Makkal Sakti does not deserve its name

I thought the message from the results of the March 8 General Elections last year was clear enough - that many Malaysians from all walks of lives DO NOT want politics based on racial lines. And here we go again the latest party, the Malaysia Makkal Sakti Party, being formed (registered on May 11) to fight for a certain race only. That is a total disappointment.

Makkal Sakti means “people’s power.” Why is it not formed to fight for all of Malaysian’s poor? It should just be called Indian power.

Now, who is going to fight for the poor of the other races? The orang asli makes up the poorest group in the country. Don’t tell me an orang asli party too should be established to fight for their rights. This will never end. Hopefully all parties from the Government coalition Barisan Nasional and the opposition Pakatan Rakyat will realise by now that poverty cuts across all races. Even if there are many middle class Malays and Chinese, it should not deprive the poor from these groups from being helped.

If there is any party that we urgently need now is a Labour Party and a Green Party. Look at how workers are exploited and the earth raped by greedy and deprave fools.

Our wages at this period of time are the worst I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. It’s obvious which side the present Government is siding – the employers, of course. It seems to collapse at the slightest pressure from them, for instance, in its effort to implement the double levy policy on foreign labour and keeping jobs for Malaysians. If the Government is serious about this effort, it can always start gradually and do with a mix of locals and foreign workers until their contracts expire.

The Government accepted the employers’ argument that it would be difficult for them to look for locals to do certain jobs such as cleaning and waiting at the table and that the cost of labour among locals would cause food prices to go up.

However, the Malayan Trade Union Congress and consumer groups pointed out that employers themselves had not provided fair wages and working hours, and decant or safe working conditions. Moreover, while locals are likely to spend their money here and stimulate the current sluggish economy, foreign workers will send their money back to their home country instead.

I wish that some conscientious employers can prove that they can be competitive by hiring locals despite a higher wage structure. It is hard to believe the excuse that employers often gave, that they cannot find locals to do the job. How was it that we were able to do it a few years ago and suddenly we could not? All so sudden. If employers have difficulties making ends meet, then perhaps other factors be looked into. The Government should set some limit to the exhorbitant rentals of commercial premises.

Enough said for now. I shall touch more on wages in my next blog.