S Thayaparan
“Avoid racial topics. It would be best if non-Malays do not launch personal attacks against rival Malay leaders, especially those with religious backgrounds. The sensitivity can be twisted to portray non-Muslims mocking Islam. Let us Muslims take the lead and expose.”
COMMENT | So far on the campaign stump, Anwar Ibrahim has done just that.
The Pakatan Harapan chief may have made a hasty exit from that student forum but where it counts, on the stump, Anwar is sounding more like the old reformasi provocateur that splintered the Malay vote.
Honestly, I wondered about Saudara Anwar. I am not talking about whether he really is the kind of visionary Malaysian that could lead us out of this quagmire.
No, I am talking about if he still had what it takes to win elections after all his failed attempts at trying to craft a backdoor of his own.
Anwar’s loyalists tell me that they were waiting for an election to fire up the old man. Now that Parliament was no longer in play, he could fully turn his attention to the general election.
He could finally be free of all “these temptations” to dethrone the government and take it to the streets, where the fight really is.
Say what you like about Anwar’s so-called lust for power, but there have always been political operatives who have stood in his way using legitimate – but most often, illegitimate – means to hamper his democratic right to assume the highest office in the land.
To be fair to Anwar - and I am loath to be “fair” when it comes to politicians - Harapan has never fully committed to him becoming the next prime minister.
It was excruciating seeing how many political operatives were bending the knee to the old maverick while chastising Anwar for wanting a timetable for a handover of power.
“Avoid racial topics. It would be best if non-Malays do not launch personal attacks against rival Malay leaders, especially those with religious backgrounds. The sensitivity can be twisted to portray non-Muslims mocking Islam. Let us Muslims take the lead and expose.”
– PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli
COMMENT | So far on the campaign stump, Anwar Ibrahim has done just that.
The Pakatan Harapan chief may have made a hasty exit from that student forum but where it counts, on the stump, Anwar is sounding more like the old reformasi provocateur that splintered the Malay vote.
Honestly, I wondered about Saudara Anwar. I am not talking about whether he really is the kind of visionary Malaysian that could lead us out of this quagmire.
No, I am talking about if he still had what it takes to win elections after all his failed attempts at trying to craft a backdoor of his own.
Anwar’s loyalists tell me that they were waiting for an election to fire up the old man. Now that Parliament was no longer in play, he could fully turn his attention to the general election.
He could finally be free of all “these temptations” to dethrone the government and take it to the streets, where the fight really is.
Say what you like about Anwar’s so-called lust for power, but there have always been political operatives who have stood in his way using legitimate – but most often, illegitimate – means to hamper his democratic right to assume the highest office in the land.
To be fair to Anwar - and I am loath to be “fair” when it comes to politicians - Harapan has never fully committed to him becoming the next prime minister.
It was excruciating seeing how many political operatives were bending the knee to the old maverick while chastising Anwar for wanting a timetable for a handover of power.
Now that everyone is on board, Harapan has a clear figurehead in which to galvanise diverse voting blocks.
In a political milieu where some voters do not even know what coalition their candidates belong to, having a clear idea that Anwar is the clear choice for the hot seat, is a boon.
It shows that he is a contender and not just a stand-in like Ismail Sabri Yaakob, or has been.
On the campaign trail, Anwar is earning his keep. He has reverted to his populist folksy manner of engaging with multiracial crowds in urban centres that worked well for him in the past and becoming that sort of paternalistic figure reminding rural folks that carpetbaggers from the Malay uber alles establishment are stealing from them and making their lives difficult.
This type of class-race narrative is the kind of populism that brought Anwar into power in the first place but was abandoned after political operatives tasted power and the goal became to retain power.
Always a difficult position
Reforming the system and uplifting the Malay polity are also not mutually exclusive. In the early days of reformasi, Anwar used to claim that needs-based affirmative actions would not disenfranchise the Malay community because they were the majority in need, but this did not mean the non-Malays had to be penalised.
Anwar has always been in a difficult position. He has to maintain a healthy Malay vote bank but also reinforce egalitarian ideas to satisfy Harapan’s non-Malay base.
This election is different though. The establishment has screwed up in so many ways that people, whether in urban or rural areas, are pissed off.
As that great realpolitik democratic strategist James Carville once said about the political game, it is not about ideology, it is about psychology.
For instance, when Anwar says “There are people going around Padang Serai campaigning (and saying), ‘We want a Malay’ (MP). What is this? It’s best to pick a principled man like (M) Karupaiya”, what this does, is that it exposes the racism of those making such a statement but also rejects the Zakir Naik idea - that it is better to vote for a corrupt Muslim leader than an honest non-Muslim leader since race and religion are not mutually exclusive here in Malaysia.
Karupaiya passed away yesterday and it is disheartening to think that his final days were spent in a campaign where such racism was still an established practice here in Malaysia.
The late M Karupaiya
Post-GE15 hookups
Now while it is easy to indulge in conspiracy theories about possible post-election pacts and certain sub rosa moves by PKR and Umno operatives, this really does not concern me at all.
If there are coalitions hooking up post-election, this is what democracy is all about. And yes, I believe the groundwork is being laid for possible hookups post-election and this includes the positioning of political operatives on the chessboard and normalising certain narratives.
Having said that, the goal for Harapan is to gain the most leverage. I get that political operatives are going about claiming all sorts of things about their chances of making a clean sweep and if that happens great.
But what is more important is that in case there are post-election hookups, Harapan needs to be the juiciest pact on the block and this is only achieved by having the most candidates.
Forget about the questionable choices of candidates Harapan has put up in certain constituencies, but what is important is that this is the straight fight that a certain section of the voting polity has been waiting for.
What is important, for Harapan, is that they have the numbers to leverage the best deal for the base and for Malaysia.
This means Anwar getting the mandate he needs from not only his political operatives but also voters. The Harapan base should be relieved Anwar has got his mojo back.
S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. Fīat jūstitia ruat cælum - “Let justice be done though the heavens fall.”
Post-GE15 hookups
Now while it is easy to indulge in conspiracy theories about possible post-election pacts and certain sub rosa moves by PKR and Umno operatives, this really does not concern me at all.
If there are coalitions hooking up post-election, this is what democracy is all about. And yes, I believe the groundwork is being laid for possible hookups post-election and this includes the positioning of political operatives on the chessboard and normalising certain narratives.
Having said that, the goal for Harapan is to gain the most leverage. I get that political operatives are going about claiming all sorts of things about their chances of making a clean sweep and if that happens great.
But what is more important is that in case there are post-election hookups, Harapan needs to be the juiciest pact on the block and this is only achieved by having the most candidates.
Forget about the questionable choices of candidates Harapan has put up in certain constituencies, but what is important is that this is the straight fight that a certain section of the voting polity has been waiting for.
What is important, for Harapan, is that they have the numbers to leverage the best deal for the base and for Malaysia.
This means Anwar getting the mandate he needs from not only his political operatives but also voters. The Harapan base should be relieved Anwar has got his mojo back.
S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. Fīat jūstitia ruat cælum - “Let justice be done though the heavens fall.”
No comments:
Post a Comment