LETTER | In Malaysia it is increasingly apparent that politicians, government and businesses are all lumping the blame entirely on the corona virus pandemic.

The economy is suffering because of lockdowns and cosmetic lockdowns deemed necessary to battle the virus spread.

People are succumbing increasingly to Covid-19 because the virus is mutating and becoming more virulent.

But how many stop to think and ask: Do we conveniently blame all else on the deadly virus and hide behind the pandemic?

There are underlying truths why our economy has been badly punctured and our livelihood being battered each day.

There is a hidden truth behind why our healthcare facilities and frontliners are at breaking point so soon.

There are other real causes, too, why the virus is resurging all too soon.

But we don't seem to care.

Even the government of the day that was not elected by the democratic vote of citizens as is demanded categorically by our Federal Constitution, is not prepared to admit why a 30- million population is buckling so soon under the pandemic.

While so many nations, including Indonesia, are spraying their public places and buildings with disinfectants, we are not.

While even poor nations do not have housing and overcrowding problems, we out-class these countries with our pathetic low-cost dwellings that reek of poor hygiene.

Which country hires migrant labour by the millions - both legal and undocumented - to drive its economy? But here we stop at blaming the helpless foreign workers for the cluster breakouts.

Corruption. Yes, corrupt practices that have become an accepted way of life in Malaysia is the root cause why we are suffocating under and remain radarless in battling the pandemic.

While we can find reasonable fault with the virus, let us not dismiss the greed, rent-seeking, profiteering ways we have nurtured these past decades.

All our gleaming glass and mortar that made the elitist millionaires cannot withstand the fallout from the pandemic.

From the human bondage of migrant workers to hording trust funds; from hiking prices of goods to littering without care; from finding circumventing shortcuts to self denials ... you name it, we have it.

The bottomline is, we have over the decades compromised so much so that kangaroo and horse meat can be sold as halal beef and mutton by the tons for years before the scam surfaced. God knows what else has been dumped into all our kitchens.

And we also know that the immune system of Malaysians may be at such low points after decades of unhealthy eating, among others, that makes us more vulnerable to the virus.

In summary, we are not able to cushion the effects of the pandemic effectively and efficaciously because the virus spread thrives in a climate where systems and capabilities have been compromised owing to our collective sins of commission, omission and indifference that have always been swept under thick carpets of deceit and threats and denials.

So, let us not conveniently absolve ourselves from the real causes why the pandemic has a stranglehold on us so easily in so short a time.

Will we change?

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