LETTER | Let me begin by assuring you that you are not stupid. You are inefficient.

Amidst the chaos of this pandemic, vaccination exercise, rising number of suicides, depression and domestic abuse, SOP violations, the most recent LRT incident and so many more, where have you been in the midst of all these?

You have left it to the police and the ministers in charge, but have you been made aware of what your ministers have been doing? Surely, they report back to you. Or do you just let pass these ill-considered decisions?

If you are not aware of these happenings, allow me to enlighten you on some of the causes of the rakyat’s anger, depression and for coming to the conclusion that the country is run by someone not too smart.

Sabah by-election: Even you admitted on Nov 18 last year that the Sabah state election in September was the cause of the Covid-19 wave infections in the country. Right, and what did you do about this?

Ministers continuously flouting SOP: I’m sure we have all lost count on this. From Khairuddin Aman Razali, Annuar Musa, and to the most recent Prasarana chairperson wearing face shield sans face mask, not to mention his obnoxious behaviour during the press conference.

It boggles the mind why is it that only Malaysia’s ministers are brazen and blatantly gung-ho in showing off their foolishness, lack of judgement and disgraceful attitude? If we insist on making ministers out of cronies and uneducated, unqualified individuals, they should at least be trained in etiquette and public speaking. We cannot go on portraying Malaysian ministers in this kind of spotlight.

Noor Neelofa Mohd Noor, Muhammad Haris Muhammad Ismail, and various other public figures: This couple alone has violated the SOP at least four times and counting. One of them was crossing state lines. They were instead charged with not scanning the MySejahtera app upon entering the shop. Shouldn’t the charge be for crossing state lines when they shouldn’t, instead of not scanning the app? How could the powers-that-be let this slide? And the audacity of them both pleading not guilty!

Another is singer Siti Nurhaliza whose guest, who was in town, conveniently made a stop at her house for a tahnik ceremony whereas some of us can’t even visit the graves of loved ones.

These cases keep getting “investigated”. These violators were allowed to pay bails and then pay a mere sum for their fines. And they get to repeat the violations. Really, are we such a free country, or are the authorities turning a blind eye because of who these people are? On the other hand, we the normal rakyat get fined and threatened left, right and centre!

Vaccination exercise: This, too, is not without its own controversies from queue jumping to preferential treatment for vaccination. My 71-year-old mother and so many other elders I know and high-risk groups are still waiting to be called. Are we simply taking our time in moving at such a glacial pace? Other countries have started to vaccinate children, but we have not even managed to vaccinate one-third of the population. Go figure.

People are getting more and more depressed by the day. It is already tragic that some have chosen to turn to suicide during these difficult times. Some have lost their incomes, homes and family members to this pandemic. Some their sanity.

When push comes to shove, and bad times get worse, leaders are the ones who should be the beacon of light for the rakyat. The least our politicians can do is be supportive and appear strong and united. Have empathy. For most of these politicians, just be good Muslims. Not that difficult really, since they managed to portray themselves as the ideal politicians during campaigning. We all know that was mostly for show.

So, why can’t they at least appear to be supportive during these times? Act like a minister should! If you do not know how to act like one, look to other better politicians who get things done! Who knows how to speak to the press and address the public! By right, these ministers should be able to converse well in English, but we have gone past that now, so just speak in Bahasa but speak it well!

It is really exhausting having to deal with these kinds of issues, still, after 64 years of independence. Now is not the time to play politics. Enough already. Move on, pull up those sleeves and get to work!

Know that your ministers have failed us. Know that you, too, have failed us for turning the other way and for continuing to stay in your slumber, for not putting your foot down, for not keeping your ministers in check.

Know that there are some of us who do not even know when our next meal is coming or where from.

Know that as a leader, and most importantly a Muslim, you will be questioned and made accountable in the hereafter.

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