The Undoing of Paul Law, the Minister at the PM's Office

Since his appointment to the 13th Malaysian Cabinet, Paul Low, the ex-President of Transparency International Malaysia, has been a constant target of critics and the Opposition leaders. Paul was told not to become a messenger to the administration by none other than the DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang.

Paul was criticized for saying that he would bring up the establishment of the IPCMC to the weekly cabinet meeting, stopping short at making his stand clear on the proposed institution. 

He was again criticized by DAP's Tony Pua for saying that "the only difference between the two (agencies) was merely in their names". Pua said: "It is deeply disappointing that since appointed the 'transparency minister', Paul Low has now reversed his earlier position to argue that the special complaints commission in the form of the EAIC is now sufficient to regulate the enforcement authorities, particularly the police force."

Low has refuted Tony's criticism of him. Low said he had said that "IPCMC" and "EAIC" were only names, but the key was to "arrive at an independent agency that has the resources, clout and scope of influence to do the job effectively", since the weaknesses of the EAIC had been identified.

"Clearly, even a teenager would be able to conclude that my intention was never to equate the EAIC in its current form to that of the IPCMC proposed by the royal commission of inquiry or RCI (on improving the police force) in 2005," Low said.

He added that even Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and members of the cabinet acknowledged the weaknesses of the EAIC, and were backing a study and consultation for a detailed proposal to improve the commission, including possibly adopting some of the RCI's earlier proposals.

What has gone wrong for Paul Low? I would call it "too eager" to stamp his mark and make his presence in the cabinet. Paul had accepted the appointment without considering a few things:

1) What does he want to achieve in the Najib Administration?

2) What are the expectations from the BN regime on his appointment?

3) Can he continue to pursue his causes and struggles upon his appointment into the cabinet?

4) What are the immediate conditions he would like the PM to look at before accepting the appointment?

A number of critics are already talking about his early demise from the cabinet. Some said he won't last six months in his job. Is the prophecy accurate? We will find out but I do not underestimate Paul's resolve to remain in the cabinet. 

It is not a secret that he has to compromise his stand to accommodate the team spirit and consensus in the cabinet. He appears to be in the minority. As long as the majority refuses to see or acknowledge the need to change, there is little that Low can hope to achieve.  

He has been targeted because the Opposition cannot afford for Low to be successful in his position. He was brought in to shore up the credibility of the regime. Hence, the Opposition leaders and their supporters are going to make him a top target.

So far, Paul has been his own undoing. He has spoken up too early and too much. He should have kept a low profile, study his environment and understand the issues before giving interview after interview that would expose his vulnerability rather than helping to shore up his presence or profile.

From now, Paul has to walk on a tight rope if he wants to survive and hope to eventually contribute towards a better governance. 

He must ask himself a basic question: Can the BN regime be saved?