LETTER | “What can you do to the system after forming the government in the next election to prevent the prime minister from abusing his power or extending his affluence to gain political mileage?"

"How can you prevent the next prime minister from exercising the ‘cash is king’ philosophy?”

These were the questions asked by one of the participants in the “What Say Youths” townhall meeting held in Petaling Jaya, featuring two most recognisable political giants - Mahathir Mohamad and Lim Kit Siang.

The town hall session attracted more than 200 young participants, featuring interesting interactions and a heated atmosphere during the two-hour session.

The participant raised his concern that a change in the system is necessary because if the current prime minister can abuse the system, so can the next prime minister.

The speakers did not immediately provide the standard political answer which was the series of institutional reforms that were declared during “Himpunan Sayangi Malaysia Hapuskan Kleptokrasi” held last month and adopted in Pakatan Harapan’s manifesto.

Afterall, the participants would probably have heard of them plenty of times. Mahathir instead explained that what brought us to where Malaysia is today was not the system, but the person in power.

There is a system in place and it has been abused. Any effort or attempt to modify the system is futile if the person in power lack the integrity and will in upholding the spirit of the system, or would game the system for the desired outcome.

It reminded me of a case study I came across in a book on corporate management: how do you create a security system that is most effective in safeguarding the most important document in your company?

You can place your document in a vault, lock in an armoured room, have numerous CCTV installed, biometric passcode required by two different individuals, and even a separate armed team patrolling the premise.

However, a simple collusion with the company's personnel can easily let you get your hand on the document. The case study depicts a management limitation in any system.

This is precisely what happened to Malaysia.

Our system of separation of powers i.e. the independence of the judiciary, legislative and executive branch should have encouraged check and balance.

Our laws should have prevented abuse of power. Our police force should have acted on or deterred any criminal conduct. Our anti-corruption agency should have taken a more decisive stand on financial scandals.

Our ministers in power should have been able to address the elephant in the room. Our government should have acted in the interest of people. Our opposition should have formed the federal government when they garnered some 52 percent popularity vote.

Why then did the system, if you think it did, fail? This is because the key to success of any system is the people.

Yes, Pakatan Harapan can enact a dozen more laws when they come to power. Yes, a couple more agencies can be formed to fight corruption. However, all these will be in vain if there is no political will in making the system work.

If we believe that no system is perfect, the reforms that Pakatan Harapan proposed and preached cannot be perfect as well.

But it very much tells us what kind of government they aspire to become. This is exactly the difference between the current government and Pakatan Harapan - the government in waiting.

One key take away from the exchange: a system is as good as the person who guards it. If the person is corrupt, the system becomes corrupted.

KERK CHEE YEE is political secretary to DAP Parliamentary Leader Lim Kit Siang.

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