THOUGH the proposal of having a unity government in the country is tough to put into practice, all political factions in the country can at least consider forming a unity government in order to put an end to the ongoing political turmoil.
Malaysia needs political stability in order to control the spread of Covid-19.
Ever since we witnessed the change of government in February, our country has been in political uncertainty.
All these political uncertainties occurred during a time when the whole world, including us, was just facing the Covid-19 outbreak.
To date, millions of peoples have been infected with the virus and over a million people have died from the infection all over the world. Malaysia is also not immune to the virus.
Though our country has been able to control the outbreak over the last few months, the past few weeks has seen a drastic increase in the number Covid-19 cases, especially after the Sabah state election last September.
There have been many suggestions put forward to end the ongoing political turmoil in the country, which includes calling for a snap general election as well suspending Parliament.
Calling for snap general election is not a good idea to push forward as it can increase the number of Covid-19 infections in the country that is already reeling from a high number of cases. The recent Sabah state election should be a good lesson for us all.
The call to suspend the Parliament is also not a suitable call to make as it can jeopardise the democratic parliamentary system.
What our country really needs now is a government and opposition that can behave professionally, put aside their political differences as much as they can, work together and, most importantly, put all their efforts into controlling the spread of Covid-19.
What is a national unity government? A national unity government, government of national unity, or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other national emergency or national crisis.
Inside this unity government, every political faction willingly sets aside political differences and works together for the sake of the nation and people.
The idea of a unity government is not new as it has been implemented in many countries all over the world, including a few fully developed countries.
Among the countries which have implemented a unity government include Afghanistan, Croatia, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Italy, Kenya, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Namibia, Nepal, Palestine, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Sweden, and Zimbabwe.
In the United Kingdom (UK), the first national unity government in the country was the Ministry of All the Talents that led the UK for about a year after the death of William Pitt the Younger in 1806, during the Napoleonic Wars (1803 – 1815).
The Asquith coalition ministry presented a brief national coalition (1915–1916) in the UK during World War I (1914 – 1918).
In 2019, the idea of a government of National Unity was even proposed by UK politicians, including the then Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Liberal Democrats leader Jo Swinson, to stop a no-deal Brexit spearheaded by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
In the United States (US), the idea of a unity government has been carried out during the American Civil War (1861 – 1865) when Republican Abraham Lincoln ran his second term as a National Union government with Democrat Andrew Johnson as his vice-president.
Since the American Civil War, there has never been a national unity government in the US in the traditional sense.
However, there have been several instances during national disasters or wars the two major political parties in the US, namely the Republicans and the Democrats, have briefly rallied around their president and put aside their political differences such as during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, and the Sept 11, 2001 attacks.
In reality it would be difficult for all political parties in the country to come together, set aside their political differences and form a unity government due to years of political rivalry, however having a unity government in the country might still work if every politician and political party is willing to put the interests of the nation and the people first.
In order for us to successfully control the spread of Covid-19, there cannot be any room for political instability and uncertainty within the country.
By having a unity government, we can put all our focus into dealing with the spread of Covid-19 and protecting the safety and health of everyone.
Muzaffar Syah Mallow is a senior lecturer of Faculty of Syariah and Law at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM). Comments: letters@thesundaily.com
