YOURSAY | 'Its views should be channelled to the cabinet for discussion and decisions.'
Do we really still need a council of elders?
Anonymous_2679c6e5: Malaysiakini columnist P Gunasegaram is correct – the role of the Council of Eminent Persons and its limits of authority should be clearly defined. Now it appears to be treading into executive powers and going beyond its advisory role.
One would have thought that the council represented a safety net of counsel for a new and untested cabinet that was being formed. Its views should be channelled to the cabinet for discussion and decisions, rather than making the decisions and executing them itself.
Council of Eminent Persons chair and former finance minister Daim Zainuddin has gone to China and met the leaders there instead of one of the cabinet members, making it appear as if he has been given the extra powers of a roving super ambassador at large.
It gives rise to questions of what else he would be tasked with. And this is not out of disrespect to the wisdom and capabilities of the council.
The lines between various authorities need to be more defined. An example is Economic Affairs Minister Azmin Ali assuming what is seen as the responsibilities of either the finance minister or the transport minister in engaging Singapore in the High-Speed Rail talks.
It looks like a return to the BN ways of giving a title to MCA (DAP, in this case) but keeping the powers to Umno through the use of public commissions and a heavily staffed Prime Minister’s Department.
Uncomfortable questions indeed, but ones that need to be asked.
Kim Quek: I have just read the three articles written by Gunasegaram on the post-GE14 scenario with Mahathir as the central figure, and I must say I am impressed.
Malaysians have been over-infatuated by Bersatu leader Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and that includes the leadership of DAP, who have strangely begun to idolise the prime minister. And that is dangerous.
Mahathir has been over-autocratic, with Harapan leaders condoning him. Many of these leaders have been carried away by the first taste of federal power and failed to keep a cool head and uphold collective leadership, which was the founding principle of the alliance prior to the election.
While Mahathir may have accepted the necessity for some of the reforms, but his personality trait and his penchant for political scheming to amass and perpetuate personal power has not.
I foresee potential power struggle and internal conflicts and continuing bungling on major decisions (such as on High-Speed Rail and East Coast Rail Line) unless Harapan leaders buck up to strongly push through the Reformasi agenda under genuine collective leadership.
Fair Play: The council has a specific charter and a specific deadline to complete their charter.
The nascent Harapan government would not have been able to achieve what they have achieved to date without the firm and steady hands of Mahathir, fully supported by Daim, who heads the council.
Daim went on record to say the task of the council would be completed in 100 days, after which he would take a much-needed rest and catch up on his sleep.
Are you doubting that Daim would not keep his word? Of course, you can have a field day after 100 days if the council is not disbanded. Why not just be patient?
Patriot1: While the new cabinet is going through the learning phase, which is inevitable by the way, the council members with their wealth of experience can provide a valuable reference point for the new cabinet.
As their opinions are consultative and persuasive in nature without any executive powers, the final call is made by the cabinet.
Maybe Daim has been overzealous on his part, but I believe the council at least at this juncture does have a constructive role to play in nation rebuilding.
Behsaikong: Questions will, and can always, be raised. On the whole, this council has done much good, and as stated, since it dissolves within 100 days, the cabinet should not have any further qualms but rather should thank them for good service done. I do think it was, overall, a good move.
The transition period that followed so many terms of the former coalition in government saw this Council of Eminent Persons playing a vital role to ensure that all the most important issues created and left behind by a renegade government would be highlighted and checked.
Clever Voter: The Council of Eminent Persons is not just another committee. They are not there to look pretty nor are they a get-together of retirees enjoying their afternoon tea.
The fragility of the nation is one reason why the council was established. Mahathir could have chosen his old management style of ruling the country, but he has said on numerous occasions that he has no intention to go beyond two years in office.
The role of the council is there to give him perspectives across the political, economic and social matters, given that the public sector he inherited is a damaged public sector. That made sense, after all, he could not have expected the cabinet to come up to speed so soon after the change in government. Experience counts, especially so from the appointed individuals.
While we do not expect the council to remain indefinitely, cases involving 1MDB and many others are time-consuming.
The performance of the various ministries will be mixed, as the majority who had spent their lifetime as opposition members would find their new roles daunting. No one is complaining. Why should they?
The council is a great sounding board for them. It is better to listen to tried-and tested advice than to rely on those so used to the style of former premier Najib Razak's spendthrift regime.
RedHero: If you look at the current cabinet, except for a very few of them (Mahathir and Muhyiddin Yassin), the bulk of them have zero experience in the cabinet, although some have been excos at the state level. You can't expect Mahathir at 93 years of age to be "hand holding" all the new members.
Not Convinced: But why did Mahathir appoint so many greenhorns to his cabinet? The answer is in another Guna’s piece.
David Dass: There was a role for the council at the start of the new government. It took a while to form the new cabinet, and most of the new cabinet have little experience of being in the federal government.
So the council, the reforms committee and the 1MDB committee and so on, had useful roles to perform pending the appointment of the cabinet and the attorney-general.
Daim, with his experience and the relationship he enjoys with Mahathir, is a useful person to have in the early days of the new administration.
The council had a wide-ranging role, but at the end of the day, they have really no ability to implement or execute decisions or take the required actions. Those would have to be channelled through the prime minister.
The reforms committee has an important function. That is to examine and make recommendations for institutional reforms. These recommendations should be made public. They should not be filtered by the council. At the very least, they should be considered by the cabinet.
Guna is right to point out the limited role of these committees. The cabinet is now fully formed. It is time that they take over.
Ksn: What are ministers, deputies, the entire civil service of 1.5 million for? Let the relevant department or ministry handle the problems, unless of course the problems are too big for them to handle, requiring expert knowledge the civil service does not have.
Bamboo: Guna, extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. The Council of Eminent Persons was set up to get the ground running after the GE14.
So far, although some of the things they do are not totally following the rules, these are the 'shortcuts' to cleanse the government of some pliable judges and officers, and get them out of the way for reforms to take place.
I can live with that. Of course, now that the full cabinet is in place, it's time that the council is disbanded. But let's give them 100 days to do what is necessary for the good of Malaysia.
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