I have to use the name of God but not in vain to seek for divine guidance and divine intervention, when the powers-that-be on Earth are recalcitrant and refuse to budge from their archaic notion that they are always right while others are always wrong While opinions may differ, there is one and only one truth where a contract (or agreement) is concerned.

What are the three articles that stirred me into action? One article was Lack of respect for sanctity of contracts by Neil Khor. The writer had put it very appropriately. You stand by your contract. Period. It may be ill-conceived as an afterthought. But once you put your dobby mark at that time of signing, that's it! The deal is done and you cannot simply erase even a comma. Otherwise, no one will respect you for any contract signed.

Do you honestly believe that international investors will come to our shores to sign contracts and do business with us? They will be scared stiff to sign any contract because they may fear (and genuinely so after what has been reported on the Internet) that the contract may not be honoured.

Even if you have cut a bad bargain, you will have to bite your tongue and follow strictly to that contract. You simply cannot say, ‘Oh, I overlook the reaction of the people and so you cannot come back to Malaysia, Chin Peng. I am indeed sorry. The people cannot forgive you’.

All the salient points should have been looked into before signing the peace agreement. Once done, it is done. Q.E.D! The same principle applies to international contracts which will involve millions or even billions of ringgit. It is no joke. Between gentlemen, and after several hard negotiations and several scrutinies, checks and further checks, both of you sign a contract.

Once stamped, sealed, it is delivered. It is called the ‘sanctity of a contract’ as Neil Khor put it. You cannot go back on your word. If you do, then no investor would like to do business with you. You are treated like a ‘pariah’ as far as business community is concerned. You are an outcast in their eyes and no sweet talk will convince them to do business with you.

So our leaders who want to do business with others must know the meaning of ‘contract’ and what it implies. Please do not treat it as a joke among small boys playing marbles. So keep your side of the bargain at all costs even if you have to lose money in that contract. It is your name and your reputation that is at stake. If you value your name, then stick to the contract you have signed; no ‘ifs’ and no ‘buts’.

The third article is We'll pray till his stomach bursts . The Kelantan Mentri Besar Nik Aziz Nik Mat must have reached his tether and he had burst out in genuine anger. The oil royalty agreement of 5% was signed and four states – Sabah, Sarawak, Terengganu and Kelantan – were each promised contractually that they would each be given 5% in oil royalty payments. It was a simple, straightforward agreement. Just abide by it.

Terengganu used to enjoy the same 5% in oil royalty but when the voters of Terengganu decided to give PAS a chance to rule that state, the then prime minister dreamt of a scheme to sideline the PAS government and the oil royalty payments became known as ‘wang ehsan’ (goodwill money).

This is not some smart move; it was plain cheating on the contract. What ‘goodwill money’ is it? The Terengganu state need not beg for what belongs to that state. Do you ever beg for your own money? What sort of nonsense is this? To this day, this ‘goodwill money’ remains probably as a hedge in case Terengganu falls to PAS in the 13th general election.

Be honest. What is the use of having ‘Morals’ as a subject for students in schools when our leaders do not act ‘morally’? What are our leaders teaching the students? Never forget that our students now are intelligent enough to know what is moral and what is not moral. In fact, they can teach our leaders a thing or two on the subject of morality.

Then, there is the 20-point agreement with Sabah and the 18-point agreement with Sarawak. They joined Malaya to form Malaysia as did Singapore. Sabah and Sarawak came in as equal partners hoping to become better developed. Have the leaders followed strictly the agreements? Honour them. They are sacred agreements.

It is time that our leaders honour all contracts, either done locally or internationally. We are living in a borderless world and in a globalised market where we face fierce competition, Our integrity will pay dividends in the long run. If we try to shortchange in any transaction, our reputation index will go down; and it may not recover.

Then foreign investment, which all nations are fighting for, will decline . We will ‘die’ economically. Is this what we want? How could we grow if we say one thing but do the opposite? People will never trust us. Trust is a virtue worth practising. Words have no currency when actions are just the opposite.

We should also reject any member of Parliament or state assembly person who signs a ‘contract’ with one party but jumps ship with or without favours.. This principle applies to both BN and Pakatan Rakyat. It is wrong for BN or Pakatan Rakyat leaders to entice MPs or state assembly people men to crossover. It is dead wrong.

Lest leaders forget, this issue plays a part in whether people trust us or not. Never forget that this is also a contract. I would like to emphasise that a contract is a contract is a contract. An agreement is the same.

We cannot cheat for long. Soon, people locally and internationally will come to know about our thinking and attitude and will be wary of signing any contract with us.