While New Malaysia burns, PKR squabbles

"Ah, lips that say one thing, while the heart thinks another."

- Alexandre Dumas, "The Count of Monte Cristo"

Well, the peace treaty between Anwar Ibrahim and Azmin Ali did not last long. When I wrote that Anwar should expel Azmin, a few politicians from Harapan texted me. They told me that this was politics and that Anwar was using tactics and strategy when dealing with his frenemy. Well, how is that working out for Harapan and PKR?

Wherever he is, the old maverick is smirking. Azmin and gang are doing a better job of clouding the succession issue and destabilising Harapan then anything the warlords of Bersatu and the flotsam and jetsam of the fetid swamp of mainstream Malaysian politics have done or will do.

PKR communications director Fahmi Fadzil, when dismissing claims that there are two camps in PKR, said, "That is something portrayed by the media. I understand that there could be a perception of such, but the reality is, there are no camps.  What we have now is Parti Keadilan Rakyat that is strong and united" – which is Trumpian in its perversity.

Anwar warned that anyone attending the parallel congress would be sacked. He then agreed to a ridiculous four point agreement with his rival. I get that some people think that this is some sort of great strategy on Anwar’s part.

I’m partial to what Lyndon B Johnson said of J Edgar Hoover: “Well, it’s probably better to have him inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in.” But even this has its limits.

The fiasco of brawls, provocations, walkouts, outright insubordination and a dinner party demonstrates that Azmin pissing in the tent is just as damaging as him causing problems from the outside. PKR needs a clean break and it is far more damaging for the coalition the longer Anwar fails to clean house.

While I am not a fan of Boris Johnson, at least he had the cajones to sack Tory loyalists who did not support his hardline stance on Brexit. I suppose Anwar does not have this luxury because this is not about issues, but rather about ambition. If the PKR grassroots are with Azmin Ali , so what? What is important is the Harapan base is with Anwar.

This split in PKR is ridiculous because there is no ideological foundation to the camps. I am extremely disappointed to see some of the names in Azmin’s camp because these folks were supposed to have some principles that separated them from the rest of the pack.

If Azmin’s supporters were to come out and articulate the ideological difference between the two leaders, or provide evidence of why Anwar Ibrahim is not fit to be PM or lead PKR, that would be something.

Tian Chua, an Azmin loyalist, claims that Anwar needs to save the party from “blind fanaticism”. As opposed to eyes wide open fanaticism? Fine, claiming that Anwar has fanatical support is not the reason for not supporting him.

What exactly makes Anwar unfit for such support? What are the policy decisions that he has made or not made, the party direction, that makes Azmin a better candidate for the “reformasi” movement that Tian Chua (below) thinks is in danger? Anwar is criticised by everyone, including by those in his own party and some of them, nay most of them, are not even aligned with either camp.

Meanwhile, Azmin's camp, for whatever reason, is cosying up with politicians who have mala fide intentions towards Anwar's possible stewardship of this country. What does this tell us about Azmin loyalists and their beleif in the supposed principles and struggle of PKR?

Azmin loyalists talk about the struggle and sacrifice they made for the party when Anwar was behind bars, which nobody is disputing. If they thought that Anwar should not be prime minister and that someone else should be, why not come out and say it and rely on their track records to convince the Harapan base?

Why all this shadow play and internal dissent? Why engage in insubordination and propaganda, which makes Harapan weaker and diminishes the struggle of those politicians and the base during the long Umno watch?

Azmin said, “He is still my leader, my president. That is why I have to consult and talk to him, which I did and I will continue to do so, so there is no problem,” - which is nonsensical because if Azmin really believed that Anwar was his leader, there would not be any of this trouble in the first place. Has Azmin done anything which demonstrates that he believes that Anwar is his leader?

After staging a walkout because of bruised feelings and then not turning up for the final day of the congress does nothing but further the narrative that PKR is a lame-duck party. Is this what a politician, who touts his “service” to the party, wants in a time when Anwar, PKR and the DAP are under constant attack by elements from their own coalition and the agents of a fascist state?

What I find despicable about this whole fiasco, is that, clearly, PKR and the DAP are a threat to the system by virtue of being multi-racial parties. Politicians in Harapan who are siding with the agents of a fascist state and other political parties are weakening the foundation of what could be a new Malaysia.

Instead, the pro-Anwar narrative is about “treachery” and all the pro-Azmin camp can come up with, is that the ceasefire was broken by the Anwar camp. What exactly is the pro-Azmin camp about?

Anwar wants to negotiate with Azmin’s camp, which is fair enough, but it seems to me that negotiating away power makes PKR weaker and informs your political rivals that the president of the party is weak.

It is funny that Anwar Ibrahim quotes JFK, an American president assassinated by a cartel which included acolytes who, at one time, believed in him.

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S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. A retired barrister-at-law, he is one of the founding members of Persatuan Patriot Kebangsaan. - Mkini