When to do and be done as a politician

 

The legion of youths in Pakatan Harapan will be unhappy with my statement but let me say it anyway.

I am extremely disappointed with the organisers of the 'Tangkap Azam Baki' rally held on Jan 22 in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur. To me, they created a public nuisance.

Why do I say so? Because of the hype leading up to the rally where it was reported that 33 NGOs and several political parties were behind it, Bukit Aman decided to deploy more than 1,000 police officers to man roadblocks and manage the event.

But how many participants actually turned up? Only about 200 (as reported by Malaysiakini). By all accounts, the protest was a failure. It achieved nothing but to create a public nuisance.

Think of the strain on our public purse when 1,000 police officers had to be deployed to handle a rally involving just 200 participants. It doesn’t make sense.

(What makes sense is when you have a public rally like Bersih with 500,000 protesters. Then, deploying 5,000 police officers and imposing a city lockdown does not only make sense but is necessary and understandable.)

To the youths, think carefully before you organise any public gathering. I would also be prepared to organise a peaceful protest if it is seriously warranted for the greater societal good.

Before that, I must have confidence that the event will achieve its desired purpose and its after-effects are impactful. Anything less is a waste of my time and effort.

There is no doubt that youths in politics are the future of the nation. We need them to take charge eventually but before that, we must ensure that they are ready for the challenges ahead.

Political ambitions

With the Undi18 policy and automatic voter registration now in effect, it is likely that some young political nerds are already looking at the next level, that is, to be an elected representative rather than just a mere voter. We welcome them.

In Johor, where an election is looming at the heels of state polls in Sabah, Malacca and Sarawak, some 749,000 youths are now eligible to vote.

Based on statistics from the Election Commission (EC), this brings the total number of registered voters in Johor to nearly 2.6 million, including members of the armed forces and the police.

The EC is expected to announce the date of the polls after it meets on Feb 9.

Whenever an election is coming around, there is almost always some haggling and lobbying being carried out behind closed doors by those seeking to be named for seats.

But a political career is not all that easy or smooth.

Still, why do some veteran statesmen find it difficult to step back and let go of their power and position?

Perhaps, they didn't set out to do this as a career. They sincerely just wanted to serve.

Perhaps, after caring so intensely about things dear to their political struggle, it is difficult to simply let others pick up the mantle.

In their position, you desperately want good people to step up and take your place but find yourself unable to truly and wholeheartedly recruit anyone who shares your vision and mission.

It starts off well but then... 

Of course, it's exciting at the beginning. You're all fired up to make all kinds of changes you think are good for the people. You listen to everyone. You go to every meeting. You want to do the people's trust as much justice as you can.

You feel unbelievably humbled that somehow, you've been put in this place of responsibility.

Then, it's frustrating. You learn there is another side to everything you thought you knew about your neighbourhood and your constituency. You realise that nothing is cut and dry, black and white.

Through the meetings, you learn about colleagues with hidden agendas, self-interest at the forefront, toxic personalities, or who are practically (or even actually) crooks.

Then, it's exhausting. You spend so much time going to events in your capacity as the people’s representative, and you spend endless hours trying not to get sued.

There will be occasions when you cannot render any help due to the complaints being unfair or lacking vital information and you’d be charged with an ethics violation to explain yourself.

You read letters to newspaper editors written by residents who only know half the issue or have been grossly misinformed, or news articles that get major details wrong or were written in a one-sided manner without asking you for your official comment in response, and because of confidentiality, you can't correct any of them.

After you've spoken in public, people misunderstand or dissect every word you've said and read into it things that you didn't mean.

Sooner or later, you're faced with a situation that has no right answer.

Sooner or later, your beliefs, ethics, morals, political affiliations, and personal life are all called into question and you answer as honestly as you can without saying too much. Often, the answers are unsatisfactory to the people doing the questioning.

Most times, there just isn't any 'interesting story' there. It's just someone having a go at your expense because you voted against something they championed.

The main message to take away is... it's a labour of love and pretty thankless work with spurts of moments of pride, friendship and genuine satisfaction.

At some point, you notice that the people you wanted to help and listen to before now make you wince when you see them approach the mic to talk at a town hall meeting.

You find yourself feeling defensive, stressed out and hated regardless of what you do. And that, my friends, is the point when you need to get out.

I hope the politically ambitious but reckless organisers of the failed Jan 22 rally take note of the frustrating and exhausting political journey ahead.

Remember this: Once considered a public nuisance, your political career is as good as over even before it started. - Mkini

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FRANCIS PAUL SIAH is a veteran Sarawak editor and heads the Movement for Change, Sarawak (MoCS). He can be reached at sirsiah@gmail.com

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