YOURSAY | ‘Malaysia is the new sick man of Asia - will you help cure it?’

Ex-DPM: M’sia going downhill, just like Philippines in the past

Astounded: Former DPM Musa Hitam, the reason why we are deteriorating is mainly because past Umno leaders like you, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, do not care enough for the country to speak out.

Don't think only others are to blame. You share part of the blame.

Headhunter: Musa, like all past BN ministers and present ministers, knows what is going on in the government.

The massive corruption, the daylight robbing of the Treasury, the illicit outflow of money from the country, much like a man bleeding from a deep fatal wound, and yet they did nothing. Absolutely nothing. It’s because they are all in it.

So the question we should be asking Musa is, what are you going to do now to right the wrong that you were a part of? Haven't you noticed, that the nation is sick and suffering greatly?

Fairman: Musa, please take a firm stand on the Malaysian Official 1 (MO1). Don't say 'alleged scandal' and pretend not to know about the content of DOJ lawsuit.

We have a leadership crisis in the country. We need people who are prepared to put the country and the people first to save the nation in this critical hour of need.

Your partner in Umno’s Team B, Razaleigh, is a disappointment. There is no use just making pious statements.

At 82, you can contribute and come out strongly against PM Najib Razak. Are you prepared to stand up and be counted?

RR: Musa, you and Razaleigh, being among the most respected leaders of Umno, could have corrected the many flaws in the system, but choose to remain silent like the majority of Umno members.

You are waking up when the ship is sinking. You and other rational beings can still save the country by taking bold and positive steps from within the party.

P Dev Anand Pillai: You may have had your differences with former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad when you left in 1986, but you should have spoken about this rot a long time ago, not now, when the rot has gotten worse and is now festering with maggots coming out here and there.

It is a pity that moderate Malays only speak out when no one is listening. When they had the power, reforms should have been instituted.

Roger 5201: Malaysia is the new sick man of Asia, but Musa talks about the problem like it has nothing to do with him.

Awakened: Musa, in the 70s and early 80s, you were branded as notorious and extreme as Mahathir. The 2M government was very powerful.

I remember MCA under Lee San Choon had big differences with Umno and the 2M government when you, as education minister, threw away the meritocracy system of intake into universities and replaced it with the quota system.

In 1977, you started the quota of 34 percent for non-bumiputera and 66 percent for bumiputera. MCA threatened to pull out all its cabinet ministers.

Finally, the cabinet agreed to increase the intake of non-bumiputera from 34 percent to 45 percent. You are one of the leaders who set the country on a downhill course, and now you are blaming the current leadership.

Nes: We know that Mahathir is fighting for his own selfish ends, but at least he is doing something, although that really does not exonerate him in any way.

But worse, you and your gang, Razaleigh and Abdullah, do nothing. That is worse than Mahathir, if that is possible.

Anticonmen: What were you doing when the constitution was being dismantled and the checks and balances continued to be removed during your tenure as a minister and as DPM, and Malaysia became a full-fledged kleptocracy in the 80s? Is this not contributory negligence of leadership?

Jaded: Of course, Malaysia is going downhill. A country that is raped and pillaged by blatant corruption despite its bounty of natural resources, is bound to go downhill.

We can all blame the current government, but lest one forgets, they have the majority with just over 47 percent of votes. These votes reside in East Malaysia and smaller towns and unless the injustices affect them directly, they are unlikely to change their votes.

They will continue to be happy with one sack of free rice and a few ringgit come election time. Their greatest fear is their privileges will be taken away if not protected by the current government.

That is probably why they tolerate the many scandals. Never mind that they can get so much more if a new transparent system is put in place. The point is unless there is a change in mindsets, we will be stuck, given the massive gerrymandering which has taken place over the decades.

Cogito Ergo Sum: Musa, you were the premier Malaysia never had, through no fault of yours. You suffered personal loss and tragedy. But all that has made you a better man.

It's not too late for you to help salvage what's left of this nation. We were once a great society, admired by all.

Today, we are a pariah state that steals from its own people, taxing the poor for the rich. We finance even their gambling losses! And there seems no hope on the near horizon.

Jaycee: Finally, someone came out to say what needed to be said. And someone who speaks sense.

Sarawakian: Musa, I always had the greatest respect for you. It’s a pity that you did not become premier.

If only Umno could produce more leaders like you, we would not have been in this situation.

Doc: Malaysia is going downhill and Najib is steering the Malaysian boat into an abyss, while his Umno ministers are clapping and cheering him on.

Rocky: MO1 says everything is okay, soon we will be a developed nation, I think his new policy is Vision 5050.

On the matter of shootings in broad daylight, it is because our police are busy attending to more important matters, like arresting a pregnant woman over a Facebook posting.

Intheair: When I started travelling to Manila in the mid-90s, it was obvious to me the city had seen better days.

Grandiose buildings everywhere but people living in carton boxes in front of these beautiful structures. Endless squatters were lining both sides of the railway tracks, again living in carton boxes.

That was the time our own flashy Petronas Twin Towers had just been completed. I still remembered telling my Filipino friends that I hoped Malaysian would not be living in carton boxes in front of the twin towers in the years to come. We are getting there.

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