How to shift public opinion by not making a fool out of you and me

While we try to curry the favour of a PM designate by hailing him as a saviour and hoping to positively shift public opinion, we should always remember not to make a fool of the readers.

FMT LETTERS

By Tajuddin Rosli

Over the past week, numerous individuals have come forward to dish out their expert opinion on why Dr Mahathir Mohamad is the man who can “save” Malaysia and undo the alleged widespread wrongdoings in the country.

In certain instances, they say we should not judge Mahathir by his past mistakes. But on the other hand, they second Mahathir as the prime minister candidate based on his past achievements. It is very confusing. So, do we look at his past or not? Or do we “only” look at the good times and ignore the bad? The latter, however, far surpasses the former.

Mahathir was bad until 2016 while he was in Umno. Now Mahathir is good because he is with Pakatan Harapan (PH). If by any chance he rejoins Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) in the near future, will he become a bad man again?

Opposition has no other credible leader?

The Mira NewGen party which claims not to be pro-Mahathir certainly believes that PH has no other credible individual to be the next prime minister. They have been very candid with their opinion, stating that Mohamed Azmin Ali, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and Muhyiddin Yassin are weak leaders who cannot govern the nation. This Mira NewGen party seems to be another mushroom that has popped out to win over Indian votes.

Are they insinuating that the opposition is so weak in leadership that a 93-year-old man needs to come back and lead? Are they saying that in the event that Mahathir quits the opposition or leaves, we should all not vote for the opposition because it cannot govern the country? They claim Mahathir is the only opposition leader with vast experience and without any political ambition.

Upon leaving Umno in 2016 for the second time, Mahathir said, “If I wanted my son to be prime minister, I could have promoted him during the time I was prime minister.” He also said he did not practise nepotism.

Not long ago, Khairy Jamaluddin triumphed in the 2009 Umno Youth election. Despite winning, Khairy was conveniently omitted from holding any important portfolio compared to his predecessors. He did not have the clout of a government post whereas his deputy Razali Ibrahim and rival Mukhriz Mahathir (who lost to Khairy in the Youth election) were made deputy ministers. The head of Wanita Umno then was made a full minister and the Puteri chief a deputy minister.

Are you saying that Mahathir had nothing to do with this? Is this just another Tun Salleh Abas situation where Mahathir did not do anything?

PPBM

While you can boast about Mahathir’s 22-year tenure, can you also name one credible leader that he gave rise to? Anyone who opposed him either went behind bars or got the sack. So which part of great leadership quality does Mahathir posses? As renowned US author John C Maxwell states, “Leaders become great not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others.”

Speaking about empowerment, let’s not look too far behind. Dissect the power struggles in PPBM and the truth stares back at you. PPBM’s founding member Kamarulazman Habibur Rahman quit the party last year, citing foul play in the organisation. Just days ago, he released a statement highlighting Mukhriz’s growth in PPBM. According to Kamarulazman, Mukhriz was initially appointed as the treasurer of PPBM.

Extraordinary meetings were allegedly held after that and miraculously, Mukhriz was elevated up the leadership ladder twice without proper elections. Now, he is the deputy president. Complaints have been filed with the Registrar of Societies (RoS) by PPBM’s own members, alleging irregularities in the AGM. PPBM has hardly been able to stand on its feet, but members are quitting, citing poor leadership.

Rewind, and you see a similar picture during the establishment of Umno Baru under Mahathir. It was only Mahathir’s way. Any other way was deemed a betrayal. Even Tunku Abdul Rahman was not allowed to be part of Umno Baru. As the Umno Baru boat became rocky, Mahathir caused turmoil in the country.

In an interview, the late Tunku said, “You see, the whole trouble today is, when he took over, he was trying to make sure he would stay on in power.”

Fast-forward to 2017. Mahathir is being propelled to be the man to hold power (again), and his son is being continuously pushed upward to lead. Mahathir again is doing everything, this time not so much for himself but more for his son to stay in power. He is trying to cook the same meal using different ingredients.

Marginalisation

Numerous keyboard warriors from Hindraf and Mira Newgen party are scoffing at the government’s efforts through the Malaysian Indian Blueprint. They allege that it is just another document that is not going to happen. Some even claim that Mahathir did a lot for the Indian community.

Pre-Mahathir era, Indians held various prominent positions in the service sector. Post-Mahathir era, Indians are pleading for more representations in the service sector. What happened in between, during the Mahathir era?

Before the Malaysian New Economic Policy (NEP), the service sector boasted 60.8% Malays, 20.2% Chinese, and 17.4% Indians. In 2005, the representation was 77.04% Malays, 9.37% Chinese and only 5.12% Indians. Under whose leadership did the numbers dwindle?

While certain quarters may say Mahathir is a changed man and he is trying to correct wrongs, this is all assumption. To date, he maintains that he was right in all his actions. He even said his recent apology was not for the wrongs he did but for the “maybe wrongs” that affected certain individuals. There is nothing different about Mahathir’s behaviour that would suggest he is truly ashamed and sorry about his past.

Without a doubt, Mahathir brought lots of development to the nation. Technological growth and sky-scrapers put Malaysia on the map. But so did the sacking of Tun Salleh Abas and Supreme Court judges. We also became an international topic with corruption, cronyism, racism, money politics, dictatorship, Anwar Ibrahim, sodomy, court proceedings and many more.

With mega projects, Malaysia boomed, but at what cost? Sepang International Circuit, Proton, MAS (to name a few) never generated proper ROIs. Year in, year out, bailouts were required. Was it all necessary? Are we a society of white elephants?

While we try to curry the favour of a PM designate by hailing him as a saviour and hoping to positively shift public opinion, we should always remember not to make a fool of the readers.

Tajuddin Rosli is an FMT reader.