Awaiting Malaysia’s new baby

Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad

Amidst the myriad unending political upheavals, some obviously more bizarre than others, the nation (read rakyat) shall now be implored to hold on a little longer and walk the extra mile.

But why should they? Why should they bear anymore of the ‘political nonsense’ of the politicians? Yes politicians of both divides – the BN and the Pakatan.

Call yourselves whatever, the bottom-line is, you are politicians, all the same, whatever that word means and as perceived by the rakyat or the citizenry. So say the (silent) majority of the rakyat.

They are now clamoring for their lives to be reinstated back. Yes back to business as usual. Despondency and dismay invariably fill the air. The ‘collateral damage’ sustained have been enormous. It’s indeed too suffocating and at times rightly so, nauseating. Arguably, an overall perception of an overdose of politics has been around for a while.

Well, admittedly so. After the watershed General Election (GE) of March 8, 2008, there was never a dull moment in Malaysia. Malaysia assumes the most exciting political spot on the entire earth, at times.

But why? Why has there been an intense politicisation as never before witnessed after the 12 GE? Many have begged for this and some claim that the number is growing by the day. Seriously, could you please bring this nation back to our ‘usual’ pre-12 GE scenario?

If you are ready to hear, this writer would provide his take on this RM1 million question.

First, is the bad news. The answer is No. We can’t get back to business as usual. The path back has been erased, almost deleted forever. Really? Well, almost. But wait a moment. Don’t despair as yet.

Now is the good news. We ‘may’ have found a new path. That path we wanted to take a long time ago, but we somehow lost it along the way for whatever reasons. The long deferred path.

Being on it again may not immediately provide us the comfort of familiarity. On the contrary, the path seems onerous. But over 2 years on it, you somehow feel that you are getting somewhere nearer to where you once liked and wanted to be.

Even more comforting is the fact that you are moving away from the stink and stench of the rut of the former path.

If you are still wondering over what this writer is philosophizing or ranting, he could try to make it simpler. The writer is attempting to provide a narration of the state of the nation half-way our political journey in the 12th parliamentary session. Bluntly put but still resorting to metaphors, he truly believes that the nation as a whole is undergoing the pangs of a ‘delivery’. But this is no usual birth.

It is the birth, long awaited for decades. Known only to the Almighty, the arrival has unfortunately been unduly deferred. Many have stood and have fallen for its cause.

Like all deliveries, the pains are as excruciating to even fatal point. But this time it is about the worst of it. The pangs and sufferings shall be even more unbearable as it is about to deliver a ‘very special baby’.

But again as in any delivery, should the nation and the rakyat bear it all, the arrival of the long-awaited ‘baby’ would instantaneously take all the agonies away.

If the ‘delivery’ is to be likened to the next 13-GE, the special baby to be delivered could very well be likened to the ‘New Malaysia’ that we all dreamt to have. How sure are we? That’s for the rakyat and voters to decide.

Hence, the reasons the writer has been emphatically saying that the rakyat must not be over-enraged and frustrated by the inconveniences before the ‘delivery’.

The rakyat has just to withstand it for a little longer as to be welcomed to the refreshing world of a New Malaysia.

Now that the rakyat is hopefully making sense of the political scenarios of the Post-12 GE, they are hopefully duty-bound to be willing partners in that political development trajectory. Better still, they should be responsible stakeholders-cum-players, to see that the delivery shall not experience a ‘still-birth’ and the baby a ‘stillborn’.

Mid-way through the 12 parliamentary-session, what the nation experiences is not entirely an impasse or a crisis, which is how it is used to be described as. What the nation and the rakyat are undergoing is a transformational process, a metamorphosis of sort, in embracing the ‘New Politics’ of a 2-party system with its attending features and characteristics.

The emerging New Politics is at times met with stiff resistance from the power-that-be and upholders of the old political order, resulting in skirmishes and occasionally into an outright war, the like of power-grab in Perak. But that’s part of the whole dynamics. If that is the price to pay to liberate the ‘silent’ majority, be it. They now could better see for themselves. It shall be a long protracted struggle for change and reform to happen.

Besides, the upheavals are punctuated by the media expose involving high-profile political figures consequent to the endemic corruption, unbridled abuse of power and malignant cronyism in the system. Examples abound the like of PKFZ, the mother of all scandals, etc. Failing GLCs equally triggered the sinking feeling of despair.

The continuous attempts at subverting democratically mandated state governments of the Pakatan, represent another political aberration of the old Political Order.

Heightening intimidation to instill fear is another brute tactic of the old order that is now revived. Death threat via bullet in the post-box exacerbated the anarchy of attacks on churches and mosques. Cow-head and wild-boar shall remain a reminder to all of how low one could go in undermining religious harmony.

Again, these are inherent in the nature of political contestation that involves a zero-sum game, ie where there is only one winner and worse still, where the winner takes all. Desperation of impending losers knows no bounds.

Trumped-up charges of the political leader of the Opposition bench, the like of Sodomy 2.0 now showing, the CIA-American connection and tragic death exemplified of Teoh Beng Hock in the custody of the MACC shall remain baffling to the uninitiated majority.

All the above constitute the despair and despondency sustained by the silent rakyat on the back of a lackluster performance in the economy and a rising cost of living. Talks of the country going bankrupt frightened the less discerning minds into submission for a reduction in subsidy and the introduction of the GST. They became easy prey to the BN-media propaganda of ‘manufacturing consent’ as criticised by Noam Chomsky.

Be that as it may, what the New Politics hopes to achieve however, is an effective institution of check and balance, ie the two-party system and hopefully the reawakening of critical institutions of the state with a much more informed citizenry.

Besides, it is now demanding that contesting parties must be savvy enough to understand the new realities and aspiration of the voters and rakyat at large.

A better-informed rakyat now demands that political parties must be seen responsive to their changing demands and higher needs. Otherwise they could very well be assigned to the dustbin of history.

It involves contesting parties unlearning and relearning new ideas and embracing new approaches as to win the hearts and minds of a new constituency of voters – the ‘silent’ majority that has slowly yet surely transforming into an enlarging middle-ground voters. A thousand thanks to the New Media!

The New Politics similarly supports an inclusive and rakyat-friendly policy that celebrates dissent and differences, yet upholds good-governance, transparency and accountability as best practice.

Any party or coalition that fails to pay at least a lip-service to these ideals shall be doomed to fail from the outset. At times these new ideas and approaches are diametrically opposed to and at variance with their own professed party’s conviction. But they must now take heed.

Viewed from this perspective, the pending 13th GE shall present a window of opportunity for all contending parties on both the divides, to reengineer their respective party’s coalition’s commitments and policy prescriptions. Najib is surely conscious of this but he is apparently alone. Others are either in denial mode or simply inattentive to the changing realities of the New Politics.

The New Politics is neither about supporting Pakatan nor about rejecting the BN per se. It is entirely about sustaining the cardinal principle of democracy ie the dynamics of managing dissent and of instituting both formal and informal mechanisms of the check and balance in a 2-party system.

Lest you think that the writer’s only concern is about Pakatan winning the next GE at the federal level, you’re again mistaken. Whatever the outcome of the next 13-GE is not as important as preparing that the contestation be truly on a level-playing field and fair.

The New Politics must assure that a free and fair election is in place and that a commitment to fair-play by the Election Commission shall ensure that the better coalition or the better candidate, as perceived by the rakyat, be mandated. The election must not subvert the choice of the people.

Yes, Pakatan Rakyat is ready to take on the Umno/BN anytime, despite the nemesis superior electoral ‘fire-power’. The odds staked against us are gargantuan. But we believe we are in consonant with the many aspirations and goals of the New Politics.

Much as we are hopeful of a regime change at the Federal level, winning is not the be-all and end-all objective of this contestation. There will be always another contest should we fail this time round. But delivering a Free and Fair Election is! Delivering a functional democracy is! Delivering a vibrant economy is!

Needless to say, the rakyat must first grasp what is happening around here as to be its firm believers, its ardent protagonists and relentless advocates of the genuine reform.