KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 7 — Caretaker prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob must explain his refusal to heed to expert advice issued by the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) that a general election should not be held this year, DAP’s Lim Guan Eng said today.
Lim said if only Ismail Sabri had listened to MetMalaysia and even Pakatan Harapan itself, then the possibility of the ongoing general election being postponed in the event of a major flood would not have arisen.
He further said PH’s decision not to dissolve the three state assemblies of Penang, Selangor and Negri Sembilan and hold concurrent elections was therefore justified.
This is after Ismail Sabri said it is up to the Election Commission (EC) to decide whether to stop the 15th general election (GE15) process if the country is hit by massive floods.
“Has Ismail Sabri no sense of shame that he is putting the country and the people through unnecessary suffering and endangering the people’s safety merely, so as to satisfy his party’s greed for political advantage by calling for early general election?
“It is not enough for Ismail Sabri and Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to bear full responsibility for any loss of lives and property for failing in their primary duty to focus solely on flood disaster management.
“The people must punish and reject both BN and PN on November 19 for being a failed prime minister and government,” Lim said in the statement, referring to the Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional coalition-led government.
Lim also chided Ismail Sabri for heading a failed government, particularly in its primary duty of managing the economy and containing the rising cost of living.
“Ismail Sabri insists that inflation is under control despite the reality being contrary to the evidence on the ground, facts and figures, including granular economic data that shows that Malaysians and businesses especially SMEs are distressed financially due to rising prices.
“The cost of Ismail’s failure is individual and business borrowers paying extra for their loans. Ismail does not appear to be embarrassed that Bank Negara has indirectly exposed his and the BN/PN government’s failure to control inflation,” Lim said.
On November 4, MetMalaysia forecast that the north-east monsoon season would begin on November 7 and last until March next year, and it could result in flooding in low-lying and riverine areas.
The department also predicted that the king tide phenomenon could hit during several periods between November and January next year.
