FinTips - To Change or Not To Change

 Words blazing, pictures scorching, fingers pointing, bombs flying, guns firing, scandals unveiling AND idiocity prevailing…. This is what Malaysia has been reduced to. The shenanigans being pulled by both parties are becoming obsolete as they desperately try to satiate the last bit of emotions vested in Malaysians.  But truth be told, emotions were long buried in this battle. What remains is a society that is striving to be vigil. And fighting an emotional batter with a vigil society would mark nothing but the defeat of the party, especially when one fails to realize that the power to Change or NOT TO Change ultimately resides in the public.  

As I flipped through Malaysia’s largest comic print, The Star Newspaper, I was utterly flabbergasted by the lack of substantial information needed to make decisions. Superficial news seemed to take the lime light while the key information was sidelined. Despite having more or less the same framework in their Manifestos, the ridiculing of each other’s manifesto seems to have a very childish connotation to it. To be honest, implementation is yet to be seen by both parties. The current ruling party is basically doing what they had neglected for the past 50 odd years, as if they had finally seen the light, and the oppositions have never been really given a chance to prove their dexterity. 

The general fear of the populace is the economy. The perception painted by the mass media is that Malaysia would become chaotic if the oppositions take over and order can only be maintained by the current ruling party. The mental picture is the following:

                              

 

 BEFORE

                         

AFTER

And my reaction to this:

Well, let me give you the lay-down on things. Current ruling party or oppositions, no matter who comes into power, the economy will go on. We are not going to be looking at an economic collapse per say but perhaps a temporary readjustment. There will be a shift in the market structure as new cronies will come to be. Even if the oppositions come into power, they will have a set of cronies working for them. Cronyism exists all over the world. Choosing another political team would not get rid of that. Ignoring such facts is nothing less than to live in absolute denial. But an increase in opposition strength would certainly entail a more competitive market structure and a reduction in monopoly. Many have the fear that we might regress 20-30 years back… Well, that is shear hogwash… As Malaysia has the infrastructure in place and with the  international businesses making Malaysia their “home”, such regression is almost impossible due to the formidable socio-economic structure that is in place.

When there is more competition, we would see a structured economy being formed that would set a check and balance system that would not just ensure quality but also sustainability. Quality would come to be when competition increases as all parties would want to ensure that everyone gets their money’s worth when it comes to products or services. Sustainability would form when the portfolio begins to offer more options for investors both locally and abroad. As both parties would want to perform their best to get into the good books of the public, just as how they have been slogging this past year, the nation’s economic scene would be geared towards a stable and resounding growth.

Whatever the outcome may be, both parties would be facing severe pressure from the public. The promises made have to be kept, or else, there may not be a future for the parties. As individuals, we have the choice to vote for, against or abstain. As how Malaysia has reacted towards voicing its opinion when it comes to non-islamic international issues, perhaps we may all just reflect that and abstain? At times, that just may seem to be the lesser of all evils. 

By,

Ashveen Chakravarthy Sekaran

April 26^th 2013