The current political crisis that has plagued our nation has turned our country upside down. From the Contract Doctor’s Strike to the #LAWAN protest, it is no doubt that the citizens of the country, specifically the youth are tired of the never-ending crisis that the government has driven us into. It’s starting to look like an endless cycle of pain and anger especially with the large number of people dying each day due to various reasons such as suicide, hunger and the pandemic.
Nevertheless, with the attendees of these protests being at the forefront of intimidation and further harassment by the police force, the elected members of parliament from the opposition side decided to protest for the people in light of the closure of the Parliament and the suspension of the parliamentary sitting for another 2 weeks.
Today, on 2nd August 2021, we witnessed the opposition MPs marching their way to parliament but the aftermath of it was hugely distressing.
Miss Universe Malaysia 2011, Deborah Priya Henry posted on Instagram regarding the happenings of today. Her caption reads, “Members of parliament locked out of parliament! One consistency has been the inconsistent implementation of rules over this covid period. Inconsistent, unjust, and sometimes baseless. A quote comes to kind, “the revolution eats her children” – we sadly never ever learn.”
Her post in reference shows the opposition MPs being blocked access from parliament by the Federal Reserve Unit — a riot control force. Furthermore, all the roads to the Parliament were blocked and the police force was deployed to “control” the situation.
This is indeed an absurd move as the MPs did not inflict any violence towards anyone. Their only demand was for parliament to be reconvened. Following this incident, the MPs resorted to convening in Dataran Merdeka while releasing statements, urging the Prime Minister and his entire cabinet to step down.
The coalition of MPs comprising of those from Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Parti Amanah Negara (AMANAH), Parti Tindakan Demokratik (DAP), Pertubuhan Kinabalu Progresi Bersatu (UPKO), Parti Ikatan Demokratik Malaysia (MUDA) dan Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PBS), gathered in the very place that our Father of Independence, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra al-Haj proclaimed the nation’s independence. Melissa Goh, the Malaysia Bureau Chief for Channel News Asia had reported that 96-year-old Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed participated in the protest too, at the said location.
According to YB Wong Chen, opposition leader, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has directed all opposition MPs to end the march at 11:00am and he also said the actions of the government of today were unconstitutional.
Adding on, he claimed that 107 opposition MPs are united and several UMNO MPs have written to the speaker to withdraw their support for the prime minister. This leads to the inevitable fact that the government has lost its majority and must face parliament for a vote!
This truly adds to another historic moment that our country has achieved in the past decade. Political analyst, Bridget Welsh posted, “Malaysian political history being made – PH parties (including former PH parties) united in a march to call for the opening of parliament and resignation of PN government.”
This protest is indeed significant to the democratic process that our country upholds and a step in the right direction for another reformation to take place. With the participants of the #LAWAN protest last Saturday, 31st July, being questioned by the police, this would further strengthen the notion that the citizens of Malaysia are indeed frustrated.
Nevertheless, as Malaysia’s Game of Thrones evolve, let’s hope and pray for a better Malaysia and a better future for all of us. Hopefully, these MPs efforts would not go in vain.
In the meantime, it’s important to stay safe amidst the rising number of cases originating from the Delta variant! Mask up!
