How Umno-Baru is destroying Anwar's Madani coalition

 

Much of the ruling Madani coalition’s problems stem from its dubious dalliance with Umno-Baru, which appears to dominate the government in crucial policies.

Ironically it seems to be Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s only hope, alas futile, of regaining Malay backing.

Not only has the association with Umno dwindled Malay support, but it has also created a dangerous apathy among non-Malay voters, ominously reducing their attraction to the Madani government.

If this continues, it will lead to nothing less than the annihilation of the Anwar-led coalition at the next polls as Malays continue to desert Umno in droves and PKR for its misplaced affiliation with Umno.

In the meantime, disillusioned, disappointed non-Malays stay out of the fray altogether by simply abstaining from the polls.

That is a deadly one-two punch that will floor Madani for more than a count of 10 as they lose in Malay-majority areas where the votes get concentrated into the Perikatan Nasional coalition of PAS and Bersatu while non-Malays refuse to do battle, instead watching the unfolding spectacle from the sidelines.

Bending over backwards for Umno

The sad, pathetic thing about this sordid, sorry episode is that it is so needless because Anwar is in a position of strength, commanding the support of 153 MPs in Dewan Rakyat.

Even if Umno were to pull out its 26 seats plus another four from its partners, the coalition would still have 123 seats, a clear majority in the 222-seat house.

Compared to the 30 that Umno/BN has, the 81 that Pakatan Harapan holds makes it the biggest partner in the ruling coalition by far with 53 percent of the 153 seats.

Those 153 seats give the Madani government 69 percent of parliamentary seats or a clear two-thirds majority. But Anwar is squandering this power by bowing low - too low - to Umno.

Umno and its leaders need to be in government more than Anwar needs them to form the government.

With Harapan in the majority, it should be Harapan’s stated policy and objectives leading decision-making, not Umno’s parochial moves which often don’t even benefit most Malays but the Umnoputras - part of the bumiputera elite which depends on the party for their ill-gotten gains.

Old habits die hard and Umno has been consistently pushing this line for gains to its party members.

For instance, Umno is pushing hard for pardon for the person responsible for the world’s greatest theft - Najib Abdul Razak.

Not only that, an unprecedented house arrest is on the cards for such a dastardly deed which in many countries would be considered treason against the state.

And then a slew of tainted Umno leaders including president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi have charges dropped inexplicably.

PKR the eventual loser

That the Malays no longer want any part of this was clearly demonstrated at the 15th general election when Umno sunk to its worst-ever defeat.

Still, Anwar resurrected a fallen Umno and gave its tainted leader, still being charged with crimes, the position of deputy prime minister.

He did not even appoint one from PKR as deputy prime minister in the event that if anything happened to him, PKR would still retain the prime minister’s position.

Now, it looks like Zahid may be the one to succeed him if anything happens to Anwar followed by Sarawak’s Fadillah Yusof. 

In a move reminiscent of his previous nemesis Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Anwar seems to be leaving deliberate leadership gaps in PKR, where its deputy president by a huge margin Rafizi Ramli languishes somewhat toothless in relative obscurity. The eventual loser - PKR.

PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli

That is not what one expects from a leader who has gone through much suffering for the sake of clearly articulated ideals which now lie neglected like so many crumpled pieces of paper around a waste basket. Promise after promise goes unfulfilled.

Even the most wicked and guilty of people from a party that has betrayed the people, squandered, and stolen tens of billions of ringgit are being redeemed. Where is the justice in that?

Loud and clear

GE15 clearly showed the people had rejected Umno. When Anwar picked Umno and tried to use it to regain Malay support, he was repeatedly rebuffed as the by-elections clearly showed. 

Malays are not interested in Najib being pardoned or Zahid being exonerated from fair trials for his alleged crimes. They are not enamoured when charges against key leaders are withdrawn for no apparent reason. Instead, they are shocked and turn to the only alternatives they have.

The Sungai Bakap by-election was a clear indicator. While voter turnout declined, clear indications were that non-Malay voter turnout was much lower than Malay turnout. That contributed to the PN candidate winning by a much higher margin than before.

All that indicates that Anwar hitched the wrong horse to his chariot. Now if it was PAS, it may be a different story… but perhaps that tale is better saved for another day.

It is not as inconceivable as it seems. Remember, major members of the Madani coalition have all worked with PAS before, even DAP. Right now that seems to be the only thing that could save Anwar and his coalition from a severe, ignominious defeat at GE16.

If Anwar switches horses, he could win. But will he? Or will he simply just hitch another horse to the chariot and hope they run as well? However, a lame horse is better put to pasture, not out to battle. - Mkini

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P GUNASEGARAM says that nothing is impossible in coalition politics where power is the currency traded and immunity is often the prize offered.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.