PM and DPM's ping-pong match: A delayed telecast with results already known

The 2011 UMNO General Assembly has come and gone, leaving little impact on the Malaysian political scene except that we know now what the party's strategy going into the 13th General Election will be.

The UMNO game plan will be positioned on race and religion, and make no mistake it will also be one played out to the very end by a coalition desperate to stay in power.

The dominant and the submissive

The stance taken by UMNO is interesting, as it has been endorsed by both deputy UMNO president Muhyiddin Yassin and president Najib Razak.

The fact that Najib has given up on his multiracial 1Malaysia concept is an indication of how great a store UMNO places on race championing to win the GE-13.

Some in UMNO say it is also because of the personalities involved. Muhyiddin has a dominant character while Najib is submissive. This is prime basis for what psychology terms as transference.

In The Psychology of Transference, Carl Jung states that both participants would typically experience a variety of opposites, that in love and in psychological growth, the key to success is the ability to endure the tension of the opposites without abandoning the process, and that this is the tension allows one to grow and to transform. In lay man’s terms it means that the emotions and feelings and thoughts of two opposite characters can transfer across, leaving one party to “take on” the nuances of the other.

It was in March 2010 that Muhyiddin Yassin made the famous assertion that he was “Malay first, and Malaysian second” and this was made at a time when Najib was feverishly touting his 1Malaysia slogan across the country. The “Malay first” claim is in direct contradiction to 1Malaysia and a gauntlet deliberately thrown down by Muhyiddin.

Throughout the next two years of the Najib administration, promoters of these two 'opposite' slogans have been fighting among themselves within UMNO. However, ultimately, the stronger character has to win out and subjugate the lesser character. In UMNO, this became the case and Muhyiddin was the victor.

UMNO Baru not the real UMNO of the independence days

Muhyiddin’s “Malay First” claim struck a chord with the right-wing conservatives in UMNO, who form the base or the core of the party. Remember, the UMNO of today is not the UMNO that fought for the independence of Malaya. The UMNO that Najib is now president of, is the UMNO that was reinstated by Mahathir Mohamad after the party's internal crisis of 1988. In fact, the current UMNO is technically called UMNO Baru.

This new UMNO is modelled after the wishes and aspirations of its founding president Mahathir Mohamad and is by default ultra-Malay in characteristics, just like Mahathir despite his mixed origins. Sadly, Muhyiddin has also decided to attach himself to this 'ultra' trait.

As such, when Najib introduced 1Malaysia, it was with a fake smile that UMNO accepted this slogan. An internal struggle soon began, with Muhyiddin already confident he would surely win the day with the UMNO right-wing on his side.

Without a core to hold onto, the flip-flopping Najib was forced to give in, losing huge credibility with the nation and in his own party. Many say Najib was also afraid of Mahathir, a well-known Malay extremist. But Najaib failed to correctly gauge if Malaysians and Malays themselves wanted to be government by Mahathir anymore.

Now aged 85, Mahathir is arguably the most detested leader in the country, blamed for the massive corruption, the government-knows-best arrogance, and the serious racial and religious polarization in Malaysia.

Dr M's long-boat to extremism

The 'civil war' within UMNO also explains the creation of ultra groups like Perkasa to further pressure Najib. Perkasa, whose patron is Mahathir, has played the race and religious card with impunity since its formation in early 2010.

At that time, Najib foolishly thought he could stradlle two 'sampans' or boats simultaneously. It didn't occur to him that such 'politics' was actually unethical and immoral and would be rejected by the people. Still, Najib thought he could do it but in the end, he was forced to board Mahathir's long-boat to extremism.

And the events of 2011 have shown the contradictory nature of UMNO. The principles of moderation that Najib promised at the UN and repeated at the Vatican was countered by the JAIS church raid. The call to move from tolerance to into acceptance of differences was countered by the call to defend Malay rights and privileges by the likes of Perkasa and Pekida.

At every step of the way, Najib found himself thwarted and outsmarted. By the time the 2011 UMNO General Assembly took place earlier this month, Najib knew he had to give in totally or be ousted on the spot by wills a 1,000 times stronger than his.

A weak leader

This was also how the mind-set of Muhyiddin Yassin was 'transferred' to Najib Razak and this was also what set the tone of of the UMNO assembly and how the party would fight GE13.

That's right. Najib failed to show the way forward. He had no place to lead Malaysians to except for the backward journey that the UMNO right-wing is insistent on following. A road that will surely run Malaysia aground.

The Shahrizat Jalil-NFC RM250mil financial debacle is another minefield for Najib. There are many hands involved in stirring up this scandal, with factions aligned to all three top leaders - Mahathir, Abdullah Badawi and Najib himself - involved.

For now, it may seem like a long drawn-out ping pong game is being played between Najib and Muhyiddin. But this is merely a delayed telecast. The results are already out. Whichever ball is served, 'spin' ball or 'screw' ball, Najib won't be able to return the shot. He has already lost the game. It is Muhyiddin or as many fear, Mahathir, who has 'transferred' his dominant personality onto Najib's.

Malaysia's 6th prime minister - Najib Razak - is now a mere whimper, a shadow leader reliant on the moves and decisions of others in the party. And for this, he has no one to blame but himself for not having the courage to stand up for his country.

Malaysia Chronicle