Gen Hashim bowls over PKR sceptics in JB

PKR candidate for the Johor Baru parliamentary seat, Gen (Rtd) Md Hashim Hussein, bowled over a crowd of the party’s division officials and workers who may have harboured lingering suspicions of him as a parachutist with a fine speech of introduction yesterday.

In remarks made to a packed room of the party faithful at its state headquarters in Bandar Baru Uda in the Johor capital, Hashim sought to win over sceptics who may have regarded him as a political neophyte fortunate to be picked for GE13 because of his friendship with PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, a Malay College classmate of the general’s. 

Hashim is set to contest against Umno’s formidable incumbent Shahrir Samad who has tallied up huge majorities in the three decades he has been JB’s MP.    

Announced as the PKR candidate by Anwar at a ceramah in the state capital early last week, Hashim was introduced to party faithful by divisional officials, headed by Tan Poh Lai.

Lawyer Poh Lai, daughter of legendary opposition leader Dr Tan Chee Khoon, had expected to be selected as the candidate but the newly-joined retired former Army chief was preferred instead.

Knowing that he ran the risk of being viewed as a Johnny-come-lately by party workers who have striven from the late 1990s to build up support for PKR in a state regarded as an Umno bastion, Hashim explained his motives for joining PKR.   

One of several retired top flight army officers who joined the opposition early last month, Hashim said he had made the plunge into politics from a combination of motives.

He said these were a desire to strive for national integration, to combat corruption in defence procurement, and to secure the defences of the country against external threats.

It’s now or never

Hashim said that when he grew up in Johor Baru in the 1950s and early 1960s, he had neighbours from all the major races in the country and learned to mix with them well. He bemoaned the racial polarisation that had taken hold of the country.  

Borrowing from the title of an Elvis Presley pop hit, Hashim said it was “now or never” in the fight to rid Malaysia of the corrupt rule of the BN and the plethora of damaging consequences stemming from it.

He then quoted the famous words of Abraham Lincoln about the deceitful rulers being able to con the people some of the time but not all the people all the time.

He said the days of BN’s ability to deceive the people of their rights and plunder the nation of its wealth were coming to a close.   

At the end of a 45-minute speech that was marked by erudite references mixed with bows to pop culture, he informed his audience that he had an appointment for 1pm with DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang in nearby Pelangi where the latter was addressing a rally.

“In the army, if you are early by five minutes you are considered late,” quipped the general, who then hurried off to make his appointment, leaving behind a favourable impression with his listeners.