I refer to the New Sunday Times news report headlined Abdullah says Naza is a 'good choice' .

It is simply amazing how the government can be persuaded to take sides in a deal that should be strictly non-governmental. To me, the so-called bid for the 15-odd percent of DRB-Hicom is strictly a private business transaction where the government has no useful or clever role to play.

What does the government know about business compared to the knowledge of the private sector? Why is the government so involved in the DRB bid? Is there a hidden agenda that the public is not told about?

Why should there be anything hidden anyway given the espoused policy of the government in wanting to be transparent and clean? Furthermore, public statements from time to time by both the contending parties involved in the bid smacks of public pressure being applied onto the government.

This applying of pressure onto the government by private enterprises must be stopped as it only goes to show that the government is weak and is subject to pressure from private citizens, albeit titled citizens.

If the government were to succumb to the pressure applied to it, then we are back to the square one as far as battling cronyism and corruption.

What has happened to the well-tried and tested formula of willing buyer and willing seller with the winner taking all? If Malaysia is to progress at all, its citizens must be encouraged to play by free enterprise rules and to compete independently rather than crawl to the government for help when one is on the losing end.

Otherwise we will never succeed and continue to end up with projects like Proton, Perwaja and Putrjaya white elephants created at humongous public expense.