I have been following the scandal involving former Health Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek with much interests for the past several days, and I feel called to jot down some piece of my opinion on that matter here.
Like many others, I wholeheartedly agree with the decision made by Dr. Chua to quit all government and party posts for the simple reason that that is the only way to go for him. On one hand, one might look at him as a culprit, betraying the trust of so many Malaysians by acting stupid. But let’s face it; he is just one unlucky chap who has done a wrong thing at a wrong place and at a wrong time. In everyday’s language, he is said to be kantoi. Dr. Chua is not even a Muslim, so the question of committing the crime of adultery apparently does not fall on him. That left us with only the question of trust; to his wife, his family, party members, and eventually as a prominent leader, to all Malaysians. The bad thing is the rule of human nature states that humans do not fare well at the breach of trust, thus the fate thrown at Dr. Chua. You see, the difference that determines whether someone is kantoi or its opposite is tiny, but the impact made spans a huge gap between the two. One might do a bad deed, but as long as he or she does not kantoi then he or she can easily escape from punishments and sour public perception. On the other hand those who unluckily kantoi are to face severe penalties notwithstanding whether it is their first offence or the hundredth- the first 99 of which had formerly gone down the road safely- or if it is a minor crime when those committing major ones manage to escape with ease. This is what I exactly mean when I say that Dr. Chua is just one unlucky fellow. Many others on the same ranks as him might be doing the same thing or another form of offences and treachery but escape, whether we the citizens of Malaysia realize it or not.
To come out with the declaration of wrongdoing followed by a sincere apology are noble things to do after such tragedy, and I really cannot think of any better way other than these two sincerely made by this former Health Minister. But what many of us do not seem to quite realize is that the best part to this agonizing story actually came next; 24 hours after declaring that he did not have any intention to quit his posts, Dr. Chua took a complete U-turn and quitted. The reason? More than 90 percent of Malaysians did not seem to be pleased by his decision to stay on, and true to his duty as a representative of the people who listens to public voices and not the other way round like so many times happening in the country, Dr. Chua quickly resolved to step down. I must laud this step made by him, no doubt. Admitting his own mistake, Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek responded by rightly serving the rakyat even if that eventually translates into throwing his own life into further jeopardy.
4 comments:
kesian...buat jahat kantoi...
ish...
bersyukurlah kepada mereka-mereka yang tidak kantoi tatkala melakukan jahat...
do you really believe he stepped down because he was concerned about the rakyat's perception? i seriously doubt that. i personally think he would cling on to power as long as he could. i believe he was advised, or rather politely instructed to step down by the powers that be. try rereading his q&a transcript and see whether you can make sense out of my point.
Lazu:
I guess I didn't do enough homework that I hardly notice that part of conspiracy, assuming it's true. But anyway, allow me to add some more here.
While I'm not a huge fan of him, we all must admit that his track record had been above average, if not tremendous, especially as the Health Minister. Add that to the fact that he virtually did not cause us too much trouble unlike other politicians during his tenure, I come to the conclusion that he's one of the few good men we had. That led me to my next conclusion that he stepped down willingly after listening to the voice of the people. Now, I must stress here that my previous knowledge on him as well as this matter is not too great and almost all are merely down to my personal opinion. Like I said, this might be only one the rare mistakes he committed and unfortunately for this guy, dia kantoi.
On the other note, I think it is natural for a leader to wish to cling on to power whenever such controversies erupt. Some might see it as a way to repay to the people for the mistakes they've committed, while others are merely trying to display their arrogance. The way I see it, I would say Dr. Chua Soi Lek belongs to the former group of leaders.
Still, if he really was instructed to step down as you suggested, his willingness to admit his mistake in the first place is by no means a forceful act and deserves praise.
Oh yeah, did you notice how quiet our Prime Minister and his Deputy were after Dr. Cua Soi Lek broke the news? They only came out with statements only after 48 hours or so. Ahaa, now that really makes me wonder, if you know what I mean..
I was actually trying to bring our attention to other leaders of ours who for so long are deemed clean by writing this, but in between showing a bit of respect and not wanting to go overboard I chose not to say something transparent.
I have to agree that Dr Chua was actually one of the high achievers of politician. He actually was the one who visited numerous hospitals and health center while other leaders has not.
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