Pakatan Harapan bickering a sign of Malaysia’s new democracy: Asia’s youngest minister, Syed Saddiq
- Being able to disagree with each other openly is a sign of progress in Malaysian politics, says the Youth and Sports Minister
- At the Post’s Asia Matters event, he spoke about youth power, Malaysia’s current political scene following the shock toppling of the Barisan Nasional after 61 years of rule, and the impact of the recently lowered Malaysian voting age
Malaysia’s newly-minted Pakatan Harapan government may appear at times to be dysfunctional – but robust arguments between politicians are a sign of democratic progress, says Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
“This is a new government, and with a new government comes a new practice where we air our opinions and we can agree to disagree,” Asia’s youngest minister Saddiq, 26, told the South China Morning Post.
Saddiq was commenting on remarks he made last December demanding the resignation of his Cabinet colleague, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department P Waythamoorthy, following bouts of intersectarian violence surrounding a temple near Kuala Lumpur.
At the time, backbenchers lambasted Saddiq for going overboard with his criticisms, but Saddiq stood firm. He said such “disagreements” also occurred in the previous administration, but were not publicised due to limited media freedom.
“Due to strict control by one party, the United Malays National Organisation [which led Barisan Nasional], they were not aired. But in this new Malaysia this happens,” said Saddiq.