The government you elect is the government you deserve

 

“The government you elect is the government you deserve” was supposedly said by Thomas Jefferson, and the quote “…every nation gets the government it deserves” is attributed to Joseph de Maistre.

Jefferson was a Founding Father of the US and de Maistre was a French philosopher. With hindsight, what these two men postulated rings true.

Although in Malaysia, at the last general election, the people voted to give 55.86% of our parliamentary seats to one alliance, but the government today is made of parliamentarians from another coalition.

Perhaps Malaysia in 2018 was the exception to the general rule.

Like many Malaysians, I observe the political landscape in our country. Of course, it is tiresome and fatigue inducing. But the country’s politics is like a bad road accident on our highways. You don’t want to slow down yet somehow you just cannot help but look and be horrified.

So, what’s happening in the southern tip of the peninsula is quite embarrassing with our ‘disgraced’ former leader holding court and garnering raptured attention everywhere he goes.

I place the word disgraced in parenthesis, because he doesn’t look like a politician who has fallen, been thoroughly humiliated, and absolutely disgraced, does he?

The world’s media called it the largest corruption, bribery and money laundering scandal ever, and he presided over the pyramid of sleaze that is the 1MDB saga. Photographs, recordings, and all manner of evidence have been produced, linking him unequivocally to this monumental scandal.

He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and fined RM210 million by the High Court, after being found guilty of criminal breach of trust, abuse of power and money laundering for illegally receiving about RM42 million.

Last year, our appellate court upheld this decision. Three judges ruled that his activities were not in the ‘national interest’ as he claimed, but were a ‘national embarrassment’.

This is a pretty damning indictment by our courts.

And as expected, he filed a notice of appeal to the Federal Court, and asked for a stay of execution pending the final decision by the highest court in the land, so currently, he is free.

Ordinary people who have been humiliated in such a staggering way, not just locally but internationally, would probably lie low, maintain some decorum, and contemplate life in prison, in case their sentence gets upheld by the apex court.

But not our man.

The consummate, smooth political operator has engineered a sharp resurgence in clout. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, he has brandished a swashbuckling and defiant narrative of dogmatic persecution by his detractors, and continues on his political renaissance.

Large crowds gather to welcome him on the campaign trail. Schools invite him to speak, candidates from his coalition call him their ‘secret-weapon’, and political analysts speculate after witnessing his popularity that voters are swaying in his direction.

While this might be fantastic for the man, his cronies, and their supporters, it is mortifying for Malaysia.

If this discredited and shamed former leader has so much public support, and continues to wield power like a kingmaker, perhaps it is time to disabuse ourselves of a sense of moral superiority.

Malaysians need to face the harsh reflection in the mirror.

It is time to recognise that the character flaws in this man, and in our other elected representatives, might actually be reflective of the citizens who elect them.

Historically, we have very vague and short memories.

Voters wax lyrical about holding our elected officials accountable. But our former prime minister has figured out that he can weather almost any storm, simply because he knows us Malaysians.

The public in 2018 might have thought that he was a scoundrel, but today, by all accounts he’s back in favour. You might say thinking Malaysians still reject him, but his popularity, as reported in our national media must then suggest that many Malaysians are not ‘thinking’.

It seems that voters are relaxed, apathetic or uninformed, to realise the true significance of supporting someone with such a tarnished reputation. We have just failed to connect the dots.

The jaw-dropping ethical lapses of the 1MDB scandal are just the most obvious in a long-line of alarming political events in Malaysia. And such misdemeanours are certainly not unprecedented.

We have re-elected leaders to top positions again after sexual, financial, corruption, and communal improprieties in the past. In our country, leaders and their appointees are imbued with great power, and with that comes remarkable enticements that are often followed by corruption.

Now, it seems that even being convicted is not enough to persuade voters to stay away from someone.

If we, as citizens, are not bothered to familiarise ourselves with a leader or a candidates’ background, beliefs and platforms, it is simply a waste of the universal right to vote that we are privileged to have.

To be frank, I think it is fair to say that the mess Malaysia is in, is absolutely our fault.

If we don’t want the country to slide further into oblivion and become a failed state, we cannot allow those representing us to be determined by a vocal minority, regardless of whatever their political persuasions may be.

It is our responsibility to clean the country up. We have to get out and do our duty, find our own voice, and get involved. Because ultimately, we will get the government we deserve.

So, what do you think we deserve? - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.