The Malaysian political scenario is heading for shocking changes by the fact that political parties are now sizing up what the future holds for them. Change being the only constant in life it looks like what is about to unfold in the near future should prove hard to believe but can be gauged by the analyses conducted by a wide range of political commentators and experts.
There should be people by now shaking their heads in unbelief and preferring to believe that no changes are in store and that the status quo will be maintained.
But great pressure is beginning to mount on Barisan Nasional (BN) to hold good on their 13th GE promises but it looks as if the national coalition is set to renege on what they promised.
The situation is evolving where the rakyat (populace) are now burdened by heavy and oppressive conditions of living in this country which has witnessed sporadic demonstrations and protests.
But more is yet to come. Malaysia has not seen the last of these voices of dissent and protest and the main reason is because Malaysians are sick and tired and fed up with the poor and weak leadership of BN leaders.
Malaysia Chronicle has spoken to many political insiders and taking into consideration the Umno-led BN's long record of inability to reform along democratic lines, the general view is that there are basically two main scenarios of what can happen to Malaysia. One reflects optimism and hope, the other perhaps the harsh reality that many believe is already here.
BN unable to dig itself out of the socio-economic hole it created
From the rising cost of living to poor wages and salaries and from deplorable living conditions the "Malaysian Dream" as conceived by BN is turning out to be a nightmare reality.
More and more Malaysians are being pushed to the brink and forced to eke out a living because corruption and fraudulent practices are at runaway levels in this country.
If the prices of goods and services are rising, if housing is no longer affordable for the majority of Malaysians and if heath care and education is also rising astronomically in costs, Malaysians are being forced to bite the bullet.
BN has spawned and spewed a lot of spin doctoring to divert the attention of the rakyat from the core issues and problems facing the country. By raising the MH 370 scenario, the "Allah" controversy by Christians and the implementation of "hudud" or not to "hudud, the attention of Malaysians have been diverted and deflected from the real issues facing the country.
This, even ordinary Malaysians are beginning to realize, and as BN runs away from responsibility and accountability, the stage is set for a change in the political scenario of this country.
Possible scenario: Opposition triumphs
In the coming years, what the country should witness is the consolidation and unification of the opposition coalition of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and the likelihood that BN component parties will team up with PR.
This is a logical expectation as UMNO has already distanced itself from MCA, MIC, Gerakan PPP and other BN component parties in an overconfident belief that they can go about the governance of the nation alone.
This is why BN component parties in a not really shocking way are expected to form "a partnership of equals" with the PR political parties of PKR and DAP.
It should also see the ouster of Parti PAS from the PR coalition due to the fact that they are harping on irrelevant, unhealthy and troublesome issues that is set to witness their separation from PR.
While overtures will be made by UMNO to woo Parti PAS, it is unlikely that the two will form a union and UMNO and PAS are set to go it alone by themselves.
UMNO would continue to churn propaganda to influence Malaysians and Parti PAS will continue to be further isolated with their focus on Islamic supremacy.
What should follow is that the opposition nucleus of PKR and DAP are set to grow with the addition of political parties like MCA, MIC, PPP and Gerakan and others that is set to make them a truly multi-racial and multi-religious political front that should command the majority support of Malaysians.
These changes are not expected to take place in the near future but in the distant future when the 14thGE is about to take place.
This is because the only way BN component parties like MCA, MIC, PPP and Gerakan will be able to command the support of the people is by coming out of the BN fold and joining the egalitarian values of PR and sharing the vision of fair play, justice and meritocracy being in place in this country once again.
It is inevitable that these changes take place also in the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak, the opposition is also set to grow and bring about changes to the political landscape.
BN components may leave
Much as it's hard to believe that these changes will take place over the coming years, each day is a day of reckoning in this country and the push and pull towards this changes have already begun to take place.
These changes are expected to accelerate in pace with the growing obstinacy and defiance of UMNO in wanting to go about governance in the spirit of championing Malay supremacy and isolating and excluding the other BN component parties.
Even right now the BN component parties are just hanging by a loose thread in the organization and the only way for their survival and growth is to team up with the PR opposition.
While it is hard to gauge what are the other changes that are about to take place, the main thrust and impetus will see PR grow into a force to be reckoned with and UMNO trying hard to consolidate their position.
But with the wider exposure of Malay's and bumiputras to universal good and their witness of how political parties that play the race and religion card have caused so many problems in different countries in other parts of the world, they would like to avert a similar disaster in this country.
This is because more and more Malay's and other bumiputra's realize that while PAS is heading backwards, UMNO's blatant hypocrisy, corrupt acts and practices have cause the Malay's to view these parties with distrust and suspicion.
Change but of which sort?
Malaysians are no longer naive and ignorant. Many Malaysians have become better educated and better informed and this is why the rallying call for change is growing louder and louder everyday in this country.
Whether the transformation change by BN or the reformation change by PR, Malaysians are desperately wanting to see change, real changes and not cosmetic, superficial changes in the country.
This is why the changes that are set to take place in the future is also set to shock and awe.
Some people might be skeptical and not believe in the likelihood of these changes taking place. But the stark reality of these changes taking place is beginning to grow more and more likely as events begin to unfold in this country now.
Time and tide waits for no man and as time ticks away in steady fashion, there are right now already changes and initiatives being made towards changing the political scenario to reflect the wishes and aspirations of the people.
For possibly the first time since Merdeka in 1957, Malaysians may find themselves going back to sharing the ideals of Tunku Abdul Rahman as he and others fought for independence from the British.
With this shared vision re-emerging in the future, Malaysia can be expected to grow by leaps and bounds and every Malaysian and political party sharing the vision of Tunku for a just and upright Malaysia should go full steam ahead to bring about these changes into reality.
Najib's grand 'transformation': One Malaysia for All or Jihadist Malaysia for Malays
Sad to say, there is very possibility that the Malays who outnumber the other races might opt to to stick with Umno. If they do so, this means Malaysia will turn into a 'rogue' nation - in the jihadist mould of the strident nations in the Middlee East.
As former premier Mahathir Mohamad said in his blog, perhaps as a forewarning of what sort of transformation awaits Malaysia, the Islamic world has no democratic or stable nation.
“In the Islamic world now there is no stable country that is ruled by democracy. So long as there is no willingness to accept defeat in elections democracy will never succeed in the Islamic world,” the 88-year-old wrote in his latest blog entry on Wednesday.
His words are especially chilling when read together with the warning issued by polls reform movement Bersih 2.0.
"Prime Minister Najib’s praise for ISIS is an assault to humanity and civilisation. His call for its emulation is a covert call for the politics of blood. It is an international embarrassment to Malaysia and the people of Malaysia that their Prime Minister has lauded a terrorist group for its criminal actions," Bersih said in a no-holds-barred statement warning.
"Glorifying the terrorism of ISIS signals a readiness of UMNO to replace electoral and parliamentary competition with military and violent domination. This statement is extremely alarming given the growing number and intensity of hate speech under Najib’s premiership since 2009."
Preparedness of the institutions shows a deliberate strategy had been planned
Who will win the tug of war? Will light prevail or will the darkness of greed and pride in the human soul rule supreme?
Given the slick readiness of the Malaysian institutions viz-a-viz the Federal Court's stunning refusal to hear the Allah appeal, the stubborn refusal of the Inspector General of Police to comply with the orders issued by the civil court, the audacity of the state Islamic authorities in inter-faith tussles, it looks an era of doom and destruction awaits Malaysia.
The country's proud Twin Towers, a rare symbol of economic achievement in the Islamic world, may in the not distant future lie in ruins like most of scenery in the Middle East. Investor panic, economic hollowing-out and finally bloodshed and decades if not centuries of being stuck in an political maze of violence and extremism loom. Oil money will not help Malaysia to buy its way out of most of the misery wrought by conflict, as many rich Arab oil producing nations have found out.
A new and violent Malaysia
A 'state of mind' is gripping the Islamic world perpetrated by the sinister and powerful against the weak and powerless. Such a turn is in ascendancy and if actively deployed and manipulated by the Umno government in Malaysia, the easily-influenced Malays with their chip in the shoulder are pushovers to be brainwashed.
And along with escalating Islamization, doors will one way or other be thrown open to the terrorists of the world. As the saying goes, one's man terrorist is another's freedom fighter. Just as in the West, the ISIL has been condemned as being worse than the Al-Qaeda for the atrocities committed in Iraq, but here in Putrajaya, they are held as models of courage for members of the ruling Umno party to "emulate".
No, Malaysia is no longer at a crossroad. It is quite clear the current government has made a turning into the realm of extremism. Najib 'confirmed' this deliberate move, a strategy rumored to have been devised by the top power-brokers in his party, when he praised the ISIL terrorists just hours after the country's highest court upheld a ban on non-Muslims using the word Allah to describe God. In one fell swoop, the Federal Court had swiped back the religious freedom guaranteed to minorities in the Constitution. Yet Najib had nothing to say except that Malay rule could be 'fair'.
Najib, who once preached moderation at the world stage, has caught almost everyone by surprise - investors who invested hundreds of billions into assets here including property and land; neighboring countries especially nearby Thailand and Singapore would do well to be on alert; Western powers including US President Obama who visited recently. But most of all, he has betrayed Malaysians in particular the non-Malays.
The reactions of all the various groups will be most interesting to monitor in the months and years to come. - Malaysia Chronicle
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