Let Maria Chin run as a true independent

As a Malaysian citizen, Maria Chin Abdullah has every right to run for Parliament. She is entitled to even form her own political party if she so wishes, as it is a right guaranteed under the Federal Constitution.

She may have a myriad of reasons to contest in the 14th general election, but to say that she is doing this for all the perks that go with public office is an accusation too far.

Maria’s background as a women’s rights activist and later a leading campaigner for electoral reform already speaks volumes of her credentials, and money would be the least of her motivations, if it did matter to her at all.

After all, one should not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain, and the labourer does deserve her wages. Being an elected representative is no easy task, which is why lawmakers should be amply rewarded for their hard work, and the onus is on us to make sure that it is worth every sen of the taxpayer’s money.

And neither should Maria be perceived to have betrayed the trust that the public put in her over the years. Unlike some who started as prominent activists but subsequently joined state government-linked companies, Maria Chin is at least seeking to take her agenda to Parliament.

Nonpartisan, not neutral

Why am I against Maria running as a Pakatan Harapan candidate?

Lest we forget, she would not have been who she is today if not for the Bersih movement, and she owes it to the masses who have stood faithfully behind her for the past few years.

I fully concur with Maria that Bersih has never been a neutral organisation, in the sense that the movement is expected to speak out against institutional inadequacies and electoral malpractices without fear and favour.

Just a reminder: Bersih is a coalition of like-minded civil society organisations unaffiliated to any political party, and the aim is to effectively monitor both sides of the political divide.

For instance, it is Maria’s right to challenge the pro-Umno Election Commission at every turn, but she should also have brought both Penang and Selangor governments to task over their failed promise to bring back local democracy.

Not being neutral means not sitting on the fence when a failing on either side is sighted, pure and simple.

This doesn’t mean Maria, now ex-chairperson of Bersih, should embrace a political alliance with all the fame that she has accumulated in the name of the organisation.

It does mean, in short, that she should be nonpartisan but not impartial, because one simply cannot remain neutral in the face of injustice.

The Mahathir factor

One more thing: Harapan is now headed by the man who should be held ultimately responsible for the rot in our electoral system, Dr Mahathir Mohamad (photo).

For Maria to thus contest under Harapan’s banner is thus nothing less than ironic.

How would she be able to defend her position if her rivals point to Mahathir for all the wrongs in our politics today? It would be all the more difficult had she already secured the blessing of the ex-dictator.

To declare oneself to be an “independent" Harapan candidate is an oxymoron. How independent can one be as a Harapan-nominated candidate?

The experience of Teh Yee Cheu, the Tanjung Bungah assemblyperson, is already a clear indicator of how much space Harapan, and DAP in particular, concedes to internal dissent, not to mention those who were sacked from the party in Malacca last year.

Perhaps Maria, bereft of funds and resources, is not confident of winning the battle on her own, so that she has no option but to affiliate herself with Harapan while seeking to maintain a veneer of independence.

Or maybe she, too, is aware of the baggage that Mahathir is carrying with him in Harapan, and is trying to somewhat keep a distance to avoid being tainted.

If this is not being calculative and opportunistic, I don’t know what is.

Maria can still stand as an independent while Harapan can choose not to field a candidate to make it possible for her to win.

In fact, those who are bent on voting Harapan will still vote for a coalition-endorsed candidate anyway, and they would even be ready to vote for the crass, uncouth and sexist Nazri Aziz if the latter ditched Umno and joined the opposition alliance.

Harapan converts and diehards will not care if Maria is officially with the coalition, because her record speaks for itself. But she still must win over the cynical, sceptical and floating voters who are yet to be convinced of a regime change under Harapan. The only way to not alienate them further is for Maria to run as a nonpartisan candidate.

Reforms if system benefits Harapan?

Last but not least, the electoral system as we have it now is a double-edged sword, for it too can benefit the opposition if the anger of the electorate is so strong that it could end up hurting Umno.

What if Harapan managed to win a large number of parliamentary seats that was enough for it to rule on its own? That would reduce drastically any incentive for electoral reform on the part of Harapan.  

This scenario is not entirely implausible. The British Labour Party under Tony Blair did promise a referendum on the abolition of the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system during the 1997 general election, only to go back on its own word after Blair secured one of the most spectacular victories for the party.

What Blair did deliver on was a watered-down electoral reform, allowing other voting systems to be used only for non-Westminster elections, because FPTP benefited his party disproportionately.

Will Maria continue to fight in the event that Harapan refuses to back the electoral agenda that she has been vigorously and religiously pursuing?

What if Harapan denies her annual allocations, as DAP did to Tanjung Bungah?

Would she still be able to carry out her parliamentary duties faithfully without being implicated if Harapan does a volte-face?

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JOSH HONG studied politics at London Metropolitan University and SOAS, University of London. A keen watcher of domestic and international politics, he longs for a day when Malaysians will learn and master the art of self-mockery, and enjoy life to the full in spite of politicians. -Mkini