God may not be on your side, Najib: Listen to the groundswell and stop inconveniencing Muslims

There is escalating brouhaha over whether Prime Minister Najib Razak will call for snap general elections during the Hajj season, which will start with the first flight to Mecca on 17th September and will end with the last return flight on 29th November 2012.

The number of pilgrims allowed for Malaysia is 0.1% of the population that is 28,000 people. This is the agreed quota by the OIC nations to control the number of people performing the Hajj in order to maintain a manageable crowd at the Muslim Holy Land given the constraints in infra-structure, amenities and facilities.

Of course, the figure could be increased depending on countries that are not able to meet the quota. Malaysia, which has one of the best Hajj management systems sending many Muslims to perform the obligatory once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage, actually needs more than the one percent quota.

Saudi Arabia could allow Malaysia to send 40,000 or more depending on the unfulfilled quota of other countries. When Indonesia was not able to fill the 200,000 slots allocated to it, Malaysia was allowed to send more than 50,000 pilgrims.

Why the uproar

Based on the available statistics, 65% of pilgrims are above 50 years of age and mostly female. The breakdown of overall pilgrims from each state in Malaysia shows Perlis accounts for 1.3 %, Kedah 11.23%, Penang 5.8%, Perak 8.36%, Selangor 9.9%, Wilayah Persekutuan 7.75%, Melaka 4.52%, Negeri Sembilan 4.42%, Johore 12.84%, Pahang 5.16%, Terengganu 7.36%, Kelantan 9.42%, Sabah 4.73%, Sarawak 3.7% and private pilgrim 3.51%

The states where Pakatan Rakyat has strong following - Kedah, Penang, Selangor, Kelantan, WP and Perak - make up 51.82% of this total or 14,500 pilgrims. That could translate to 14,500 Muslim voters whereas in the UMNO-BN stronghold comprising eight states, about 48% or 13,400 Muslim voters will be absent if they attend the Hajj.

Adding on the additional quota and families and friends who might be accompanying the pilgrims, the number of Muslims leaving the country during the Hajj season is not small.

Obviously, if the 13th general election is held then, Pakatan will be at a disadvantage. Hence, the recent spate of fiery warnings from PAS against Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is accused of trying to find all ways and means to increase his Umno party's chances of winning GE-13.

Backfire

However, pundits warn Najib would do well to think twice and analyse the figures in depth.

They explained the majority of pilgrims are from the older generation that Umno has managed to 'brainwash' and make grateful for the benefit - meagre though it might be - that they have received under the government's New Economic Policy.

Hence, such an unpleasant strategy could backfire on Najib himself. He would find that although more pilgrims would be unable to vote in the Pakatan stronghold states, the pilgrims may actually be Umno supporters. In other votes, there would less votes for BN!

Moreover, those who will opt out from performing the Hajj this year in view of the GE-13 would be PAS supporters, therefore the votes for Pakatan would not be affected much.

Don't be arrogant - the inconvenience is doing more harm than good for Umno

Since not only are the pilgrims affected by Najib's refusal to confirm that GE-13 will not be held during the Hajj season, but also their families and friends who might be accompanying them, there is widespread anger and grumbling at way the whole matter has been handled.

Despite the Umno newspapers firing salvo after salvo at PAS for being 'gatal mulut', Najib has remained silent on the issue - stirring further doubt. As for the Islamist PAS, many of their members will be affected, hence their drive to seek a clarification from Najib.

Indeed, it may not be all politicking as Umno has claimed. Logistics and the involvement of many parties are involved, causing tremendous inconvenience to the Muslim community.

The majority of Muslims - regardless Pakatan or BN supporters - want to cast their ballot in the coming election, where a regime change may occur. It would be the first-ever in 55 years and all Malaysians would want to be a part of their nation's history. Muslims would appreciate some sanity in the way the matter is being handled, but at the moment, all they are getting is rhetoric from Umno's Utusan newspaper!

So Najib, listen to the groundswell. Don't be so arrogant. If you think that God is on your side by implementing such an underhanded ruse, then come on - hold GE-13 during the Hajj period!

Malaysia Chronicle