• IJN will not be privatised … for now?

The government has shelved plans to privatise IJN (National Heart Institute) in the hands of Sime Darby much to the applause of the nation. Imagine if this privatisation bid were to happen before the 13th March 2008 General Election, the deal would have wrapped up by now. IJN would have gone into Sime Darby’s dirty hands if Barisan Nasional had not been facing a significant opposition we have now. This is a fine example of how important it is to have a strong opposition in parliament. Also, the volume of blogs, media and voices of the nation has never been louder. As citizens, we must shout and make sure we are heard whenever the government makes silly decision with our tax money. For now, we have made a dent into the government’s ill-intentioned plan to privatise IJN. But I’m not relieved yet as this could merely be Barisan Nasional’s strategy in light of the coming KT by-election. Plans can always be brought up again. It is clear as day that Barisan Nasional has no reservations in privatising IJN, as Najib has said one day before deciding not to privatise. Barisan Nasional is a government with no conscience. Now that we have a strong opposition, at the very least, we can expect Barisan Nasional to pretend to have a bit of conscience