Who will command the Malay vote at GE16: Anwar, Hadi or Zahid?

 

In three years or less, Malaysia will face its 16th general election (GE16).

We already know more or less who the contending parties will be. Up until now, no new and viable party seems to have been set up.

Malaysians will have to contend with the usual players: PKR, DAP, Umno and PAS.

The Borneo bloc will just sit and wait. This bloc will never control Malaysia by just sitting in the safety of its own geographical and political boundaries.

All eyes and betting chips will be on which party commands the interest of the Malays. Only the leaders of PAS, PKR and Umno will be in the ring: Abdul Hadi Awang, Anwar Ibrahim and Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, respectively.

Non-Malays will have to make their choice from among these three and be at peace with themselves.

For now, however, the question is who among them will the Malays choose in three years’ time?

A year ago, the answer would have been obvious. The most popular party was PAS, with leaders like Hadi and Sanusi Nor drawing crowds who would cling on to their every word.

Corruption, extremism and even stupidity were ignored just so that the narrative of protecting and defending Islam is drummed into the consciousness of pensioners yearning for a spot in heaven. There appeared to be no other choice.

As for the young Malays, who did they prefer? If the past few elections have been anything to go by, they love motorcycle convoys, pretty and obnoxious social media influencers, and PAS-sponsored celebrities. Umno and Anwar were nowhere.

Umno, Anwar making inroads

But after two years, both Umno and Anwar now seem to be making inroads. The announcement of a pay hike for civil servants has snared many voters.

The salary increase has drowned out grouses raised about the diesel subsidy during the Sungai Bakap by-election.

Anwar’s biggest political manoeuvre has involved two recent high-profile events.

The first was a huge rally to protest the killing of the Hamas leader in Iran and the second was the flying in of Palestinians for medical treatment.

While non-Malays attacked and accused Anwar of misusing taxpayers’ money, these two acts secured his popularity among the Malays, with Malay-based NGOs and individuals backing him.

These are optics that sell.

Even when doing good consciously and with sincerity, good optics are a must in today’s world of communication.

If the majority of the Malay vote goes to Hadi and Zahid, the pair will rule Malaysia with Malay-Islamic supremacist control. Umno would have no choice but to follow suit.

However, if Anwar can get just 40% of the Malay vote, with the remaining 60% divided equally between Hadi and Zahid, the moral victory will be Anwar’s, and Zahid is likely to follow through.

PAS will be relegated to a smaller presence, thus saving Malaysians from having a theocratic parliament that may destroy the original spirit of our constitution.

Who will be the Malay hero?

Malaysians of all races must understand that our nation is at important crossroads.

Many Malaysians seem to be unhappy with Anwar but they definitely do not prefer the other two alternatives.

Well, let me ask Malaysians. Is there a fourth Malay leader? Will it be former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin? Who else can be a Malay icon to rival the other three? I do not see anyone else, do you?

If Khairy is the fourth option for Malaysians, why is he wasting time with his podcast and advertising 

urut

 (massage) machines?

Why does he not set up his own political party? To me, the reality is that Khairy wants to return to Umno. He is just waiting for Zahid to step aside believing that any new leader will have the compassion to let him back in.

Khairy played his cards against Zahid and lost. But if Zahid is out, then Khairy will return. But there is no guarantee that he will be given an important position. The likes of Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh and others will never allow it.

So, there you have it. Anwar will still have to play the Malay and Muslim hero.

Hadi is already a Muslim hero but Zahid will need to recapture his image as a Malay hero with some Islamic credentials. The politics of Malaysia calls for a Malay-Muslim hero. There are no two ways about it.

Civil society personalities both in the country or safely in the UK can gripe all day long and wish for Malay heroes with Western values like former deputy prime minister Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman or former prime minister Razak Hussein, but that won’t be happening.

There is no place in Malaysia among the Malays for a Western-based Malay hero. Even P Ramlee would lose his shirt if he were alive and his name on the ballot.

The non-Malays must stop fantasising to consider the reality.

Staying home in dismay and disgust will result in an Umno-PAS alliance – of that I am very sure.

If you do not like Anwar then put up your own champion. But if you have none, then start reevaluating your ideas and false understanding of the man.

Over the next three general elections, this will be the real hard truth in Malaysian politics. Change can only come through a Malay hero who must navigate through the Malay sentiment and culture.

To me, only one Malay leader can save us. - FMT

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