The quiet power of Mat Hasan

How could one of the best MBs be relatively unknown to the rest of the country?

If you ask the people of Negeri Sembilan what they think of their former MB, Mat Hasan, they would say he was one of the best. If you ask people outside of Negeri if they’ve heard of Mat Hasan, they would probably tell you they haven’t.

That is the quiet power that has served Mat Hasan well his entire political career.

People who know him speak highly of his work and his character. They are typically drawn to his easy charm and his illustrious corporate career that earned him respect in politics – he is a doer you can count on.

People who know little of him would still be accepting of him. He looks like a person who deserves the benefit of the doubt.

I write this article for one reason only: so that the impending turnaround of Umno under the quiet operation of Mat Hasan wouldn’t go unnoticed.

The acting president

Throughout his stint as acting president, Mat Hasan had orchestrated successes when many imagined the Umno struggle to be a hopeless cause.

By first running only for deputy president of Umno and not president, Mat Hasan preserved his goodwill among the leadership rank that still reveres feudalism, order, and respect. He ensured that the camp close to Najib and Zahid (who still occupied a reasonable standing within Umno) supported him; at least they wouldn’t campaign against him.

Tactically, this was a good move because the anger and hatred against Umno at that time were overwhelming.

The position of Umno president was covered in lava. Not only would the new president be required to lead the soul-searching mission for the grand old party, he would also need to make quick gains like winning by-elections to boost party morale.

Two of these tasks were made difficult as Umno became the easy target for vengeful, vicious attack for its close association with Najib and its long shadow of corruption.

Zahid (above) was not decisive nor resilient enough to defend the party. When he was hit with a lengthy list of court charges, his ouster became necessary.

Mat Hasan was the natural successor of Zahid. He was lucky to come at a time of exponentially waning euphoria and growing frustration with the PH government.

Orchestrating by-election victories

In the by-elections of 2019, voters of Cameron Highlands and Semenyih were ready to cast their protest votes in favour of BN to warn the PH government to buck up. They threatened PH with the looming return of BN.

Even when the circumstances prepared favourable conditions for Umno-BN, Mat Hasan was a decisive leader of his own. He was able to persuade an angry MIC that was ready to leave BN, to cooperate with Umno and let Umno place a local retired orang asli policeman as the candidate for Cameron Highlands.

That resulted in Mat Hasan securing BN’s first by-election victory since 9 May 2018.

In Semenyih, Mat Hasan was able to secure a second cooperation with PAS, turn around a near-9,000-vote majority and snatch the seat from Bersatu.

Even with the close cooperation with PAS, to the point of calling their cooperation a “marriage,” Mat Hasan is still able to maintain his non-Malay ground. Everyone would’ve guessed that the dissolution of BN was inevitable with the Umno-PAS cooperation, but Mat Hasan was able to keep MCA and MIC within BN.

The new political logic

Although it’s convenient to assert that MCA and MIC staying in BN was due more to MCA and MIC’s characteristically spineless stance, I am inclined to believe the negotiations were based on rational political calculus.

The political calculus Mat Hasan used was that the cooperation with PAS was based purely on electoral logic and not principles.

This narrative also served to strengthen Umno’s political base who detests PAS’ overzealous religiosity.

Most Umno, MCA, and MIC leadership and political base understand that winning power is a priority and this must be pursued at all cost – even if that means working with PAS. Mat Hasan and the rest understand that there shall be no genuine commitment to the Islamic cause of PAS because, in the new pact, PAS will never obtain a majority large enough to be the big brother.

This way, Mat Hasan’s no-nonsense style of operating Umno also receives the support of progressives in the party who see his political logic. The problem is to win power, and the solution requires cooperation.

However, there is a side-effect to the PAS-Umno cooperation that will reverberate for decades to come. The room given to PAS to go on a race-religion overdrive and the willingness of Umno to accommodate this will tear society apart.

That is why the Rantau by-election is not to be taken lightly by PH. My guess, however, is that even a loss in Rantau will not shake the quiet power of Mat Hasan.

---

JAMES CHAI works at a law firm. E-mail him at jameschai.mpuk@gmail.com. - Mkini