PENANG DAP’s deputy chairman Peof Ramasamy Palanisamy has taken a swipe at Bersatu’s deputy president Datuk Seri Ahmad Faisal Azumu who is popularly known as Peja (main pic) for deeming that he is more knowledgeable about the attitude of Malay voters than others.
For context, the former Perak Menteri Besar has chastised the Penang Deputy Chief Minister II who recently posted on his Facebook page an analysis of why the green wave phenomenon might be on the decline. He offered eight reasons for the downtrend.
Peja claimed that politicians such as Ramasamy were in no position to comment on Malay support for Bersatu or Perikatan Nasional.
“How do they understand Malay voters’ sentiments when they don’t even talk to or befriend Malay voters? We should not be discussing the views of people like that,” he told Berita Harian.
In his defence, Ramasamy said his analysis was not so much about the voting behaviour of the Malays but about the pyrrhic nature of the green wave bubble.
“If Peja is so knowledgeable about Malay voters, why did he lose in the parliamentary election of Tambun to the present Prime Minister (PM) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim,” asked the three-term Perai state assemblyman.
“Was he the victim of his own miscalculation on the voting behaviour of Malay voters in the constituency?”
In all fairness, the 74-year-old Ramasamy said Peja should not pretend that he is the repository of all knowledge about the behaviour of Malay voters.
“At least I don’t pretend to know or understand the voting behaviour or not just the Malays but Chinese or Indians,” asserted Ramasamy who was a senior lecturer in political science at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) from 1981 to 2005.
“In fact, he should be humble enough to the extent of finding out (himself) why the green wave might be on the decline. He and other PN leaders should not behave that they know about Malay voters. In politics, humility is a virtue, certainly not arrogance”.
Below is a synopsis of Ramasamy’s eight reasons that the green wave influence is waning:
- The political, social and cultural conditions that are operating to push the PN parties especially in Malay majority areas may have reduced;
- The use of corruption allegations against UMNO leaders in general and UMNO president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi specifically for the purpose of coalition promotion may be affected by corruption allegations and abuse of power against three Bersatu leaders including its president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin;
- Although there is no case against PAS leaders, their residency over corruption allegations against Bersatu leaders aggravated the situation;
- In the 15th General Election (GE15), the green wave backing powers operate in states such as Penang, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan. However, when it comes to state elections in six states, there are two levels of hostility. For Pakatan Harapan (PH), it will be a host in three states and at the federal or national level;
- PM Anwar may only hold his position for four-and-a-half months but within the short time, he has shown effective and solid leadership.
- The green wave seeks political sustenance at the ideological level but doesn’t have a strong anchor in material reality.
- Political and economic stability are essential elements for a country’s prosperity and prosperity. The unity government may be facing all sorts of pressure and uncertainty, but the economy seems to be thriving well.
- Other than using extreme racial and religious rhetoric, the PN coalition has little or nothing to offer to improve the economic, social and life conditions of Malaysians. – April 17, 2023
