LETTERS: Public discourse on the many issues in Malaysia tends to be reactive or kneejerk. The latest concerns the depreciation of the ringgit.
At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government allowed people to make multiple withdrawals from their retirement savings. By relying on quick fixes, the government had set a retirement time bomb that will haunt us in the decades to come.
Now that we are confronted with a depreciating ringgit, many have suggested that the government and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to put a band-aid on this deep economic wound.
Some called for BNM to hike the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) or intervene in the foreign exchange market. Some have even suggested capital controls. Clearly, we have not learnt from the retirement funds debacle. All these measures promise only short-term relief.
There must be collective efforts to raise awareness on the importance of implementing meaningful structural reforms. The recent "Reformasi 100 per cent" movement should not focus just on political reforms but more critically the economic reforms that will impact us for the decades and generations to come.
The Madani Economy framework's target of six per cent gross domestic product (GDP) growth is a laudable and achievable goal with the correct, radical reforms in place.
There will be a lot of sacrifices that will need to be made (e.g., removal of blanket subsidies) and the process will take time.
For the reforms to be properly implemented, the whole nation must come together and set aside political differences. We must work towards the common goal of shared prosperity, or we risk falling further behind.
Let us not partake in petty political squabbles. Instead, we should critique the economic masterplans and debate our way to a better and more prosperous future.
We must give the government an opporunity to fulfil its mandate and transform the economy. As a democracy, we are allowed to review the government's performance once its term is up. We shouldn't perpetuate the political instability that we have suffered in recent years.
At the same time, those in power must be more charismatic and emphatic. They must give the masses something to hope for, an economic dream that Malaysians can work towards and can eventually succeed.
The silver lining of the ringgit's depreciation is that it is a wake-up call. There is now greater awareness that something isn't right with the economy.
History has shown, time and time again, that stagnation ends with crisis. A crisis is still avoidable, but we must urgently act to secure our future.
WONG TECK JIN
Petaling Jaya, Selangor
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times