LETTER | It is very telling that our current lineup of leaders mostly are shallow, outdated and out of sync with the masses.

Rafidah Aziz, former minister and a no-holds-barred, outspoken citizen, had lashed out at the recent, indecent or obscene, as is widely opinioned, pay hike for the chairperson and board members of FGV Holdings Berhad.

In rebuttal, Rural Development Minister Mahdzir Khalid insinuated that Rafidah's proposal is a no-go and that she should give better proposals.

Sadly Mahdzir has not only lost his plot but appears completely out of sync with public opinion and the prevailing realities on the ground.

His ranting that he and his colleagues are doing much to address the current inflationary climate that is threatening to slide into a recession goes to show that he has lost the opportunity to grasp the drift in the former and very senior minister's proposition.

He definitely missed the wisdom of political public relations.

He certainly cannot comprehend how the public is reacting to the pay and perks hike when citizens are becoming crippled trying to stretch their shrinking ringgit to make ends meet daily.

The minister ought to know that actions send strong messages, not words of assurance.

Secondly, if he and his entourage of ministers are doing a fantastic job, why, in the first place, ask the public to give you ideas on how to tackle and surmount the crises?

In fact, it also goes to show that the minister may not be keeping himself abreast with news reports where many experts and netizens (including this writer) had already given great ideas to address the problems of rising costs and the food and supply chain constipation months ago, even as early as at the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

In a sporadic climate of corruption that makes the news almost daily, he should have seen the wisdom in Rafidah's suggestion for a drastic pay and perks cut for ministers.

Not only can he not sieve the wise words of Rafidah, but he seemingly admits he is short of ideas himself and invites the public to give solutions.

It is a sad day for the unelected Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob when his ministers do more damage than damage control.

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