PH-BN trips on Swatch move

 

Since last Thursday, wearing or possessing something in the seven colours of the rainbow would henceforth land you in jail.

Just two days before voters in six states went to the polls, the home ministry announced that anyone who had in his possession a Swatch watch, a wrapper or a box bearing the rainbow theme was committing an offence.

Anyone found guilty of such offence could be jailed for up to three years or fined up to RM20,000.

Given its symbolism with the LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) culture, the high officials at the home ministry decided that these colours were “likely to be prejudicial to morality”.

Of course it did not help that these watches also bear the letters “L”, “G”, “B”, “T” and “Q” as well as the “+” symbol, emphasising its support for the Pride cause.

The ministry said the government remained committed to curbing the spread of elements that were “detrimental to the nation’s morality and public interest”.

This moral policing is a line one would associate more with Islamist PAS than multiracial and multireligious PKR.

On reflection, it looked like a last gasp attempt by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) plus Barisan Nasional (BN) unity government to match the religious fervour that was central to the Perikatan Nasional (PN) strategy to win votes.

As the results of Saturday’s state elections show, it did not work. PH not only failed to make inroads in the PN-controlled states Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu but they even lost ground in Penang and Selangor where they had always had the upper hand.

BN was almost wiped out, winning only 19 of the 108 seats it contested.

PH has never had a strong following in the Malay-Muslim heartland, while BN, with Umno as its lynchpin, is losing its grip there.

Unfortunately for them, this is also where political power resides. To avoid being massacred, contesting parties must be able to dance to the religious tune.

PN just happens to be more in step with the beat than PH-BN.

Targeting Swatch was convenient. After all, the Swiss watchmaker had already been fingered earlier for displaying and selling these timepieces.

As it turns out, the timing was wrong. - FMT

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