The Born Loser (A Renaming of Azmi Anshar's Article)

 

My comments : The following is actually written by Azmi Anshar. Because it is not my favourite subject I have made 'adjustments' which you may or may not detect.  Meaning I have changed some of the words used by Azmi Anshar. Do read my conclusion at the end. 

Back Door Man's tenuous quest to be PM

adapted from Azmi Anshar

Nov 20, 2020

The Back Door Man is incorrigibly predictable on the singular quest of his life – to be the Prime Minister.

Contrariwise, his expedition has been far from linear: his populist train had detoured and derailed in several juxtapositions over three long decades.

In his hustle to Putrajaya, the issue for him, at least in his mind and that of his acolytes and backers, is not IF, but WHEN: never mind that almost two generations have passed and he is yet to accomplish his fantasy.

In the same milieu, the issue for his detractors, and there are legions, is guilefully unpretentious: NEVER.

He was one breath away from ascending the premiership in the mid-1990s, his anointed position as Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s “Chosen One” plastered on his forehead for all to comply and make way.

No single Umno leader imagined himself to be the one to thwart his aggressive push to the most coveted political position though conventional wisdom states that someone should have.

That someone was then deputy Prime Minister and deputy Umno president Ghafar Baba who tried but he had neither the will nor stomach to counterweight the Back Door Man's ruthless march as the ambitious one effortlessly deposed Ghafar for the Umno No. 2.

Of course, in the intervening years, after serving his sentence for Sodomy 1, he launched his infamous 2008 coup, bragging one hoary claim after another that enough Barisan Nasional (Umno) MPs, in the region of 30 to 40, were defecting to his side. (OSTB : defecting is missing an 'a'?) 

He is still persistent today, claiming that he had secured majority MPs to back his quest, even a supermajority, but he was just being ludicrous and incredulous. (OSTB : He was just being himself).

So, realistically speaking he has no chance. He has to realise, if not already, that his enterprise is the subject of rigorous public ridicule. 

In August his protégé in Sabah, K___y C__a, collaborated with former Chief Minister Tan Sri M--- A--n and others to trigger the collapse of the Parti Warisan Sabah Government.

Henceforth, the subsequent hustings and polls that moved people from Peninsula Malaysia to Sabah and back instigated a Covid-19 super spread nationwide.

In an immediate follow-up, the Back Door Man – like in 2008 – lathered a major media offensive that he, again, had the numbers to become PM but despite a high profile 25-minute audience his claim to the premiership was summarily dismissed.

He felt justified only to provide a list of supporting parties and their leaders as adequate – it was not – while the very thing needed to verify his numbers  – names of at least 111 other MPs supporting him – was stubbornly withheld.

The monarch was no-nonsense in his dismissal of the legation and curtly told him off to “abide by and respect the legal processes as enshrined in the Federal Constitution”. 

The consequence was furious: his allies in Pakatan Harapan first felt deceived and then betrayed when reports surfaced of a startling collaboration with the Javanese fellow and the convicted thief in particular, to form a new administration.

In his caginess over this so-called collaboration, he perpetuated the perception that he is so besotted with the idea of becoming PM that he’ll resort to the unthinkable. 

PH allies, the DAP and Amanah especially, questioned this collaboration, more so with the Back Door Man not giving a hoot about consultation. 

Naturally, the deal was perceived as a plan to rescue these condemned UMNO jail-birds from corruption indictments and jail time. 

Even long-time loyalists within his party, senior officials and MPs embarrassed by their president, plan to desert him by leaving the party.

What was his counterpunch? He deployed his wimpy bloggers and cronies to blame and demonise Dr Mahathir for all of his past failures to be PM.

This distract and deflect strategy sums up his miscalculations, which reinforces public perception that he is a failed leader unfit to be PM, especially on policies he assertively pushed that has maligned the education system.

During his watch as Education Minister he elicited diminishing returns for bumiputera graduates – unproductive, unemployed and under-employed.

From that alone, these graduates’ progress were burdened by lack of confidence, lack of innovation, lack of creativity and lack of a constructively critical mindset, and the inability to communicate properly, especially in English.

Then there is the ethnic tension and disharmony simmering underneath, the lack of integrity, ethics, social responsibility and respect for peace and the environment.

His path to Putrajaya was riddled with landmines of his own doing. He is unable to overcome his own ex-close friends and ex-associates whom he had alienated - across ethnic, age and political divides, many of whom were once his loyal supporters since the early halcyon years of street protests.

He currently seems to be on standby mode since that audience debacle, perhaps he is waiting for the outcome of the Budget 2021 vote next week.

Whatever it is, you can be sure that the Back Door Man will prepare more histrionics to mask his diminishing support and the growing disenchantment of his allies and supporters.

Azmi Anshar is a retired newspaper editor and active political commentator who has reported on and observed the Back Door Man since 1981.

My conclusion. The two words that we are looking for are : 'not relevant'.  'Irrelevant' if we reduce it to one word.

The fact that clowns like these can still sing and dance by the roadsides around the country is reflective of a much more troubling reality - we have armies of unthinking people in this country. The education system is terribly wanting. 

To conclude let me share a strange joke I heard about 38 years ago from a Tunisian friend who was a fellow student with me in the US. 

I never expected the really silly joke to have relevance to anything - but after reading Azmi Anshar's  "he is so besotted with the idea of becoming PM that he’ll resort to the unthinkable"  perhaps it does now. Here goes the joke :

A man and a woman got married. They tried having children but they were not successful - despite both of them being healthy and capable. So one day they both came to an idea. They both agreed that each of them would go out and do anything on their own to have a child. They would both treat the child as their own. So months went by and the man had nothing to show. But the woman became pregnant. So they waited and the great day came for the birth of the baby. Finally the baby was born. The man was waiting anxiously in the waiting room (this was the 80s ok - husbands were not allowed into the delivery room.)  Then the doctor stepped out and told the man, "Your wife gave birth to a super healthy baby. But before we  knew what was going on the baby jumped out the window, jumped onto the nearest tree and has disappeared into the woods."

What does that mean? Try to be normal?  Try the front door - for a change?  

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.