowd at a recent multiracial Barisan ceramah is any indication that voters want to send a strong message to the Pakatan government that they are dissatisfied.

But the grievances of daily issues, particularly the cost of putting food on the table and job opportunities, have become loud grumblings at the expense of largely positive actions by the government.

Big pressure: Malaysia’s palm oil sector faces a new threat after Indian traders were asked to halt purchases amid a row over Kashmir. – AFP

It seems counterproductive to be irking a major contributor of our economy when the price of one of our main commodities is on the wane.

BOYCOTTING our palm oil may not be the Indian government’s official stand, not even two weeks after the controversy surfaced, but the lobbying by some Indian groups – including the media – to punish Malaysia is still unsettling, especially when the price of the commodity is at its lowest.

At stake is the huge Indian market worth RM6.9 billion, so the call for prejudice isn’t something to be overlooked since the country is the world’s largest vegetable oil importer, with Indonesia and Malaysia its palm oil suppliers.

The palm oil downstream products that India needs include ghee, soap, vegetable oil, biofuel, pharmaceuticals and cosmetic products.

Recently, an Indian trade body representing oilseed crushers, advised its members not to buy palm oil from Malaysia, taking a cue from New Delhi’s protest of Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s remarks on the Kashmir conflict.

“The recent developments pertaining to strained relations between our nation and Malaysia has put a lot of responsibility on our industry in view of huge imports of palm oil from that country,” said Atul Chaturvedi, president of the Mumbai-based Solvent Extractors’ Association (SEA) of India.

“In your own interest as well as a mark of solidarity with our nation, we should avoid purchases from Malaysia for the time being. We trust you would heed our advice, ” he said in a statement.

Chaturvedi said the Indian government “has not taken kindly” to Malaysia’s position on Kashmir at the UN General Assembly.

“It would be in fitness of things, as responsible Indian vegetable oil industry, we avoid purchasing of palm oil from Malaysia till such time clarity on the way forward emerges from the Indian government, ” he added.

The furore started when Dr Mahathir said in his speech at the 74th session of the General Assembly, “despite UN resolution on Jammu and Kashmir, the country has been invaded and occupied, ” and called on India to “work with Pakistan to resolve this problem”.

In its bid to thwart protests in the region, the Indian government, on Aug 5, revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s legally autonomous status and imposed many unprecedented security measures, including cutting off the Internet and phone services.

The PM’s opinion hit a raw nerve there and led to India’s Ministry of External Affairs rebuking Dr Mahathir’s references to Kashmir on Oct 4.

Added fuel to the fire, the media, particularly Magna Indica-anchored News Z, has been broadcasting a clip nearly every five minutes why India must support Hindus in Malaysia up in arms against Dr Mahathir.

Basically, Malaysia is being accused of taking sides and backing Pakistan – India’s long-time nemesis. It’s hard to ignore controversial preacher Dr Zakir Naik either wittingly or unwittingly playing a part in this diplomatic debacle.

Zakir, unwelcome in any nation, including Muslim majority countries, is a permanent resident in Malaysia. He was thought to be a Saudi Arabian citizen, but apparently, he isn’t, and even the Saudis don’t want him.

Indian groups, including the media, need to take a step back and look at the effects of trade wars and tariffs. It benefits no one except the inflated egos of shallow politicians who think they are statesmen.

The clear example is the escalating US and China trade war, which has led to spill over effects to the rest of the world, as the two superpowers clash. So, trade wars, in any form, is bad for any country.

As Dr Rais Hussin, the Emir Research CEO, put it aptly in his description of trade wars, “they trigger a dyadic trade relationship that is toxic on the rest of the global value chain, with India included.

“If that is an economic fact, why should India emulate the example of Washington DC and Beijing?

“Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, an unsaid yet practical principle in Asean is – any country wishing to be part of a thriving region of 680 million people, cannot be seen supporting the opposition there.”

He wrote that Prime Minister Modi has had a “Southerly Policy” with Asean since 2015, and is a member of the East Asian Summit, Dialogue Partner of Asean.

“India is destroying a key principle of its own diplomatic engagement. Not only will the whole of Asean oppose it, but the rest of the East Asian region will see India’s behaviour as the beginning of the use of ‘hatchet diplomacy’.”

There is another point to consider, much of Indonesia’s palm oil is owned and sold by the likes of Malaysian companies IOI and Genting.

That aside, there are growing concerns among India’s long-time friends that Modi’s hard-nosed approach to nationalism, bordering on religious fervour, is discomforting to many. These actions by Hindu militants, according to many reports, are affecting minorities including Muslims, Christians and Sikhs.

For the time being, the prices of crude palm oil are expected to remain competitive, at least until the first half of next year, pending any official announcements from India.

The Star recently quoted sources saying the offtake of Malaysian palm oil was still stable, and with demand still exceeding supply, CPO prices would hold steady. That’s comforting news.

Without a firm word directly from the Indian government, the market is treating the potential boycott by Indian importers on local palm oil as mere speculation. The MB Investment Bank’s regional head of plantation research, Ivy Ng, said excluding potential impact on demand from speculation of the boycott, CPO prices should recover next year, averaging at around RM2,300 per tonne.

In March, it was reported that China was bumping up its palm oil purchase from Malaysia by around 50% to around 4.7 million tonnes, which will be a huge boost to local planters and the government.

Last year, Malaysia exported 3.07 million tonnes of palm oil and palm products to China worth a total of RM8.38bil, marking, from 2017, an increase of 7.3% from 2.86 million tonnes worth about RM9.39bil.

Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok said that the agreements were a “good start”, following the delegation meeting between the two countries in August last year, during which it was decided that the Chinese uptake of Malaysian palm oil would be increased by half a million tonnes.

The agreements inked for the purchase of 1.62 million tonnes of palm oil were very significant, said China Ambassador Bai Tian, especially in view of the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and China this year.

“This is really a very big number and I believe in the near future, there is possibility that China will increase its uptake of palm oil from Malaysia,” he said.

“As I have said before, China imposes no glass ceiling on the import of Malaysian palm oil, ” he added.

There was the perception that China was quietly stalling purchasing our oil palm, following the change of the federal government last year and the uncertainties over numerous Chinese projects in Malaysia as its consequence. Concern abounded since China is Malaysia’s third largest importer of our palm oil.

Dr Mahathir was outspoken during his first tenure as PM. He was the champion of Third World countries, and he initiated the Group of 20 comprising developing countries, giving his brutally frank views of western countries in the process.

Although Malaysia is a member of the Commonwealth, and even hosted CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads Of Government Meeting) in 1989, Dr Mahathir once said there has never been a “common wealth” among the member nations, which were all once colonised by the British.

That’s Dr Mahathir for you, and as he reaches 95 years old next year, I don’t think we can expect him to change. He will speak up, without fear or favour, and whether we like it or not, but he must also take cognisance of how Malaysia, which he helmed for 22 years earlier, no longer has a double-digit economic growth. And the prices of crude palm oil and crude oil have dropped drastically over the years.

India and Pakistan will likely continue being at loggerheads, and whatever Malaysia says, will not please anyone. Likewise, there was no need for Dr Mahathir to suggest that Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam quit, which did nothing more than irk China.

He was responding to a question from Hong Kong Bar Association chairman Philip Dykes during a question-and-answer session at a forum in Hong Kong, probably not realising that Dykes is an unwelcome man in Beijing.

In fact, the vice-chairman Edwin Choy quit over the association’s failure to condemn protesters’ violent actions in the ongoing anti-government demonstrations.

Malaysia can stay out of harm’s way if he refrains from commenting on issues involving other countries. After all, we have enough problems of our own.