DEPUTY Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has criticised the Opposition for questioning the motion of confidence and calling it a mere “political gimmick”.
The UMNO president said calling it a “political gimmick” goes against the focal point of democracy and reflects the arrogance and inconsistent attitude of the Opposition.
“The chaos in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday is utterly damaging when issues that did not directly benefit the people’s current predicaments were raised,” the Bagan Datuk MP remarked in a Facebook post.
“The Opposition’s attitude is an embarrassment to their voters because it is a reflection of their immaturity, and the chaos is what they bring to the people who want nothing but political maturity rather than rhetoric and sentiments.”
Zahid further expressed hopes that the quality of debate coming from both sides of the political divide in upcoming Parliamentary sessions would be more credible and reflect better quality.
“I also hope that the Opposition can form its shadow cabinet and truly function as an effective opposition,” he added.
Tough times ahead
Meanwhile, Zahid also warned that the scale of the challenges that the country is expected to face next year should not be underestimated.
He said it would take a united effort among all quarters to ensure that Malaysia emerges unscathed from the global economic slowdown.
“First, overall inflation is expected to remain high at 2.8–3.3% by 2023, caused by pressure from demand and cost, rising global commodity prices due to the military conflict in Ukraine, and ongoing supply disruptions,” he remarked.
“This high inflation rate will continue to affect spending power and the people’s savings ability.”
He said secondly, the prospects of the industrial sector is pessimistic from Q4 2022 until Q1 2023, adding that sentiments in the construction sector remained negative for Oct 2022 until March next year.
He also cited the growth slowdown of the three economic superpowers, namely the United States, China and the European Union.
He said this will have a widespread effect on the trade and financial sectors throughout Asia, especially Malaysia as an open economy.
“These challenges require solid cooperation between all quarters, especially parliamentarians. As responsible MPs, we need to return to debate solid growth strategies and find the best solutions for the people,” he acknowledged.
“The Opposition has to be conscious of issues of economic recovery and development. We cannot continue to leave the country plagued by political uncertainty.”
Zahid said the strengthening of the ringgit after the new government was formed has provided a clear picture of why political stability was the cornerstone of building a better economy.
He said credit rating agency, Fitch Solutions, which had downgraded Malaysia’s credit rating from A- to BBB+ in 2020 had specifically listed political instability as among the reasons behind the downgrade.
“Let’s not jeopardise political stability. We all stand to lose out. The drive to rebuild the country and help it fulfil its economic potential begins with a credible Parliament,” he added. – Dec 21, 2022
