Meet the man out to flip the bird on ‘politics as usual’

 

Syed Nabil says he wants to disrupt the political scene in Malaysia.

PETALING JAYA: Some time in July, as Syed Nabil was catching up with a group of friends online, the topic eventually veered to the nation’s politics.

Their interactions with others and their reactions to the news they read led them to the conclusion that Parliament is agnostic about political parties, while MPs can form new pacts at will.

They also agreed that politicians do not listen to the voters, but instead toe the line of their political masters – a stituation which led Syed Nabil to realise that democracy could not operate under such conditions.

These two factors, along with the frustration he hears from customers about the state of the country when they patronise his F&B outlet, struck a chord.

“That pushed me to do something because obviously, I felt the same,” said Syed Nabil, 29, who hails from Nilai. “For more than six decades, democracy was not practised correctly due to the noise and distraction caused by the political parties.”

That was how “Pangkah Burung” came about, a movement that aims to disrupt the country’s political scene and course-correct democracy by pushing more independents to contest general elections.

Political graphics that Syed Nabil is sharing on social media.

Syed Nabil believes the public’s own complacency had led to the slide in political standards. But citizens should have an indirect hand in policies that are formulated and subsequently enforced.

For this to happen, the electorate should vote in more independents, especially those with integrity.

An independent MP could be easily replaced in the next polls if they “go rogue”, compared to those who belong to a political party, who could always defect to another party to save themselves.

“The political masters of an independent MP are the voters themselves. They are not bound to directions from any party,” he says. He hopes that voters will buy into the impartiality of the movement which also aims to create greater awareness about the political landscape and pitfalls of the current system.

Currently, Syed Nabil and his small group of friends disseminate videos and graphics about the movement. “It is about creating disruptive votes against conventional politics.”

Their aim is not the coming general election, but for future elections. “We will only see this change to our political landscape in 20 years from now.” - FMT