Politics in Malaysia is no more the same

ADUN SPEAKS | In the past, around the world, there can be a nation where only one coalition ruled, and the opposition parties never got a chance to govern. Now, the dynamics of politics has been transforming over the years and a nation’s power-shift is no more a surprise.

For Malaysia, once the people rose to their power and changed the old-time regime last year in the 14th general election, they know they can do it again, and they used their power at the recent Tanjung Piai by-election.

Gone are the days where the people did not even dare to even think of toppling the government, as they did not fully understand the impact of each of their votes.

Welcome to New Malaysia. This is where the people know they are the ones truly in power, and they are at liberty to choose which party or coalition should work to fulfil their needs. Once the elected does not govern and perform to their expectations, off they go, and the people will elect a new one in the next upcoming opportunity.

During the Tanjung Piai by-election, the votes that went to Barisan Nasional (BN), were not to show support to them, but rather they were votes of dissatisfaction towards Pakatan Harapan.

While this may be a shocker to many, this occurrence is something very normal that has been happening in democratic countries - take India, Taiwan, Japan, Mexico and more for example.

These countries had a major shift of power when the long-reigning party or coalition lost and were replaced by the opposition parties and coalitions.

The new government, an amalgamation of parties that were only united to win the elections, had very few issues that they could agree on collectively. Not being properly united and still bickering with each other, these new governments suffered major defeats to the previous coalition in the by-elections that happened after. That was exactly what happened at Tanjung Piai.

The cause for the voters’ change of heart was similar - national, local and bread and butter issues.

Among the national issues that irked the people were the introduction of khat classes in school, the immense support given to and refusal to repatriate the wanted Indian fugitive Zakir Naik (photo), false of branding locals as terrorists linked to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and more.

Locally, at Tanjung Piai, the world economic slowdown; the price of palm oil; difficulty in getting foreign workers in oil palm estates, fisheries and local industries are among the issues that made the locals turn against Harapan.

We must give credit to our opponents, as they were much more organised that us, knew the grassroots issues and were very focused on the target group. Despite BN being a corrupt party, with their many top leaders with ongoing court cases, the people still voted for them.

Areas in which people want help

This is why we, Harapan, must focus on the bread and butter issues, cost of living, and ease of doing business. These are the areas the people want help in.

The previous government can never be said as gone from the arena after losing in the last general election. It totally depends on the new government, on how they perform.

If the new government performs well, the old regime would be as good as forgotten. But if the new government is insensitive to the people’s needs, the old regime will still be a force to reckon. This is what was repeated in the many democratic countries, and now in Tanjung Piai in Malaysia.

At the end of the day, all the people want is for their needs to be met. The one party or coalition that is able to prove that they can get the job done will win the people’s heart. Now, Harapan has to win the people’s heart back by making visible and landmark changes.

Sometimes it is unfair as we have only been in power for a short time, and we are expected to undo the many problems created by the previous government. The reality is that this excuse is not accepted by the people.

We must see it from the voters point of view, walk in their shoes. They have been under duress for a long time and all they want are solutions, not excuses.

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S RAMAKRISHNAN is the Johor state executive councillor charge of Unity, Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs. - Mkini