The United States government is temporarily closed for business and some 800,000 public servants go on indefinite unpaid leave.
Do not think that these public servants can just go for a vacation and enjoy life. They simply have no where to pour out their plight.
They have plenty of free time now, but no income. To the American public servants who have not drawn very lucrative salaries and have therefore only meagre savings, the government shutdown could pose a lot of pressure on them.
House mortgages still need to be settled, not to mention mounting credit card dents, car loans and household expenses that they still must deal with. One week of shutdown could make life very pathetic for many of them.
Who cares how hard they have worked for the nation day in and day out, they are now direct victims of duel between President Obama and his rivals on Capitol Hill.
All this owing to the "Obamacare" universal health insurance law that was passed a few years ago, and takes effect this month, that has soured the relationship between the president and the Republican congressmen.
His success in getting the new health insurance plan passed as law, thus ensuring that large sums of public funds will be used to insure low-income individuals, had won him electoral support from the vast low-income American families.
The Republicans are staunchly against the medical reform as most of its supporters have been either wealthy or middle-class, and who are also major taxpayers.
The Republicans are well aware of what their supporters feel, and has gone all out to block Obama, thanks also to a little instigation from the Tea Party, even to the extent of sending the government to a "shutdown' state.
Sure enough the 500-odd representatives on Capitol Hill will continue to draw their handsome pays and allowances despite the shutdown. They totally stay immune of the effects of the shutdown, but not the hundreds of thousands of low-ranking public servants.
In Malaysia, the million-strong public servants need not worry such a thing will ever befall them. Practising the Westminster-style Cabinet system, the government is formed from the party commanding majority of seats in the Parliament. The executive and legislative branches are working in good coordination with each other and neither is going to pull the leg of the other.
Moreover, to win the support of the civil servants and to thank them for their services (and votes), the government has been excessively generous in upping their salaries along with good bonuses and perks.
As for the perennial irregularities occurring among public servants, the government chooses to keep their eyes shut.
For example, although the annual Auditor-General's reports have disclosed countless instances of jaw-dropping fund misappropriation, such absurdities continue to take place year after year, and the government does not seem to have taken any remedial or punitive actions.
Malaysia's public services efficiency leaves much to be desired while corruption and squandering of public funds often go unchecked.
By comparison, the American civil services are known for their efficiency and impeccable quality although their remunerations have not always matched their dedication and input.
If they were to see the meticulous care and assurances their Malaysian counterparts are entitled to, they will surely be green with envy.
But, that is where the differences between a developed country and a developing country lie. - mysinchew.com, October 4, 2013.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.
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