The morality of Pakatan’s manifesto

It sheds the light on how the opposition will redirect the country's massive wealth towards the people, while BN's defends all its dirty doings

COMMENT

The manifestos of the two major political coalitions in Malaysia are now out. A direct comparison may fool you whereas a deeper look at the manifestos teaches us how different both groups are.

A manifesto is a not a blueprint, it is more like a white paper suggesting this and that, and if we read it to the letter, we will get bogged down in confusion.

Comparing the manifestos is foolish, too. Both are supposed to galvanise the supporters of each side and cancel out the other’s ideas and plans.

This is what Barisan Nasional tried to do with its manifesto that came well after Pakatan Rakyat’s. Great attempts were made to outdo Pakatan’s manifesto and belittle it.

Nevertheless, the fact remains that the BN has copied 22 elements from the Pakatan manifesto.

Having underestimated the fact that car prices can go down, BN suddenly decides to build the Pan Borneo Highway, give individual taxi permits, and signed deals for the high-speed rail, among others.

It is the spirit of the manifesto that has to be dissected. And in that aspect, Pakatan’s manifesto is attractive and joins the public calls for transparency, for fight against corruption, cronyism and nepotism.

These alone, if fought for tooth and nail, will bring forth a better Malaysia, better jobs, better pay, more cash for the people and less dependence on capitalists who want to swallow all the riches of the nation for themselves, leaving crumbs for the people.

Not a done deal

To understand Pakatan’s policies, go back to the Buku Jingga and sit tight with fingers crossed that it will win and then we will see its blueprint in action.

On the other hand, the BN has lost the moral battle in the eyes of the public with its copy-cat manifesto.

There is no mention of the battle against corruption, no mention about how to end crony politics and how to curb nepotism, which are rampant under the BN.

The BN manifesto fails to show how the people will earn more and how the capitalist world in Malaysia will be contained to prevent it from grabbing everything else in this country.

It is the morality behind these manifestos that counts more than the promises, for a manifesto is a promise, not a deal done and signed.

However, the Pakatan manifesto sheds light on how the opposition will redirect the country’s massive wealth towards the people, though not all is being said and done on the process of doing it.

BN tells us a story of how Malaysia will remain the same for the next five years under it with a manifesto that squarely defends all the dirty stuff we’ve been seeing the past five years.

KL-based Amir Ali works for an Indonesian NGO called the Warisan Melayu Riau, which is based in Bengkalis, Riau.