LETTERS: There has been a lot of talk of the green wave in the state elections.
But some leaders are picking on petty issues to debate. One good example is the parliamentary debate on the Health White Paper.
The white paper is meant to provide a way forward for the country as we deal with overcrowding at hospitals, long waiting times for treatment of critical illness, and contract doctors.
But when the public hoped for a constructive debate on the paper, one obscure party member commented about nurses' dressing.
So let's reset our mindset. We know that our country is a resource-blessed nation.
We are not in the path of the natural calamities.
We do see changes in the intensity of monsoon floods as global warming affects the world.
We are also blessed with deposits of oil and gas.
Whatever is coming, we have the right recipe for economic prosperity.
What has baffled economists is that, despite such blessings, why are we still in the less developed category among nations?
Sustainable economic progress should be the crux of our development agenda.
The looming climate crisis is seen by many as the biggest enemy for humanity.
The world has no choice but to change from the business-as-usual economy to one that underscores the importance of the environment and society.
This is the green wave that we need to strive for and support, not the political green wave.
We are fortunate that the sustainability green wave is a feature of the unity government's Madani formula, which many see as the true reflection of our Rukun Negara. Sustainability is the right green wave.
PROFESSOR DATUK, DR AHMAD IBRAHIM
UCSI University
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times