No need EPU briefing session for Sheila Majid

By P Ramasamy

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Abdul Rahman Dahlan should not become an overnight hero for taking to task celebrity Sheila Majid for having tweeted about the economic problems of the rakyat.

A few days ago, she tweeted that ordinary Malaysians are suffering from rising debts, falling income and the lack of purchasing power.

Whether celebrities or politicians, Malaysians in general have the right to raise questions about the economic direction of the country.

Sorry, it is not living styles but the everyday social and economic conditions of the people that seem to have attracted the attention of Sheila and many others.

While many welcomed Sheila’s comments, however, there were those in the Barisan Nasional establishment who did not take kindly to her remarks.

It was rather amusing for Rahman to have issued an invitation to Sheila and other celebrities to attend a talk at the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) to “educate” them on the state of the economy.

He said since he was open to criticism, he was willing to arrange a briefing session for those who had been misinformed about the country’s state of economic affairs so that they could get the “right picture”.

The “right picture” about the true economic situation of the country is merely a figment of the wild imagination of Rahman and other die-heard Umno supporters of the beleaguered regime of Najib Razak.

There is nothing for Rahman to “white-wash” about the “goodness” of the social and economic situation of the country. He himself knows the actual situation, so there is no need to be untruthful apart from the need to ingratiate him within the top echelons of the Umno leadership.

Ordinary Malaysians from all walks of life are experiencing economic and social problems from rising debts, high cost of living and the falling value of the ringgit. This is the result of years of bad governance. The financial fallout from the 1MDB fiasco has led to unimaginable problems for Malaysians, especially those in the lower socio-economic categories.

I don’t think that Sheila, however apolitical she is, could really refrain from making comments about the financial difficulties of ordinary Malaysians. Anyway, it is the fundamental right of Malaysians to come out with comments and analyses about what plagues the country. In this regard, celebrities are no exception.

Rahman should not be arrogant in wanting to “school” Sheila and others who are critical of how the country is being managed. Perhaps the time has arrived for Rahman and others in Umno to realise what has really gone wrong with the country.

In this respect, EPU’s ideological briefing will do no good apart from painting a “glossy” picture of the country. Such a briefing serves no purpose but merely prolongs the problems of the country.

Rahman, who missed out on providing good leadership for the housing and urban development ministry, should realise that he is hardly in a position to arrange lectures for those who are critical of the country’s economic policies.

P Ramasamy is Penang deputy chief minister II.