The Malaysian Insider

“It’s a mark of a nation that is stable,” says Najib. I think it is also a mark of how much the country needs them. Compared the two politicians to your maids or garbage collectors or your guards. We won't last a week without them. Goodbye?

Are these two bloke absconding from Malaysia? Why the hell we need a Deputy PM when he wants to disappear simultaneously with the PM? Is it stated in any part of the Constitution that the DPM takes over the duties of the PM in his absence as is the case of social organizations?

"30-year standing rule that both the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister should not be out of the country at the same time"
If a 30 yr. old standing rule can be broken, I suppose everything is trivial to Pat Ling, such as the indiscriminate use of the ISA, the CJ telling a lie, the lop-sided application of the law. Without LKS highlighting all the injustices & do-whatever-they-like attitude, no matter how trivial, the people in power would have got away with murder, as the saying goes.

No problem at all, Najib can text back his instruction, so can Badawi.
Why dont the two dick heads just continue to stay abroad and never bother to come back, just text their back their resignation.
how irresponsible!
But then this is Malaysia, Malaysian leaders dont deal with international issues anyway. They can't help in any big way, they can't speak any sense.

So why bother?

Dear Pat Ling . . . .
It is not a matter of communication or being able to return at a moments notice. It is about projecting the power of government.
Every government in the world has either a written or unwritten rule that by convention, its top two leaders are never away at the same time. It is the same as a ship, an airplane, etc. You would not want your pilot and co-pilot to be "resting" while the plane is flying on auto-pilot, would you? The plane could very well have do it on auto-pilot without any direction from either pilot or co-pilot, but it is just not done.
Take even the US. The President and Vice President have at their disposal Air Force One and Two. It's chockful of communications gear and it's available to take off at a moments notice. Yet, do you see the President and the Vice President away from the US at the same time?
So, it begs to question why the PM and DPM need to be abroad at the same time. Was this another snafu on the part of the government's schedulers?
The other question that begs to be answered is who will be in charge while the PM and DPM are away. Traditionally, in all governments, when the top leader is away, power is passed onto the No. 2. So, now with both of them away, who is the No. 3? I think that is what LKS is trying to put the point across. It is not so much about that it cannot be done, but there are governance questions that we need to answer as a nation.
As the BN begins to loose its grip on power, these are legitimate and urgent questions that all of us should be asking. We have taken these issues for granted for far too long. There must be mechanisms to address these "shortcomings" in our government, not so much for the here and now, but for the future. If left unaddressed, these will lead to a constitutional crisis. Maybe not this year, or next, but sometime in the future.
So, Pat Ling . . . Yes, both PM and DPM can be away at the same time and communication techonology is better than ever. However, by convention and practicality, it is seldom if ever done. The reason is to preserve the "projection of government power" by letting people know that there is someone in charge of the country who is in the country. It is about perception.
Otherwise, leaders would not be kicked out of office for playing golf while there is a devastating earthquake in another part of their country (for example). The leader can still make calls and give orders while playing golf, right?
Politics is about perception and making the citizen / rakyat feel that they can trust, depend, believe, count on, etc. . . . . . on their leaders.

In the department which I work, each time the top management is away, an email will be sent to all to inform us of the appointment of a temporary caretaker for the department till they return. This is the normal practise. I find it inappropriate for both leaders to leave a country without a caretaker even if it's only two days.

Although today's communication tools have broken down borders, there still must be a leader to be physically present to lead a country in case of an emergency or in case a quick decision requires his presence... or whatever. Do not rely merely on these communication tools which are sometimes more of a bane than a boon.

Go by all means. At this point of time when the nation is facing economic uncertainties, please be more prudent in your spending. There is a fine line between official expenses and private expenses

I disagree with Pat Ling. After 8 March, it looks like this country has no head. Can anyone tell us what Najib's idea for the country are, besides more of the same?
Pat Ling you seem quite close to the gov of the day, perhaps you can help here?

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak today admitted that the absence of the nation’s top two leaders from the country at the same time was unusual but he said it shows the country is stable.

In a stable country like ours, we don't need the PM or the DPM or even his entire cabinet.
What we need are little Napoleons to govern us!

Pak Lah is running the country to the ground, so it is better that he is away. Najib is still in the dark on what to do,so it does not matter if he is around or not.