Who is your MP?

While witnessing the tabling of Budget 2016 from Parliament’s viewing deck last week, my mind drifted for a moment from the finance minister to the remaining members of Parliament (MPs) present.

222 MPs representing slightly over 30 million of the Malaysian population, gearing up for debate on the nation’s finances which will determine the amount of money you and I spend for the next one year at least.

So while there is a good dose of discussion on the possible candidates to replace the current prime minister – if he is unseated – how many of the current MPs could we put our house on and say, "She/He will do a fantastic job as Malaysia’s premier"?

Indeed, it is clear that not all operate on equal footing as MPs as the government is provided with a substantial amount of allocations while their counterparts in the opposition bench receive zilch – but it is also vital for Malaysians to look at the calibre of those in office.

Spanning 14 states, across both East and West Malaysia, the 222 elected representatives in Malaysia’s Dewan Rakyat are pretty diverse, but is anyone genuinely up for the top job?

To dig deeper, one has to look at the makeup of the Dewan Rakyat to scrutinise the quality on offer.

For instance, we have "social media MPs" who believe entirely in the duty of an elected representative starting and ending on various social media platforms.

Many pictures and snippets are taken but all one might have at the end of a five-year term is a huge album to reminisce over.

Then, the "keyboard MPs": the ones who rely almost completely on regular "analytical" press statements as the be-all and end-all of an MP's duty.

Next up, the "fashionable MPs".

Some, including ministers, try to pull out all the stops to remain chic and popular, with a lot of focus placed on their public image – both literally and figuratively – and not much else.

Also, there are individuals who constantly play the role of "the exposer" – they who look for government wrongdoing and inform the rakyat what is amiss.

While that effort is certainly commendable, in government, it would be tough for "exposers" to operate as it is highly unlikely that they would reveal their own government’s wrongdoings if an incident of that nature were to arise.

Alongside that, there is a prevalence of elected representatives who try to be jacks of all trades but masters of none. The sort who have little nucleus in terms of originality, yet try to appear busy without achieving a lot.

The illustration of MPs above can provide the one- or two-liner which packs a punch and capture headlines, but that effect will dissipate after the sun sets.

On the flip-side though, there are also a select few MPs who genuinely focus on perfecting the areas they are good at and go about their business without much fanfare.

Men and women who are able to put forth creative yet concrete programmes which address the struggles faced by the rakyat through economic alternatives, social change or political advancement.

Because if there is a firm belief in change, viable alternatives in Parliament is the only way Malaysians will be convinced to change at the polling booth.

In the current workings, Parliament is the only institution which bears any resemblance of allowing people’s participation, but there is no denying that the quality of participation when concerning people’s representatives can and should be improved.

So, who is your MP? – October 28, 2015.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.