“Asking Anwar to go is akin to forsaking PH’s multi-racial coalition”

“Asking Anwar to go is akin to forsaking PH’s multi-racial coalition”

By Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy



I FIND Wong Chin Huat’s analysis of why Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim should step down rather amusing.

It is a reductionist attempt to evaluate Anwar on the basis of not being able to capture political power in the country.

What is said by Wong is nothing new – it merely complements some recent writings that argue that Anwar having outlived his political usefulness must go or make way for young leaders before the next general election.

According to Wong, since no one is indispensable, Anwar is certainty not.

But this indispensability argument does not add value.

Wong says that Anwar should go because he had repeatedly failed in seizing power about four times: in September 2008, February 2020, Sept-October 2020 and the latest being August 2021.

Apart from failing to seize power because of the difficulty in getting crossovers from UMNO and others, Anwar is considered to be too liberal.

It might be a disadvantage in attracting support from the conservative Malays entrapped by race and religion.

While Wong is entitled to his opinion, his analysis in asking Anwar to make an exit is no different from the recent spate articles asking Anwar to be replaced by young leaders.

Of course, those asking for Anwar’s exit do not offer answers as to who should replace Anwar.

It is merely stated and repeated over and over again that Anwar be replaced by someone young and energetic.

The person must be honest, sincere and most importantly he must be someone who does not believe in party hopping.

However, Wong in his eagerness to show Anwar the door fails to deal with the question of his political disposition.

If Anwar is too liberal, then what should be the political inclination of his successor?

I am not sure whether Wong wants the successor to be conservative so that he could entice the Malays.

If being liberal is a problem, then getting a conservative candidate to replace Anwar might pose a problem for the non-Malays in the DAP, an important component of PH.

A Malay conservative replacement of Anwar might entice the Malays, but will end up breaking up the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition.

What will be the position of the DAP?

If Anwar has to go because he is too liberal, it might pose a danger to the existence of PH’s multi-racialism and the belief in pluralism.

The argument for Anwar to exit based on his failed attempts to seize power and his political inclination are hardly the kind of reasons that why Anwar should quit.

The merits or demerits of Anwar cannot be reduced to his age or failures to capture power or his political inclinations.

I don’t understand why Wong would get entrapped into these kinds of reasons for Anwar to quit the political scene.

Anwar is no ordinary person – he is a man who has sacrificed plenty for the country.

He was the one responsible for building the country’s opposition, leading to the formation of alternative government in 2018.

Although PH’s government was short lived, the possibility of a multi-racial government was established.

The sacrifices of PKR and DAP leaders must be remembered and appreciated for building and sustaining a multi-racial alternative to the one based on race and religion.

Taking political power in the country that is “deeply divided” is no joke.

Anwar might not have succeeded in the four attempts, but he came near to power in the last attempt.

Sure he lost the bid for prime ministership, but he was not too far behind Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

How can such a difficult attempt be dismissed as “failure”?

Yes, failure in not capturing power or becoming the prime minister, but not in forging a political alternative.

Winning or losing is something common in political systems that are based on parliamentary democracies.

After all, there is nothing permanent in politics.

Anwar should not be remembered for his failures, but for the determined sacrifices alongside others in building and sustaining a multi-racial coalition.

When things are weighted so much in favour of race or religion, PH is an amazing alternative for Malaysians who cherish freedom, equality and identity.

Anwar is a towering figure in the direction of building a just and decent society.

Let us not jump on the recent bandwagon to castigate for him for his failures.

Anwar is the glue that holds the Opposition together.

Anwar like others will make his exit when the time comes. He is not without faults.

Let not ask for Anwar’s political exit at time when there is pressing need to beef up the multi-racial coalition.

Abandoning Anwar is nothing less than forsaking the PH’s multi-racial coalition that was built on the basis of sacrifices and struggles. – Sept 3, 2021.

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Ramasamy Palanisamy is the state assemblyperson for Perai. He is also deputy chief minister II of Penang.