The Politics of Sex and Money against Anwar Ibrahim

From Port Dickson to Terengganu, Malaysians have been incessantly sated with juicy sex stories. Some of these stories are made up of genuine ingredients that could perhaps be turned into thrillers but some others are void of the right constituents and evidence as they were intentionally cooked up for political expediency.

In any case, Malaysian politics is always spiced with a lot of sex recipes for the people to devour. The sex prescription seems to be very popular among some self-seeking politicians to grab on or stay in power. In most cases, however, the one and only purpose of staging sexual plots on politicians is to debase their political career. This ploy has become a political cliché in Malaysian politics. The people on the street, though, are cheesed off with this kind of grubby approach to politics. They are much chagrined as to how one could even be appointed as senator just because the person keeps boxes of sex secrets or he spews out sex venoms to implicate a political enemy.

Despite all the drumming and brouhaha by the political rejects and the pro-government media on sex and politics, the people have become profoundly immune to the ploys and they cannot be easily swayed by this modus operandi. “It is an absolute disgust to keep on hearing about this on television or read them in the daily,” said a university lecturer from IIUM.

Sex used to lull and deviate the masses

Each time there is a serious social, political or economical issue affecting the government, sex issues are brought up to sidetrack the theme. Corruption, abuse of taxpayers’ money on superfluous political needs, abuse of loans and misuse of government funds are too common to be ignored by the people at large.

Allegedly, when money was loaned to those politically connected to build up a beef industry for the nation they ended up becoming “sacred cows”. We hear condominiums were bought with a fraction of the money meant to do cow business. On the face of it, the “sacred cows” were so auspicious that they could even invest in condominiums instead of making the beef industry flourish.

The “slapstick comedy” here was when an Oxford graduate sprang up to his feet to profusely but idiotically defend the “sacred cows” when the latter were verbally bombarded by critics in the Parliament. When the nation is rife with corruption, high crime rate, price hike in foods and other essentials and poor economic performance the incumbent government has suddenly become obsessed with sex stories to dupe the naïve and less educated populace – the majority.

To sidetrack the many issues affecting the country they must come up with issues juicy enough for the people to guzzle – usually relating to sex – to lull and deviate the masses. The media is sneakily used to spin the issue to make the masses believe in the lies and façade of the regime. This reminds the people of the same modus operandi used by many dictators in the past to smother their political foes.

On sex traps used by dictators the modus operandi are plain and simple. First the regime must have the control of the relevant government arms – instruments of authoritarian power - who could make the process of political “killing” easy. The media would be put on standby ready to deceitfully spin in favour of the regime. Heave the sizzling scandalous indictment on the enemy, then hound and pressure him to respond. He would be made like a suspect. If he does not respond he would be branded as guilty by the media. If he responds he would be asked to prove that he is not guilty of the allegation against him.

In other words, the adversary has already been assumed guilty before trial and the onus now is on the victim to prove that he is innocent. If the adversary is brought to court it would obviously become a source of public inquisition. When there is a court trial the media would play the role to demonise the adversary by resorting to lopsided reporting. This is to intentionally demean and shame the adversary and make the masses believe in all their concocted lies deviously spun by the media. Even when the adversary has eventually cleared his name after the unrelenting persecution in the court of law the damage has already been done.

This is actually what the dictatorial authority wants to achieve in politics. This has worked in some countries and it also has failed to be effective in some other countries – all depending on the state of mind of the masses. On the contrary, a person could be a pervert, commit adultery, become a paedophile or sex maniac, the pro-regime media would not paint him as hideous and repulsive if he happens to be on the right side of the political divide or in the right political team.

Relentlessly gone through this agony

Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the de facto Opposition leader, and many others in the country have relentlessly gone through this agony. Anwar must have suffered long enough in life but being a seasoned and resilient politician he has stayed strong with the growing support from the people. Many of his one-time close friends in UMNO have now turned against him and they keep on demonising him.

In the case of Anwar, another ploy to derail his political career cropped up just recently with the controversial sex video alleging him as the actor in the exploitative sexual scene. However, evidence has it that it is not him in the video but a look-alike. On the face of it, Anwar has been trapped to prove that he is not the person.

In actuality, every Malaysian knows that this drama concocted by those concerned is another blunder and this has backfired. There are ample and clear evidence that the man in the video was only a look-alike. For instance, one simple evidence that has sabotaged this evil plan was the fact that the Anwar look-alike in the video did not have a beard but newspaper photographs the day after the alleged incident showed a bearded Anwar.

The tummy of Anwar look-alike was bloated when Anwar did or does not have that size of a tummy. In fact, there were many other evidence to show that it was not Anwar in the video. But to his political enemy that is not important. Their agenda is sorely to smear the name of a political maverick and that matters most to them. His political foes are persistently ready with their “daggers” out to stab and implicate Anwar. These comments from the public should be a testimony to this fact:

“Harassing and persecuting Anwar has earned the sympathy of the people for him. “

“He has suffered enough and UMNO’s way of going for the overkill does not bode well in the eyes of majority of the people.”

“The scurrilous attacks against him has only earned UMNO the wrath of the people.”

“Political sex is highlighted to sidetrack the masses from the dire and grim economic problems facing the country.”

“Nothing much would be done to investigate corruption that is draining the country dry but when it involves cooked-up sex stories they are quick to investigate.”

“This is well highlighted through the pro-government media. Not all Malaysians watch or read the pro-government media. They are appointing political rejects as senators to help “kill” the Opposition leader. I doubt if UMNO members agree with this kind of appointment. They are just waiting to burst their voice out.”

“Political suppression is common in many countries but this would not last long. The suppressor would at the end of the day succumb to people’s voice. This has happened in many countries. Libya for instance.”

“The media and politicians should debate more on economic and social issues affecting the country rather than harping on trivial, unfounded and perceived notions of another’s personal character.”

The maverick Anwar

Anwar served as Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister from 1993 to 1998. Early in his career, Anwar was a close ally of the then Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad but later on emerged as the most prominent critic of Mahathir's government.

In 1999, he was sentenced to six years in prison for “corruption”, and in 2000, to another nine years for “sodomy”. In 2004, the Federal Court reversed the second conviction and he was released. In July 2008, he was arrested over allegations that he “sodomised” one of his male aides and faces new “sodomy” charges in the Malaysian courts. This is however perceived by many as a political conspiracy at the highest level to end Anwar’s political career.

On 26 August 2008, Anwar won re-election in the Permatang Pauh by-election and returned to Parliament as leader of the Malaysian Opposition. He advocates the need for liberalization, an independent police, judiciary and free media, to combat the endemic corruption that has pushed Malaysia to become relatively less competitive economically and close to become a failed state.

A political maverick, Anwar on the whole succeeded in giving the Pakatan coalition a good publicity in Malaysian politics. Anwar has succeeded in bringing three opposition political parties – PKR, DAP and PAS - into a formidable coalition within a short duration. In other words, with or without Anwar the two- party or -coalition system in the country has now become a reality. The people owe this great accomplishment to Anwar. The country of course needs a two-party system for better governance. Anwar should be given the credit for this process to become a reality in the Malaysian political landscape.

There might have been some minor or remote hiccups leading to the creation of the Pakatan pact but the dust has now settled and apparently Pakatan are again ready to take on Barisan Nasional in the next general election with more confidence. The component parties have evolved unscathed after the many storms in the tea cup and have emerged in symbiosis to be more appealing to the masses and sturdier in pose than before 2008.

The Pakatan coalition is now steered by none other than its de facto leader, Anwar, even when he is not the president of any of the component party. This position of his makes little difference, though. The relatively young multi-racial political coalition has since its existence been unremittingly goaded on by Anwar. Anwar is not alone in this struggle. He is supported by many competent and futuristic leaders in the parties that has formed this pact.

Anwar has a public persona of a devout Muslim. He has ingratiated himself with people of all races to gain the popularity he needs as a politician. Whatever sex video caper is created to discredit Anwar is not going to foil his attempt to win over Barisan Nasional in the next general election. Sex ploys by political enemies have failed miserably despite all their strenuous efforts to undermine Anwar and Pakatan. The people are not blind to justice.

No matter how Anwar is perceived by his friends and political foes, he is definitely not a spent force in Malaysian politics. He still has the charisma and is capable of drawing huge crowds as a good orator. He is capable of mesmerising the crowd with his oratory skills. He still has a sizeable following in the country and is well accepted by friends and leaders abroad. If truth be told, Anwar cannot be easily erased from the local political scene. It’s an irrefutable fact that Anwar has an insuppressibly optimistic personality that endears him to the people.

Mahathir’s perception of Anwar

Even in his Memoir(2011), the former Prime Minister has written some favourable words on Anwar despite the fact that he sensed, or rather was aware, that the latter was trying to mount a direct challenge on his presidency of UMNO:

“Anwar also had qualities that could contribute towards UMNO’s standing among intellectuals. He was well-read… .” (p406)

“… as I knew that he had the qualities to make a good leader.” (p407)

“He was not seen as a Muslim extremist.” (p409)

“Anwar is quite a remarkable man.” (P409)

“We have a good personal relationship.” (p410)

“Anwar cultivated people and knew how to win their support.”(p410)

“There is no doubt that there was a special aura – a charisma – about him… .(p410)”

“Anwar was very hospitable.” (p411)

“Publicly… Anwar cut an impressive figure.” (p413).

Of course, their relationship began to sour when Mahathir became aware that Anwar was about to challenge his headship of the party.

“While I still saw Anwar as an effective leader, I felt that his desire to oust me was premature.” (p413)

“… I felt confident that should he mount a direct challenge to my presidency, I would still be able to defeat him.” (p415)

Anwar could be, by and large, perceived as a political freak endowed with intelligence, knowledge and skills not many politicians could bout. Thus, he has emerged more popular than ever in Malaysian politics despite all the dirty campaigns laid against him since he was chucked out as the deputy prime minister in 1998 by Mahathir. Regardless of all the subsequent political bashing and the disparaging remarks made against him by the local media and blogs, he has emerged unshaken but grown more mature and much sturdier politically.

Politics is a matter of perception and insightfulness. In fact, no amount of character assassination and insinuations could bring down a seasoned politician the calibre of Anwar. Many politicians, including those in the ruling coalition, have emerged to become leaders despite all the allegations against them. Anwar, in particular, has been exposed to continuous character assassination by his adversaries, but ironically the more this has seemed to have fortified his political path. Indeed, Anwar just appears to have gained more sympathy and popularity despite the many ruthless political onslaught against him.

The political scene leading to the next general election is going to be more interesting. Anwar’s offensive against politicians in the ruling coalition relating to many issues such as corruption, accountability and many other social delinquencies is not going to recede. It is going to be a battle of wit involving issues and abuse of taxpayers’ money by the incumbent government and the economy.

Pakatan has indubitably evolved into a coalition more significant than Anwar himself. Pakatan today is “larger” than Anwar’s image. Presently, even without Anwar the coalition could project their other capable leaders to lead Pakatan into the political limelight. PAS, PKR and DAP have many young and capable leaders who could replace Anwar in case he is being totally incapacitated in politics.

Defamation is an offence

The masses, more often than not look at the politically motivated sex arsenal to degrade political foes from many other perspectives. Many devout Muslims would not easily succumb to all the dirty tactics deployed by the incumbent regime and their apple polishers. They are bound to feel that some politicians are merely paying lip service to religion.

Their perception is that religion is more often than not used by some for political expediency. They observe that some religious rituals are deliberately performed by self-seeking individuals as a political stunt, for political publicity and connivance.

Despite the country being claimed to be an Islamic state, many aspects of Islam is not adhered to when religious decrees do not favour the regime. Defamation and accusations are serious offences in Islam and yet Muslims go round defaming others without real evidence. These comments from the public are a testimony to this fact:

“This singling out in prosecution can be politically correct but it is morally wrong as it smacks of injustice. People could take advantage of the law just to tarnish a person’s image – a political enemy.”

“Defamation or fitnah is an offence in Islam. A Muslim should not fitnah (defame) a person for some invested interests.”

“If a person accuses another person of wrongdoing he must come up with evidence. ‘Selling’ oneself to the media and the public by telling them that someone has committed an offence is an act of fitnah, as this will give a wrong perception of the accused.”

“The onus is on the accuser – not the suspect - to prove that the suspect is guilty of an offence, so come up with concrete evidence. If the intention of accusing someone is just to craft out a bad image of a person, this constitutes an offence in Islam.”

“A court case involving an accusation can drag on for many months and this will cause a lot of moral damage to the one who is accused, even if the accused were finally found to be innocent.”

“Islam is more sensible in that if you accuse a person of wrongdoing come up with evidence, or else this is tantamount to fitnah and the person who arbitrarily accuses another person just for some thrills or political motives should be punished accordingly.”

“In the case of a sexual offence (zina) the accuser has to produce four reliable witnesses who could prove to the judge that the offence actually took place. If this can be done and the offence is proven, then punish the accused accordingly.”

“If the accuser fails to prove the offence, he has to be punished instead. It is a two-way justice for all. The process in Islam is so clear and this will help deter irresponsible people from making false accusations that could defame a person’s image in society.”

“In Islam, a person’s image is highly regarded and any form of fitnah or insinuating any form of sexual act on a person cannot be accepted. Islam does not judge a person through the media or attention-grabbing political propaganda.”

“The irony is that being an Islamic state the country does not take Islamic values into consideration. Politics has won over religion in this case.”

Enough of these mucky tricks

When a regime runs scared of the Opposition it would resort to anything to save their skin. When a regime is bankrupt of ideas on how to win an election they would have to desperately rely on trivial matters such as sex issues to delude the masses and disgrace their political nemeses. The motto to the desperate is: Never mind if the approach is nasty, dirty or unprincipled as long as the end to them justifies the means.

To the masses they have had enough of all these mucky tricks. They see spicing politics with sex issues is fast becoming a cliché now. They see a regime that with intent makes use of the government arms to remain in power. They see many cases of abuse of power by the police. They see the reputation of the judiciary has hit a new low. They see corruption and abuse of taxpayers’ money become a way of life among politicians and politically connected people.

They see the economy has hit the poor most when prices of almost all essentials are spiralling out of control. They see no concrete formula by the incumbent government to stop this debacle. They see no workable steps taken by the incumbent government to manage this problem thus causing unbridled inflation and reduced value of money in the people’s hand. They see salary increase or one-off payment to the people as not a long term solution to inflation and yet the government cannot see to this effect.

The next general election would see a much enlightened electorate determining the future of this country. Anwar’s ingenuity has set the pace right by creating another coalition pact to match Barisan Nasional. The two coalition system that exists today would give a better choice for the people to decide for the best team to govern the country next.

Malaysia Chronicle