Making a new political alignment work

 

MP SPEAKS | There has been much speculation, in light of recent events in Perak, that Pakatan Harapan could forge some kind of cooperation with Umno and BN.

Anything taking place in Perak will have national repercussions.

A development of this kind will naturally be a major, if not earth-shaking event in Malaysian politics.

As a PKR MP, I firmly believe that Harapan is the best platform to achieve a progressive, equitable Malaysia.

Any new alignment must have the interest of the rakyat at heart – this is non-negotiable.

However, it must also be recognised that political realignments are nothing new in Malaysia.

After the May 13, 1969 tragedy, the National Consultative Consulting (NCC) was created by Abdul Razak Hussein, in part to restore socio-political as well as economic normalcy for Malaysia.

Except for DAP, all the other main opposition parties took part in the NCC – PAS, the People’s Progressive Party and Gerakan. DAP was protesting the detention of its secretary-general, Lim Kit Siang.

This process led to the creation of the Rukunegara and the endorsement of the New Economic Policy to address poverty and economic identification with race.

Soon, PAS, PPP, Sabah Alliance Party, and two Sarawak parties SUPP and PBB joined the original members of the Alliance Party to form BN. The coalition dominated Malaysian politics until its defeat in 2018.

PKR and the DAP worked with PAS several times in the past, including via Pakatan Rakyat (PR). We put aside years of acrimony and suspicion to work with Dr Mahathir Mohamad, allowing Bersatu to enter Harapan in 2017.

In 2018, as everyone knows, Harapan brought down BN – the first time a change of power had ever happened at the federal level in Malaysia.

While Harapan did its best to reform Malaysia, it admittedly made mistakes. We failed to focus on bread-and-butter issues so crucial to many Malaysians.

Our handling of wedge issues like race, religion and language left much to be desired – this not only gave momentum to our political foes but exacerbated rather than healed our country’s wounds.

But the key is for us to learn and grow from our mistakes.

Starting from the beginning of the Reformasi in 1998, the old political certainties of the post-1969 period have been swept away, especially with the “waves” of 2008, and 2018 general election.

Clearly, the old BN model has outlived its usefulness. But as the fall of Harapan as well as the continuing instability of PN show, Malaysia has not found a workable political realignment to reflect its current realities.

Every party member wants his or her party to do well – but the chance of any one entity dominating Malaysia the way Umno and BN did in their heydays are over.

We are well and truly in an era of coalition politics. At the same time, democracy – especially nascent ones like Malaysia’s – is by nature messy and frankly, sometimes unedifying.

The certainties of pre-election coalitions are giving way to a more pragmatic positioning as experienced by many European countries.

But we must understand that Malaysians are fatigued and hungry for a return to normalcy – on all fronts. They have been let down so many and too many times.

So, as I stressed from the beginning – any political realignment has to be for the good of the people. No one should never lose sight of that, especially given the socio-economic turmoil that the Covid-19 pandemic has wrought, especially on the most vulnerable in our society.

Therefore, any new cooperation or whatever it is to be called that Harapan might embark on must be one that brings stability, recovery and growth to our country and the rakyat.

The following points are most crucial in my mind.

First, it has to last for the life of this current Parliament – until its full term which ends in 2023. This will provide stability yearned by many Malaysians.

When the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats formed the post-election coalition government in the UK in 2010, the government passed the fixed-term Parliament Act that allows early elections to only take place if two-thirds of MPs vote to do so.

This current administration has arguably failed to provide the stability that the people have yearned for.

Replacing it however must result in a net improvement for the lives of ordinary Malaysians, to give everyone time to catch their breath, to prepare for a challenging future – though one also rich in opportunity.

Second, there must be a common vision. While we have our differences, we must want the same things – the lack of this arguably hampered Harapan when it was in power federally from 2018 to 2020.

At the very least, however, Harapan was accountable to its election manifesto. PN has failed to do so and that proves its weakness.

Relying on Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin being portrayed as "Abah" may work to a certain extent in the Sabah state election but is harder to sell in the long run.

There must be a shared desire and energy for thorough reform, both politically and economically.

A fall in the PN government will mean swift change of political fortunes for many legislators. This is a lesson to treat all legislators equally and end the winner-take-all political culture that we inherited from the BN hegemony.

Similarly, the massive corporate cleanouts that took place when Harapan, and worst the politicisation of GLCs that took place under PN must come to an end.

Competence, integrity and transparency are crucial. But the next time Harapan comes to power, it must also focus on radically restructuring Malaysia’s economy, finding new areas of growth and empowering the potential of our people.

If the country is to survive, Malaysia’s post-pandemic economy must not only be competitive but also just. The call for the creation of a new NCC should be heeded – this has been ignored for far too long.

I do not know how any Malaysian who wishes their country well can object to these things – whatever his or her political ideology.

Finally, the mandate that the people of Malaysia gave in the 2018 general election must be respected.

A realignment must not be to gain power for the sake of power. Rather, it must be the product of a sober assessment of what is ultimately good for the country.

We cannot ignore the fact that all Malaysians, despite their seeming fatigue with the rough-and-tumble nature of politics, also fundamentally yearn for the rule of law, a respect for the constitutional consensus and the blessings that genuine justice brings to a nation.

No individual should be exempt from the legal process in the pursuit to stitch the new political realignment.

The reform of our country’s public institutions, to ensure they are not only functional but also independent and accountable, must be restarted and continue without hindrance.

All political factions who are willing to unequivocally commit to these things should discuss as well as work towards the ways and means to ensure a better future for all our people.

As Malaysians, we love our country and want what is best for it.

It is natural and inevitable that we might find ourselves on different ends of the political spectrum.

But in the face of multiple crises, we should unite in a broad, progressively-minded combination and moderate our sentiments to allow Malaysia to recover and move forward. 

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NIK NAZMI NIK AHMAD is the chief organising secretary of PKR and MP of Setiawangsa.  - Mkini

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.