Yingluck, Asia's new flavor and Pakatan has Malaysia's reply - Nurul Izzah

Yingluck Shinawatra, Thailand's new and first woman prime minister, is now the hottest name in all of Asia. Not only because this is a landmark political change for Thailand, but also because of her 'X' factor, her special oomph due to a combination of fantastic youthful looks and charisma. It remains to be seen how Yingluck performs as a leader but she has already won the hearts and minds of the Thais.

In Malaysia, we have someone waiting in the wings. She is not yet ready , not for a few years more but she is definitely a potential with a capital P, much to the chargin of another youth rival, UMNO's Khairy Jamaluddin.

Of course, we are talking about Nurul Izzah Anwar, the daughter of Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim. She is young, ambitious, bright and has all the qualities needed to lead. Especially the ones that have gone missing for ages in the scandal-tainted Malaysian political scene - integrity and honesty.

Even so, within the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition, there is so much talent, she will have to wait her turn. However, in the wake of the Yingluck victory, Izzah had better prepare for the UMNO spin mills to churn plots and conspiracies aimed at sowing dissatisfaction amongst the Pakatan leaders. Why do you think some former UMNO leaders were so kind as to start an Izzah-for-PM campaign if not to shoot poison arrows and to demoralize the other deserving candidates in Pakatan?

But Izzah is smart enough to catch this. She also knows she has to tread carefully. One of the main reasons is that supporters in Pakatan tend to be more realistic than those in Prime Minister Najib Razak's UMNO-BN. Especially rife in UMNO is the culture of hero-worship, while dynastic politics is also the order of the day. In fact, no one can be prime minister of Malaysia except for Najib cousin's Hishammuddin Hussein, Mahathir's son Mukhriz and then back to Najib's son. In between will be the seat warmers like Abdullah Badawi and soon-to-be-PM Muhyiddin Yassin. Even wannabe Khairy Jamaluddin, Badawi's son-in-law who tried to break into the old-boys-club, has slim chances and the only way for him would be to use a lot of money if he seriously wants in at the very top.

Talent parade

As hero-worship and family politics still rule the local scene, Nurul must be very careful she does not trigger the same sort of crticism for the Pakatan and her own PKR party. Even though she is a first-time MP, her passion for truth and capacity for hard work has set her apart. But people being people, they are to bound to say she got there the easy way, through her famous dad and mum. And this is why she has had to work all the harder.

But surely, if Izzah continues, she will get somewhere one day. Who amongst the women in Malaysia has really been successful so far - Rafidah Aziz? Ng Yen Yen, Shahrizat Jalil? Would you vote for them?

Within Pakatan though, women who can give Izzah a really tough challenge are many and these include, Dr Siti Mariah Mahumud, Lo'Lo Ghazali, Teresa Kok, Fuziah Salleh and the very gutsy Zuraida Kamaruddin. If we take away the gender wall, there are even more talents she has to get past. Her male contemporaries would include include Azmin Ali, Nizar Jamaluddin, Mohamad Sabu, Lim Guan Eng, N Surendran, Nik Nazmi, Tian Chua and Tony Pua, Khalid Samad and Dzulkefly Ahmad.

These are just some names plucked because of their visibility. What about those still unknown and still waiting to be honed? In 10 years or so, when current batch of top leaders - Anwar, Hadi, Kit Siang, Karpal, Nik Aziz, Chua Jui Meng - give up their positions, the current second-liners must step in. Nurul and Co. would be 'old' faces by then.

Spine of steel

But for now, there is a quest for excellence that she and her colleagues must keep chasing and not rest on their laurels. Youth is wonderful but to govern a nation, maturity is essential especially political maturity. Or Pakatan would become like Najib and the UMNO elite, resorting to Datuk T and Commie plots to stay alive.

Pakatan Rakyat, when it comes to power, must make sure it stops emulating extinct UMNO culture and transform the nation into a democratic government that embraces new politics. Malaysians must start getting used to younger and more energetic leaders helming the nation. Age and gender should never be the criteria but obviously, aspirants must be fit, healthy and above all honest and accountable to the people.

It won't be so soon for Nurul and she still has to prove herself. One reason why some 'evil' people tried to make her compete against Azmin the PKR No. 2 post was to try and make her overconfident and become arrogant like Khairy. But Wan Azizah, her mother, has done a good job. Search for Izzah and you find a lady - tall, skinny, a little bit geeky and very determined. But rooted to the ground and very filial. This is why her enemies failed.

Even so, she must be careful because more and more devious tricks and traps will be designed for her in the days ahead. This was why some of her colleagues advised her not to go for the vice-presidency so as not to fuel the image of UMNO family politics in PKR and to shield her from harm before her time really comes. But she is too popular and the members demanded her inclusion. Not surprisingly, in a one-member-one-vote election, she topped the list.

After winning, she has been smart enough to hold back and watch and learn from her more experienced team-mates. Truth be told, it is very easy to gather experience. It is an essential quality but should never be used as a tool against her or other young leaders when their time comes. But our guess is she will be too smart to rush for it.

With fresh looks, new ideas and an energetic 'corporate' feel on her side, Izzah has the potential to lead the country to new heights and put it on a more credible international footing. Malaysians are looking for a more moderate, modern and functional democracy. And Izzah should be able to achieve this for them. She has the political will and courage to make the break from the past. Don't underestimate her youth, there is steel in her. And she doesn't blow with the wind. All she needs is a competent team drawn from the three Pakatan parties to help shape vision, strategy and execution.

Riding on the Izzah gravy train

On a personal level, she is married with 2 kids and juggles her political career with her family life. She is also academically well qualified, with a Masters degree from the United States. She speaks flawless English, which will help Malaysia's international image. Although even if she couldn't, it wouldn't be such a big deal. She is also musically inclined, able to sing and play the guitar. She is a down-to-earth person, who is already a hit with the people.

Like her famous father, she can hold an intelligent argument, articulates well on most platforms and issues and writes well. Just like Anwar Ibrahim, she can unite the Pakatan Rakyat although the coalition is already settling down and less glue than before is needed to get the parties working together.

Yingluck's win must have set alarm bells ringing in Putrajaya, with the top bosses and their strategists furiously plotting ways to fend off the new and unwelcome threat of young opposition leaders catching fire with the masses. They will surely try to neutralize Izzah's instant appeal. Like Yingluck, she has a face worth a million votes, and Pakatan Rakyat is lucky to get a chance to ride on her gravy train.

It is possible UMNO Puteri is now under pressure, and Umi Hafilda would have been an option if she was 10 years younger and had made less a villianess of herself.

These are changing times. New trends have to yet to settle but the people have reached a point where they know what they want. It is inevitable Malaysians will follow the flavor of the world despite the hyperactive machinations of the existing ruling regime. In fact, the more they show their hand, the greater they instil in the people the sense and urgency for change.

So political Malaysia - at the highest echelon - will not remain the domain of men. Unlike UMNO's Hamidah Othman, who once famously said, women can never be chief ministers, Malaysian women will stride out. They are unstoppable! Watch this trend unfurl in GE14 and 15.

- Malaysia Chronicle