Khalid sworn in, what battle's next?

Principles and democracy won an early victory yesterday morning, when Abdul Khalid Ibrahim was sworn in as menteri besar of Selangor.

Malaysiakini readers, #KhalidForMB tweeps and other netizens should all know what a big role they played in making this happen.

I say ‘early victory' because the troubles over this appointment on the PKR side may point to a larger battle looming ahead.

What fellow-writer Terence Netto has written may illustrate the fault lines of that battle perfectly.

I think all sincerely meant criticism deserves proper, objective consideration. A few responses in brief first.

Netto wrote about Khalid being a micromanager and slow to trust new faces. On this front, not having much of value to say, I shall not offer lengthy comment.

As to many common criticisms that the Khalid administration is extremely tight-fisted with money, I can - as someone who has been an opposing party in negotiations - certainly confirm this fact. Trying to get more money from them brings to mind the saying ‘like getting blood from a stone'.

Do investments, however, suffer as a result of Khalid's style? Selangor ranks top in the country for investment, and just recently, he facilitated a further RM580 million of investment from Thailand.

Businessmen used to under-table magic may be disappointed it seems, but less so businessman who present quality products at competitive prices (never underestimate the power of the latter).

Should we encourage the politics of patronage?

There are other things that Netto said, however, that truly beg discussion. I quote him respectfully:

"Party politics is also about jobs, opportunities and rewards which a corporate man may find it difficult to appreciate. The latter is apt to think he has made it on his own steam; therefore he does not need patrons and, worse still, parasites.

"Party politics, however, is also about patronage, networking and IOUs which can come due at awkward times.

"Someone inured to years in the wilderness would know these realities instinctively and will comport himself, when installed in power, in such manner that he knows the right mix of patronage, rewards and opportunities that will keep a ravening horde at bay.

"Understandably, corporate types would consider such exertions vexatious but skilled political ones revel at this game.'

Replacing evil

I think this is a perfect example of the two different sides that came to light with PKR deputy president Azmin Ali's (right in photo) "revelations."

Said side seems to really believe, as Netto does, that not only is it not wrong for state resources to be channeled towards party interests, it is in fact the only laudable and politically mature thing to do.

I don't know about you, but when I joined the movement, it was to fight against the exact things in politics that Netto mentioned: rewards, patronage, and networks.

Did I miss the memo? Have these things that we abhorred in BN suddenly become the things we are championing in our own ranks?

Should we ‘accept' the ‘reality of corruption'?

Such factions will condescendingly brand us ‘naive idealists', and have us believe that they are the ‘realists'.

To paraphrase from ‘The Mission', they will say ‘The world is thus, and we must work in the world.'

To paraphrase the reply, I say, ‘It is we who made the world thus, and it is we who can unmake it.'

I think it is precisely those who give up on real and meaningful change, those who insist that only in behaving like the bad guys can we defeat them that must be fought tooth and nail.

The defeat of which they speak is no defeat - it is only replacing one evil with another; differently named, yet the same at its core.

Nothing is worse that the man who in the daylight screams charming words about change while embodying in the darkness the very same things he declares he wants to change.

I say enough with the politics patronage. Democratic dissent and constructive discourse must never, ever be turned away, but ‘ravening hordes'? It strikes me that those might find better success taking their ravening where ravening is more the norm.

Khalid's choice of staff

Netto ends by writing about Faekah Husin, Khalid's political secretary who "hasn't a clue that the placation of this group is necessary".

I have my own views about who is the one that is without a clue.

Faekah knows better than anyone exactly what it is like to feel the brunt of dissatisfied, unethical politicians. I myself have felt a tiny portion of the same in this last week. To her credit, she has stood steadfast in all its fire.

Netto thinks that Faekah "exacerbates" Khalid's political weakness and naivety.

I think "naive" is better defined by thinking that Khalid accomplished everything he did in his life by being stupid and choosing the wrong people.

Netto all but confirmed rumours that the Azmin camp has insisted upon the removal of key members of Khalid's staff - who have no doubt been instrumental in keeping politicians' hands out of the state coffers.

Khalid carefully chose these staff members precisely because they mirror completely his commitment to integrity and no-nonsense financial management.

Faekah (left) in particular has shown in public what Khalid displays in private: a zero tolerance for either corruption or putting political needs above the needs of the rakyat. Her steadfastness is noisy (as anyone who has heard her passionate, entertaining speeches can attest), while Khalid's steadfastness is quiet; but make no mistake, theirs is a steadfastness equally unyielding.

Theirs is an endeavour not to ‘appease stalwarts' as Netto would have them do, but to appease the rakyat and to ensure that all that belongs to the people is given back to them.

At time of writing, there has been no confirmation as to whether said individuals will remain at their positions, but I for one hope they do.

I haven't the faintest clue what those who intend to remove them hope to use as leverage. Anyone who would resort to threats and political melodrama does not, it seems to me, bring much to the table anyway.

While keeping those staff members may make it harder say for me to inflate my contracts (no fear, I will learn to content myself with my lot), I know that the same will hold for everyone else trying to put more of the rakyat's money in their pockets.

It is coming down, as it has time and again, to a battle between those who want to do things the old BN way - the way of ‘rewards, patronage and networks' - versus those who want to throw that old way out.

The winners of this battle may well define the people's choice in GE14. Let us all be sure to speak up, and to do our part.

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NATHANIEL TAN works for the Selangor government. He tweets @NatAsasi and believes in #TsunamiCintaMalaysia.