Hampir sebulan telah berlalu sejak Mahkamah Agung Amerika Syarikat memutuskan bahawa tarif yang dikenakan oleh Donald Trump adalah tidak berperlembagaan — tarif yang sama yang menjadi asas kepada Perjanjian Perdagangan Timbal Balik Malaysia–Amerika Syarikat yang ditandatangani oleh Anwar Ibrahim pada Oktober lalu.
*Namun begitu, Perdana Menteri masih belum menangani isu ini. Selepas membuat begitu banyak gembar-gembur semasa majlis menandatangani perjanjian itu, Anwar Ibrahim kini secara pengecut mengelak daripada mengambil atau gagal mengambil pendirian yang jelas susulan keputusan Mahkamah Agung Amerika Syarikat. Ketika kamera terpasang, Perdana Menteri begitu lantang bersuara. Namun apabila asas kepada perjanjian tersebut telah dibatalkan oleh mahkamah tertinggi di Amerika Syarikat, beliau memilih untuk terus berdiam diri daripada mempertahankan kepentingan Malaysia dengan jelas dan tegas.*
Rakyat Malaysia berhak mendapat penjelasan mengapa PM Anwar Ibrahim masih berdiam diri, sedangkan asas perundangan kepada perjanjian yang beliau tandatangani itu sudah tidak lagi sah. Perniagaan, pengeksport dan pelabur memerlukan kepastian, tetapi sehingga kini Perdana Menteri masih belum memberikan jawapan yang jelas.
Saya memuji Menteri Pelaburan, Perdagangan dan Industri Johari Ghani atas keterbukaannya mengesahkan bahawa perjanjian tersebut secara berkesan telah terbatal. Tahap kejelasan seperti ini sepatutnya diberikan oleh Perdana Menteri lebih awal.
*Kepimpinan bukan tentang peluang bergambar, pengumuman besar, kemegahan menaiki The Beast secara percuma atau menerima pen percuma dari Rumah Putih. Kepimpinan adalah tentang memikul tanggungjawab apabila keadaan berubah.*
PM Anwar Ibrahim kini perlu bertindak dalam kapasiti beliau sebagai Perdana Menteri. Beliau mesti secara rasmi memaklumkan kepada Donald Trump dan pihak berkuasa Amerika Syarikat yang berkaitan bahawa Malaysia menganggap perjanjian tersebut tidak sah dan tidak boleh dipertahankan berikutan keputusan Mahkamah Agung Amerika Syarikat.
Malaysia tidak boleh terikat kepada perjanjian perdagangan yang dibina atas tarif yang telah diisytiharkan tidak berperlembagaan oleh mahkamah tertinggi di Amerika Syarikat sendiri.
Semakin lama Perdana Menteri berlengah, semakin timbul persoalan: apakah sebenarnya yang beliau takut untuk katakan?
Waytha Moorthy Ponnusamy
Presiden
Malaysia Advancement Party
15.3.2026
Nearly a month has passed since the United States Supreme Court ruled that Donald Trump’s tariffs were unconstitutional — the very tariffs that formed the basis of the Malaysia–US Agreement on Reciprocal Trade signed by Anwar Ibrahim last October.
However, the Prime Minister has not addressed this issue.
Malaysians deserve an explanation for the lack of response from Anwar Ibrahim, given that the legal foundation of the agreement he signed is no longer valid. Businesses, exporters, and investors require clarity as the Prime Minister has yet to provide a direct answer.
I commend Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Johari Ghani for his transparency in confirming that the deal is effectively cancelled. This level of clarity should have been provided by the Prime Minister earlier.
Leadership is not about photo opportunities, grand announcements, glory of a free ride in The Beast and a free White House pen. Leadership is about taking responsibility when circumstances change.
Anwar Ibrahim should now act in his capacity as Prime Minister. He must formally notify Donald Trump and the relevant US authorities that Malaysia considers the agreement unlawful and untenable in light of the US Supreme Court's ruling.
Malaysia cannot be bound to a trade deal built on tariffs that the highest court in the United States itself has declared unconstitutional.
The longer the Prime Minister delays, the more it raises the question: what exactly is he afraid to say?
The warning by Minister Gobind Singh Deo that police inaction in cases involving religion could threaten national stability should be taken seriously by every Malaysian who values peace and harmony in our multi-racial society.
Yet the conduct of the Home Minister, Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, raises serious and disturbing questions about whether the government itself truly believes in the principles it publicly proclaims.
It is deeply alarming that the Home Minister — the very person responsible for overseeing the police and internal security — has reportedly met with a well-known hate preacher who has been the subject of hundreds of police reports over the years for inflammatory and statements that have repeatedly stirred hostility between Malaysia’s religious and ethnic communities. This individual has long built a reputation for spreading divisive rhetoric and provoking tensions among Malaysians of different faiths, and has been emboldened by the recent “endorsement” by Saifuddin.
For years, Malaysians have been told that provocative statements touching on race and religion will be dealt with firmly under the law. Even the Sultan Perak last year reminded authorities and Malaysians on the need to maintain peaceful co-existence. Yet when it comes to certain individuals, the law appears to move at a glacial pace — if at all.
The question Malaysians are entitled to ask is simple: why does someone with such a long record of incitement and hate speech appear to enjoy protection from prosecutionand a Madani Minister?
The Home Minister’s meeting with such a figure sends an extremely troubling message to the public. Instead of demonstrating zero tolerance toward those who sow hatred and division, the government appears willing to grant them legitimacy and access at the highest levels of authority.
These contradictions expose a glaring hypocrisy within the so-called “Madani” government. While Gobind rightly warn about the dangers of religious extremism and inflammatory rhetoric, the Home Minister, Saifuddin NasutionIsmail, appears willing to meet and legitimise a figure widely known for spreading division and hostility among Malaysia’s communities.
In light of this troubling episode, the leadership of the DAP must demand an immediate explanation from the Home Minister. If the government is truly committed to unity and the rule of law, it cannot appear to extend legitimacy or protection to individuals accused of promoting hatred and division.
Waytha Moorthy Ponnusamy
President
Malaysian Advancement Party
12.3.2026
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