An election where ‘Bossku’ became the hot topic

The Star:

An election where ‘Bossku’ became the hot topic

By Joceline Tan 

WHO would have imagined that Datuk Seri Najib Razak would become a central issue in the battle for Johor?

The man known as “Bossku” was supposed to bring the soft touch to Barisan Nasional’s campaign like what he did in Melaka. Barisan leaders expected him to do his usual food tour and “Cuti-cuti Malaysia” rounds in Johor. But something strange happened along the way and Najib became a key figure and even the central issue in the campaign.

He not only had an impact in the Malay areas but also drew interest from the Chinese community – getting the sort of welcome that top DAP leaders used to get from the Chinese. A “national embarrassment” on the one hand and the people’s favourite on the other hand. Najib is not making it easy for DAP, which has been worried about the silent mood. The man they had demonised has gone from zero to hero.

The alarm bells went off and DAP leaders joined Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in walloping him.

“He is their punching bag. Everyday, it’s Najib, Najib, Najib,” said a former journalist from Johor Baru. DAP leader Tony Pua has slammed him as the “stupidest finance minister in Malaysian history” while Dr Mahathir said Najib’s name is synonymous with 1MDB crimes. Muhyiddin has gone head-to-head with Najib, calling him a “plundering idiot” and lecturing him on morality.

Dr Mahathir has only been able to play a cameo role in the Johor polls because of his health but the name-calling continued in his final missive where he urged Johor voters not to allow “thieves, rogues and bandits” to form the government.

Yet, Najib continues to draw enthusiastic crowds wherever he appears. “I don’t think many people care as much about the 1MDB issue as four or five years ago. They know Najib is out, it is time to move on,” said former minister Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar who was preparing to return to Johor to vote when contacted. Syed Hamid, who resigned from Bersatu last month, also declined requests to help out the party in his former constituency of Kota Tinggi.

Najib has become some sort of double-edged sword in the campaign. Back in 2018, he represented everything that was wrong with the Barisan government and the political system. At the same time, said political risk analyst Datuk Wan Shihab Wan Ahmad, Najib is a reminder of how everyday life is not as difficult as when Dr Mahathir and Pakatan Harapan came along.

“Are these political parties misreading the ground in making him a central theme? I can’t see many people wanting to go back to a period when we went through four prime ministers in a space of three years,” said Wan Shihab.

However, said a Penang lawyer, 1MDB will be an issue for as long as Najib is in and out of court and it will deter the thinking class from supporting Umno. DAP’s concern in Johor is that Najib may chip away Chinese support from Pakatan. Pakatan needs every single Chinese vote they can get because they are struggling to get Malay support.

The Johor campaign has been notable for a distinct Malay mood and it is starkly anti-DAP. Pakatan’s standing among the Malays at this point is a mirror image of Barisan’s standing among the Chinese in 2018. PKR made a strategic decision to go on its own, knowing that it has a better chance of getting Malay support if it is not attached to DAP. 

DAP’s image among Malays is at rock bottom and its candidates would be lucky to get even 10% of Malay votes in non-urban seats. This was quite apparent in the Melaka election, where Malay fence-sitters abandoned Pakatan for Perikatan Nasional, which include Malay civil servants and the thinking class. But in Johor, civil servants have direct ties to the palace and it depends if they are getting any signals from that direction.

The main beneficiaries of this insular Malay mood will be Barisan and Perikatan – not Pejuang, which is too new and has zero presence on the ground. Pejuang is too tied up with Dr Mahathir’s stature and his recent announcement that he will not be contesting in Langkawi again will not help his party in Johor.

Muda’s electoral prospects will be closely watched on Saturday (March 12). Muda candidates were clearly overwhelmed by the enormity of the election and some of them looked lost, like children in a vast and unfamiliar playground. Will Muda live up to its social media hype and shine a light into the future?

Najib delivered a calculated counter-punch at Muhyiddin when he arrived at the latter’s homeground in Bukit Gambir, the seat Muhyiddin decided not to defend. He labelled Muhyiddin a “failed prime minister” who made Malaysia the only country in the world that fought the pandemic by declaring an emergency and suspending Parliament.

Incidentally, Najib should also take action against his officer who bullied a member of the press corps covering Najib in Tangkak. The Johor polls are about people deciding who can best restore political stability so that livelihoods, work and business can get