By Mei Kuan
Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, in his maiden speech as the 9th Prime Minister of Malaysia, stressed on the inclusive concept of the Malaysian family (keluarga Malaysia) in moving forward collectively to recover the nation, regardless of ethnicities and religions.
“I urge all members of Dewan Rakyat to unite to recover the nation and save our Malaysian family with open-mindedness. Let us seek similarities and not differences,” he stated during the televised address which began at 5.30pm today (August 22).
Born and bred in a poor farmer’s family, Ismail expressed his empathy for those who have lost their source of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic and are struggling to put food on the table.
“The COVID-19 pandemic is an enemy of us all. The strategies drafted before will be continued, enhanced and improved by taking into consideration the views of public healthcare experts,” he explained.
The Prime Minister also announced the purchase of an additional 6 million doses of vaccines which is set to be received early September this year.
To lessen the long-term economic impacts caused by the pandemic, he outlined two major objectives which the current government will direct its effort towards:
- Restoring the wellbeing of the people
- Boosting the private sectors as the pioneers of economic growth
“I will ensure that no one will be left behind,” he reassured.
According to him, political stability needs to be achieved immediately via unity, including establishing cross-party cooperation: “Thus, I’d like to offer space to the Opposition to be a part of the National Recovery Council (MPN) and the Special Committee in Handling COVID-19.”
“An administration team will be formed to serve and help resolve the country’s healthcare and economic problems. I promise to establish the best in order to live up to the people’s trust,” he said.
“Let us all together, as a Malaysian family, restore the wellbeing and comfort we once achieved. I am committed to work with the people,” he enthused.
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