The resounding mandate given in the last general election was to Pak Lah's team. It would take a bad case of myopia not to recognise that.

Make no mistake about it. Even if a donkey stood for election on the 'Pak Lah (not Barisan Nasional) ticket' it would have won. That is the charisma that Pak Lah exudes and to which the rakyat gave their vote of full confidence.

But unfortunately, it is the same wave on which several non-deserving candidates rode to victory as well. Several of these candidates who have served for too long and have outlived their useful shelf lives.

So the rakyat now appeals to Pak Lah to weed out these candidates that hitched an unwelcome ride on the 'Pak Lah" wave to victory. We appeal to Pak Lah to do it now and set a precedent.

And now, a golden opportunity has presented itself for him to do exactly that. How often do debacles pertaining to the same ministry happen one after another in quick succession (when one's memory is still fresh)?

The rakyat is watching with great interest the action that will be taken regarding the cracked pillars of the MRR2, the landslide at the KM303 of the North-South Expressway, the appearance of fungus at the Sultan Ismail hospital and the irregular surface of the East Coast Highway are being crying out for.

Nothing short of moving S Samy Vellu to another ministry will suffice. Send a clear message to those in positions of responsibility that they cannot 'talk fast', 'talk rude', 'talk tough' and 'talk tangential' their way out of responsibility.

In the mind of the rakyat i.e. the voting masses, the line that separates 'full confidence' from 'total disillusionment' is a thin one.