YOURSAY | Mahathir should ensure a smooth transition of power from CEP to the cabinet.
Report: Tussle between Council of Eminent Persons and Harapan leaders
Anonymous_d395a08d: Disagreement between the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP) and the cabinet on certain issues is to be expected and there is no need for unnecessary alarm.
Even if the same issues were to be brought to the cabinet, different ministers and different parties will have different opinions too.
In fact, the formation of CEP is a smart move. It has filled the void at the early stage of government formation to ensure quick reform while riding on the momentum of the GE14 victory.
Now, as the cabinet has been fully formed, Mahathir as the boss of both groups should ensure a smooth transition of power from CEP to the cabinet.
Ex-Wfw: Let's look at the CEP from another angle. To those who have had engaged with officials of the various ministries know that lines are drawn between and among them. The lines drawn are said to be "out of respect" for one another.
In reality, this is one way not to deal with any hot subject on which some agencies/ministries prefer to maintain the status quo because many agencies actually draw boundaries for self-preservation. Only an institution like CEP can break up such self-preservation strategy.
Take computerisation for example: can someone guess how much money has the nation pumped into this sector? Billions and billions of ringgit and yet, where are we?
Most of the systems procured are designed by the agencies concerned and there is no integration of data flow.
Keeping data within an agency is both a waste of the resources but more destructive is the maintenance of data within the agency for self-preservation or vested interests of the very agency itself.
Even if CEP "interferes" in any issue, the ministries or agencies would be given a chance to open the debate by offering their proposals openly.
As long as the press is available to voice such opinions, it is hard for CEP to bulldoze its actions through.
Certainly, both CEP members Daim Zainuddin and Zeti Akhtar Aziz have been involved in the past decisions which did not spell progress for the nation but today, with a more open government, we can expect an open exchange of ideas before the final execution.
Gerard Lourdesamy: Singapore should accept that the Pakatan Harapan government has the right to cancel the High-Speed Rail (HSR) project, just as Singapore has the right to refuse to re-negotiate the water price under the bilateral agreements between both countries.
The CEP will be disbanded after 100 days. The council’s recommendations, which are advisory in nature, do not bind the cabinet and the Malaysian government.
Daim is not a member of the cabinet and he does not determine policy.
For the Singaporeans, having a corrupt and highly compromised government in power in Kuala Lumpur has always been to their benefit. When we have friends like Singapore do we need enemies?
The Harapan government under Dr Mahathir Mohamad should put Singapore in its place. Either you learn to do business fairly and squarely with the new government or be prepared for a five-year cold war with Malaysia. Singapore is not indispensable to us.
Headhunter: The Singaporeans are playing a tit-for-tat game with our news media.
Recent reports by Malaysian news media on how the change of government in Malaysia is going to reflect negatively on the PAP leadership must have upset them quite a bit.
Anonymous 770241447347646: Singapore has an axe to grind with Malaysia. They cannot move freely as to what they want or have their say in the ways things should be done.
Now they know that Malaysia has leaders with calibre and those that cannot be influenced to conform to their ways.
That is why all news from their end need to be verified as it might be used to create friction between different individuals.
Anonymous_1529020255: Don't blame foreign news agencies. It is not unknown that many news and truth have been kept hidden from Malaysians.
Be open-minded and weigh its truth, rather than criticise it. There is no smoke without fire.
CEP must be disbanded as the cabinet has been established. Daim should not be negotiating or talking with China on behalf of Malaysia.
There must be transparency as there is a genuine fear of lucrative contracts be transferred from one corrupt gang of ‘Sapu All’ to another corrupt gang of ‘Sapu Less’.
Malaysia has never been known to be corruption free for the past 61 years.
Quigonbond: Surely in a big operation like running a country with various different strong personalities, there would be differences of opinion. But who has the final say?
If the LRT episode is anything indicative, power still resides in the cabinet. So the Straits Times report is really much ado about nothing.
As to speculation whether CEP will extend beyond 100 days, I should think not.
It's there only for the transition period to deal with the scandals under BN while the cabinet is being established.
Anonymous_db56f03b: The CEP initially took over the early running of the government as it was understood it would take time for the appointment of the cabinet ministers.
In fact, the CEP should only exist as an advisory body and should disband after the first 100 days to prevent conflict and overlapping of interests.
The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.
These comments are compiled to reflect the views of Malaysiakini subscribers on matters of public interest. Malaysiakini does not intend to represent these views as fact.
