Date: 16 September 2022
September 16, 2022 will be the last Malaysia Day before the 15th General Election (GE15), Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia (GBM) would like to wish all Malaysians a Happy 59th Malaysia Day, and take this opportunity to call on all eligible voters to turn out to vote in GE15 to elect a well represented government unlike the very low turnout rate seen in last Johor state election (turnout rate at ~55% versus GE14 of 82%)). The newly passed Undi 18 law (December 2021) including the automatic voter registration (AVR) has expanded the voter size by about 40%.
Malaysians have seen several progresses this past year. On the positive side, made possible by the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Transformation and Political Stability between the government and Pakatan Harapan (PH), we saw the constitutional amendment to restore the status of Sabah and Sarawak as equal partners was passed in December 2021; the constitutional amendment in July 2022 to enact anti-hopping law. The former Prime Minister, Najib Razak, was jailed in August 2022, after losing the final appeal for one of his five cases for abuse of power, signalling a victory of rule of law. All of the above could not have been achieved without the historic 14th General Election which saw the first change of government in Malaysia after some sixty-years.
On the downside, we also witnessed the unfolding of the littoral combat ship (LCS) scandal in the government procurement management. The sluggish post-lockdown economic recovery management, the lack of national unity, the cluelessness in dealing the climate crisis, the lagging in upholding gender equality and children welfare as the Court of Appeal’s recent overturning last year High Court decision in granting citizenship to children born overseas by Malaysian mothers.
GBM believes Malaysians should proactively demand politicians to respond to these pressing matters, and has collaborated with the CSO Platform for Reform (CSO Platform) in 2021 on the Manifesto Rakyat. The Manifesto Rakyat is a ‘living document’ that aims to serve as a contemporary reference for political parties and an advocacy platform for civil society as a whole. The Manifesto could be read at manifestorakyat2021.org and it is open for public endorsement by chapter or in its entirety.
On this Malaysia Day, we appeal to all – the government, politicians, civil society and the people- to continue to make our nation better.
Selamat Hari Malaysia.
This statement is endorsed by the following Member Organisations of Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia (GBM):
1) All Women’s Action Society (AWAM)
2) Buddhist Missionary Society Malaysia (BMSM)
3) ENGAGE Network (ENGAGE)
4) Educational, Welfare & Research Foundation Malaysia (EWRF)
5) Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hal (KLSCAH)
6) LLG Cultural Development Centre (LLG)
7) Merdeka Universiti Berhad (MUB)
8 ) Monsoons Malaysia (MM)
9) Partners in Community Organising (PACOS Trust)
10) Persatuan Aliran Kesedaran Negara (Aliran)
11) Persatuan Bekas Siswazah Universiti dan Kolej di China, Malaysia(Liu Hua)
12) Persatuan Penduduk Petaling Jaya (MyPJ)
13) Pertubuhan IKRAM Malaysia (IKRAM)
14) Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia (SABM)
15) Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
16) Tamil Foundation Malaysia (TF)
17) Tindak Malaysia (TM)
18) United Chinese School Alumni Association of Malaysia (UCSAAM)
Link: GBM