Najib Abdul Razak has the King Midas’ touch and whatever he handles turns to gold. He used the proceeds from the Terengganu Investment Authority (TIA) and turned it into a money spinner, called the 1MDB.

Although it brought the rakyat little good and a lifetime of debt, Najib has profited most from 1MDB. It allegedly helped him achieve a ‘win’ in GE13 and maintained his power in Umno Baru.

Despite worldwide condemnation of Malaysian human rights abuses and widespread corruption, the protestations of a former PM, Mahathir Mohamad, and several senior former Umno Baru politicians, Najib is still ‘king’ of the pack and appears invincible.

Like other Malaysians, Najib tends to do things for money. Or prestige. Or power, but rarely for altruistic reasons. The prime minister is supposed to be leader of a multicultural nation, but he is only vocal on Malay matters. When the occasion demands, he will fight for the rights of Muslims, forgetting that the nation has people belonging to many faiths.

If Najib is as powerful as other people make out, why does he not use his powers to right the many wrongs?

If only he would use his magic touch to get things done in Malaysia.

For instance, he and the self-proclaimed ‘First Lady of Malaysia’ (Flom), Rosmah Mansor, could fly to their holiday destinations using the jets belonging to Rayani Air. This would free up taxpayers’ money for mundane things, like building schools and hospitals, or to improve public transport.

Rayani Air, which was grounded a year ago, has left several people in the lurch. Passengers who paid for flights have allegedly not been refunded. Staff wages are allegedly being withheld, and yet the CEO of Rayani Air would like the airline to have a second chance and be granted a licence to fly.

If Najib and Rosmah were to fly Rayani Air, an overnight transformation would occur. There would be no more safety violations, the service would improve and customers who were owed money would be refunded.

The syariah-compliant Rayani Air is not the only company which could do with Najib’s Midas touch.

A bus plunges into a ravine and many lives are lost, and the bus company is found to have violated several rules.

Records from previous bus accidents showed that the drivers were on drugs, extremely fatigued after having worked long shifts to cover long distances, had been fined for several traffic violations and had not paid their fines.

In many cases, the buses were not roadworthy and the rules which stated that they should have second drivers for long distances had not been enforced.

‘Malaysians would see a dramatic improvement’

Just imagine if Najib were to use public buses to travel home to his constituency in Pekan. The bus companies would clean-up their act and Malaysians would see a dramatic improvement in bus services overnight.

If judges, mayors, prime ministers, leading opposition members, senior ruling politicians and civil servants were to travel to work by public transport, the directors of the companies which run these services would be severely reprimanded by the leaders, and told to improve their performance and safety record.

Perhaps Najib’s male grandchildren could have their circumcisions done by the latest laser technology, by one of the local doctors in a private clinic. One is sure that the doctors and clinic staff would ensure their procedures would be up to scratch for fear of having their licences revoked.

The same goes for dental work.

Has Najib tried queuing up to get a bus ticket, sending a parcel from the post office, trying to see a doctor or get medication at a government clinic?

In the MH370 tragedy, the radar control operator who allegedly failed to wake his supervisor to authorise a jet to investigate the confusing blips on the radar screen should have been demoted, and his supervisor sacked. We have not heard what has happened to them. Are they still sleeping on the job?

The flooding on the east coast and parts of the west coast of peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak would not happen if the authorities did not approve the building of houses on flood plains. An overdeveloped area, with inadequate drainage, will flood during heavy rain, especially if the monsoon drains are too small.

Storm drains, culverts and rivers are not cleared of blockages caused by vegetation, rubbish and silt, so rivers tend to overflow their banks. In the interior, illegal logging has stripped the hills of trees. Roots and leaves absorb excess moisture but when trees are logged, the excess water runs down the hills, causing mudslides and flooding.

What happened to regular maintenance, to clear blockages from the drains, and rivers of silt? Why is there no curb on irresponsible development and illegal logging?

Najib should send his grandchildren to local schools. Very soon, teaching standards and the quality of education will be improved, and paedophile teachers will be prosecuted, instead of transferred to rural schools, to continue their vile acts.

A stadium or a hospital ceiling collapses after a storm. The architect blames the builders for cutting corners and endangering public safety. What happened to the strict procedures governing construction?

A car is double parked but the driver ‘settles’ with the traffic police and is free to repeat his offence. Other people emulate him, so we end up with cars being triple parked, or in the worst case scenario, people become raging monsters and attack those who have broken the law. Proper enforcement would have prevented people from abusing the basic road rules.

All the near misses and accidents in Malaysia have one thing in common. A lack of enforcement.
In Malaysia, we do not need more laws to make sure people do the right thing. The nation lacks accountability and enforcement.

Make every minister, head of department, or company director accountable for what happens on his watch. Enforce and prosecute where necessary. Only then will you see a dramatic improvement in the way our services are delivered.

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO). Blog, Twitter.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.