YOURSAY | ‘Puad expects Rafizi to perform miracles in 6 months.’

Puad: Cabinet reshuffle talk due to Rafizi's failure to shine

Clever voter: It is not fair to compare six months of performance against six decades of economic mismanagement under the Umno-led government.

Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli did not promise an instant result. The downward spiral of the stock market was not entirely his fault.

His ministry has the unenviable tasks of managing numerous road maps, hundreds of think tanks and removing deadwood.

The challenge to the economy minister is to find a way to fast-track foreign investment and move quicker with information and innovations.

These demand the right people and, above all, resources. The treasury was almost empty, barely enough to pay for public sector operations.

Umno supreme council member Mohd Puad Zarkashi and others expect more immediate money in people's pockets, whereas the country is looking for more sustainable means.

Puad wants the government to spend beyond their means and borrow more.

Why bother with tried and failed policies when we should look for new ways, which include introducing meritocracy and a corruption-free environment?

Coward: Taking his detractors at their word, if Rafizi is not minister material, Puad, you are worse. Thus, if meritocracy is to be practised, he will still get the job as Rafizi is better than all the choices available.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Chang Lih Kang says his ministry is not favoured by politicians because it takes a long time, over 10 years to see results. The Economy Ministry faces the same predicament, albeit the results within a shorter time, such as in five years.

Six months is too short a time to evaluate a minister's performance unless they are incompetent. Rafizi is not one of them. If there is a reshuffle, Rafizi might be kicked out.

If he was, it would not be due to performance but due to something else.

Cowboy: The attack on Rafizi is obvious. If it comes from the opposition, it is understandable. But when it comes from fellow members of the unity government, then we know there is a fixed agenda pushed by them.

Umno MPs and those without portfolios are eyeing many positions in the unity government.

But Rafizi kept to his pre-election promises, which seemed to be the main stumbling block for them to attain those positions.

Getting rid of Rafizi is their way forward.

No matter how well Rafizi did, he will continue to be chastised and branded as a non-performer.

Perhaps, the attacks will diminish if Rafizi mellows down and accommodates those “unemployed” Umno stalwarts.

Max Fury: We had Umno managing the economy for almost 60 years. What did that get us?

We are still behind Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam in terms of growth. Our economy has been stagnant since 1999.

Our foreign direct investment (FDI) can’t match other countries. Our stock market is in shambles. Rafizi has been on the job for only six months.

Give that man a chance.

Puad expects Rafizi to perform miracles in six months. Puad needs to talk sense and be more reasonable in his thinking.

I AM A MALAYSIAN: Puad is a political nobody, unqualified to criticise Rafizi's performance as economy minister.

The country’s economy has been neglected for so many years.

It can’t be transformed to deliver glowing results in a matter of months, can it?

Who does Puad think would make an extraordinary economic or finance minister? Can he tell us?

Please stop being a loose cannon and take wild potshots at ministers of the unity government who are trying their utmost to rebuild a much-impoverished country under turbulent global circumstances.

FellowMalaysian: Puad has no political standing to castigate or evaluate Rafizi's performance.

Rafizi may be assuming the role of economy minister, but the country's financial well-being doesn't fall within his ministry's ambit.

The fundamental financial weaknesses of the country all contribute to the economic doldrums that we see today.

The falling ringgit against other major currencies, the ever-increasing sovereign debt and high debt-servicing ratio, the poor performance of our commodities and runaway inflation rates are intractable intricacies which fall under the Finance Ministry.

The fallout of poor performance by the Finance Ministry will invariably affect the economic well-being of the people.

Thus, Rafizi's role and performance should not be conflicted with the powers and authorities assigned to his ministry.

Salvage Malaysia: I have to agree that Rafizi has turned out to be a disappointment.

As an opposition, he kept digging out corruption cases involving the government of the day. Now he’s muted.

I disagree with some netizens’ comments that he should be given time to clean up old legacies.

We are not asking him to focus on that. He must come out with a progressive investment climate and the right incentives for FDIs to look at Malaysia.

Gather all the investment incentives from all Asian countries. Study it and formulate something better.

Reset: No doubt that Rafizi is quieter than before, but it does not mean he did not do his job well.

Many of the unity government’s initiatives, including targeted subsidies, likely originated from him, which will have a major impact on the country.

We hope it also more accurately reflects those with significant excess and not overly taxing medium-income families as, the Top 20 of the average income of above RM10,000 to RM12,000 are not extremely high versus those earning more than RM20,000 a month.

Having said that, we are setting a very high expectation bar for Rafizi on strategising our economy and thus, he should recruit many top talents, especially those always in semi or full retirement.

Many are ready to step in to help him out with minimal or zero cost to the government.

Cogito Ergo Sum: Puad fails to acknowledge that when his party was in power their president and finance minister, stole billions from the country. He is in jail now.

Rafizi has been in office for only six months. Does Puad expect him to outdo six decades of mismanagement and kleptocracy?

UNDECIDED: When reports came out that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim might axe “incompetent” ministers and senior civil servants, what makes Puad think that Rafizi was the one that was being targeted?

Singling out Rafizi, who is by protocol holding a much higher position than him in the unity government, being deputy president of PKR and a minister shows how senseless and undiplomatic he is -knowing very well it will cause a lot of anger to Harapan supporters.

Newday: Puad, just a non-gentle reminder that your party is a part of the unity government and not the opposition.

This is the sort of comment that normally comes out of the mouths of the opposition. Also, a non-gentle reminder that you failed to keep your seat as an MP a few years back.

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