Bersih's protest against Madani govt not political theatre - chairperson

Since its inception, the Bersih movement has been closely associated with the parties that form Pakatan Harapan, as they jointly pressed against the then-BN government for change.

Now with Harapan heading the government, Bersih’s critics have questioned the group’s sincerity in holding Putrajaya accountable such as when it protested last month over the slow pace of reforms.

However, Bersih chairperson Mohamad Faisal Abdul Aziz assured that when Bersih takes to the streets, it is not political theatre.

“There was a lot of perception (against us) when we marched on Parliament saying it was theatre (wayang) and whatnot.

“But what’s important is that we have proved (our resolve),” he said during an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini.

On Feb 27, around 100 Bersih protesters marched to Parliament to hand over a memorandum demanding the government speed up reforms, especially on 10 issues the group deemed important.

Bersih’s protest outside the Parliament

Following the protest, Bersatu information chief Razali Idris expressed scepticism that the move was genuine and labelled it as just an “act” to make it seem that Bersih was no longer supporting Harapan.

For Faisal, even if it was true that Bersih’s supporters are also Harapan supporters, this was a non-issue.

This was because it showed that support for Harapan was not unconditional, he said.

“It is not like back then when people supported political parties ‘membabi buta’ (unconditionally) without checks and balances.

“We will not give you a free pass and say ‘we voted for you, you became the government, so do as you please’. That is not us in the context of Bersih,” Faisal added.

The Bersih chairperson warned that if the government does not deliver on key reforms, or angers the public with a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) for former premier Najib Abdul Razak’s ongoing criminal cases - Bersih will launch its sixth major demonstration.

Madani govt not infallible

Faisal said the fact that both he and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim were former Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement (Abim) presidents would also not deter Bersih from being critical of the Madani government.

“The Madani-lead government is not ‘maksum’ (infallible) and must be able to accept criticism.

“When we criticise the government, it would strengthen the Madani narrative, therefore (former president) advising (another former president) is not an issue in Abim,” he added.

Faisal, however, expressed optimism that Anwar - based on his personality - would want to be remembered as a prime minister who brought about reforms.

Anwar was the second and perhaps the most well-known Abim president from 1974 to 1982, while Faisal held the position from 2019 to 2023.

On the perception that Bersih has become toothless, Faisal said the reality is that most civil societies are struggling to mobilise the public in the post-Covid-19 era, where more people prefer to express themselves on social media.

Hence, he said Bersih is trying to rebuild momentum from the ground up, starting with educating the public about their reform agenda and why it is important.

They also want to rebuild the public’s trust in the democratic system.

“What we have today is a trust deficit (towards the system). The prime ministers may have changed, yet the outcome remains the same.

“So Bersih wants to revive the people’s hope that changes can happen if we keep the momentum. - Mkini

“Then the public will know that Bersih still exists, and we want to keep the momentum going to raise people’s voice and the agenda of change,” he added.