The good, the bad and the ugly in PPBM

The PPBM annual general assembly came to a close on Sunday.

It was closely watched by many who are interested in the political developments of the country – not only because it was the first time such an assembly was held by PPBM after the May 9 polls, but more so because Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the prime minister of Malaysia, was also involved as its chairman.

His speeches, as well as statements, would offer a good assessment of the state of the nation and provide firm indications of what lies ahead.

Here are the highlights of the assembly:

Mahathir speaks his mind

As to be expected, Mahathir took the opportunity to raise several issues which are close to his heart and address various concerns of the people. The more significant ones are as follows:

i) The Malay personality and laziness

Mahathir once again took the Malays to task for being lazy and taking the easy way out. He said he did not like to point out this weakness of the Malays but felt compelled to do so, to make them come to terms with reality and change for the better. He made a special call to the youth delegates to work hard to overcome the weak Malay character traits and develop a new personality characterised by a dynamic mindset, good value system, hard work, progressive work culture and ethics and with knowledge and technical competency as the premise to progress.

Last but not least, he reminded them to put into practice Islamic values and principles in their daily lives instead of just professing Islam and doing things which are not in accord with the Quran and the traditions of the Prophet.

ii) Ex-Umno leaders

Mahathir also said defecting Umno MPs would not be freely admitted into his party to bolster his administration’s majority in Parliament. He said their applications would be closely vetted and that he personally preferred to have a strong opposition. He also said it would not be “a walk in the park” for former Umno members looking to join PPBM, as their conduct would be scrutinised to see if they could fit in with the party.

iii) The succession issue

Despite calls from delegates for Mahathir to stay as prime minister until GE15, he once again reiterated that he would honour his promise to hand over the prime ministership to Anwar Ibrahim within two years of the term.

iv) New talents

Mahathir also warned PPBM members that the party could suffer the same fate as Umno if new talents are blocked from leadership positions.

Syed Saddiq and the young Turks

Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, Ulya Aqamah and the band of young “Turks” in the youth wing may be inexperienced in the art of politics and governance. But in them, there is a fire of idealism that shines brightly, along with the passion to do what is right.

We need to give these young people support and space to develop and become good leaders. After all, the future belongs to them. As elders, we are here to work with and guide them to a more glorious future.

Not surprisingly, they carry a theme which is principle-based and pro-rakyat in nature. They took strong exception to the position taken by some old party stalwarts like Abdul Rashid Rahman on the issue of enriching party leaders.

Rashid Rahman and his incongruous call

In his speech to delegates at the assembly, Rashid, PPBM’s vice-president and a former Election Commission (EC) chairman, said the party’s division leaders should be helped with government contracts to enable them to have the resources to fight in elections which would allow the current government to maintain its power.

Rashid also said that PPBM must do everything it could to win elections “by hook or crook”, adding that it would be stupid to think that party leaders should not get contracts from the government.

His statements drew flak from party members as well as outsiders as they go against good governance and transparency.

Mahathir responded by saying that nobody would be assured of anything. He added that the MACC and people would watching the government proceedings. “If they do anything wrong, you can be sure MACC will descend upon them. It does not matter what their rank is.”

Rais Yatim, the Negeri Sembilan PPBM chief, said government resources should be distributed according to merit and rule of law.

“His speech may have received resounding applause, but it is not good to be implemented,” he said.

Rashid was also roundly criticised by PPBM Youth for his incongruous call.

DAP Youth chief Howard Lee denounced Rashid, saying: “A victory obtained by hook or by crook is a crook’s victory.”

Former Bersih 2.0 chair and Petaling Jaya MP for PKR, Maria Chin Abdullah, also condemned Rashid for promoting a rent-seeking culture.

The good, the bad and the ugly in PPBM

1) The good

Mahathir, Rais Yatim, Syed Saddiq, his fellow young Turks and a few other leaders who spoke with reason, moderation and awareness of the people’s hopes and expectations will be seen as the good guys.

2) The bad

I may not be able to speak on behalf of the people. But from the feedback and input reported in the papers and from netizens generally, it would not be out of order if I were to say that Rashid is seen as the bad guy here.

His statement and call do not jive well with the people as they are very much against the spirit of Malaysia Baru. Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Malaysia Baru are being promoted and touted as a clean government of the people, by the people and for the people – not to enrich a party division chief like him. Rashid does not appear to fit well with the new narrative under Malaysia Baru as he is still singing an old tune and appears to still be trapped in the old Umno mindset.

By my reckoning, his record as EC chairman is nothing to be proud of, either. He was in Perkasa in his early forays into politics. To me, he represents what is wrong with politicians under the old order and unless he changes his ways, he risks being rendered irrelevant, left behind by the people as they march to establish a new egalitarian society based on the principle of justice for all.

In short, there should be no room in PPBM or PH for politicians who use politics as a platform to further personal interest and self-aggrandisement.

3) The ugly

The delegates were a big let-down. We would have thought they would know what is expected of them. They are supposed to represent the voices of the people, to check and put in place the leaders who deviate or attempt to promote personal or group interest against the people’s interest. Instead, they applauded leaders like Rashid. For that, they deserve to be labelled as the ugly. However, since this is their first assembly in a new party, let us hope they will fare better in the future.

Mahathir’s unambiguous and equivocal statement at the assembly on the succession issue from him to Anwar brought further clarity and assurance on the matter. It is now to be considered as a done deal and should not be politicised any further.

However a lawyer, R Kengadharan, came out with an opinion as reported by FMT that Anwar still has to command the confidence of the 222 MPs in the Dewan Rakyat before the king can appoint him to the post.

He said despite Mahathir’s assurance, Anwar must satisfy Article 43 of the Federal Constitution which provides that the Agong shall appoint a prime minister who in his judgment is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the MPs.

With respect, I do not agree with his take on things. I do not think it is in conformity with the general interpretation and common usage. The plain reading of the said provision leaves us with little doubt that the Agong has the prerogative to determine who enjoys the confidence of the majority, based on advice by his advisers.

I do not recall any occasion in the past where the Agong had to wait for a headcount of majority votes before the prime minister of the country was appointed. There is no reason or basis to believe that it will be any different this time around.

Wan Haron Wan Hassan is a senior practising lawyer, active in civil society movements. - FMT