THE best thing that has happened to us since the Sheraton Move is the Melaka state election. Some jokers tried to go to court to stop it and others questioned why the governor decided to dissolve the state assembly.
Quite a sizeable group took the high moral ground by bashing the group of four (Melaka quartet) for bringing the state government down.
What is incredulous is the persistent attacks on PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim from his friends in Pakatan Harapan for welcoming the Melaka quartet which includes former Melaka chief minister Idris Haron.
He was with me in Parliament many years ago and he frequently questioned (in a nice way) my so-called liberal views, telling his audience that Zaid was a different kind of Malay (whatever he meant).
But I see him as a serious politician who can move things, someone not to be dismissed summarily.
Therefore, I am bewildered by the issues raised by Anwar’s critics. The last proclamation of Emergency should have sent a chill down your spine – that we may never again have an election. Many were worried that we would see the end of democracy, like in Myanmar.
Thank goodness we have politicians like Idris, who engineered the state government’s fall in Melaka, which necessitated an election where we can restore the people’s mandate. Kudos to the governor for doing the right thing, by allowing the people to choose; instead of him choosing the new Government.
To those from PKR and DAP who vehemently criticised Anwar for welcoming the Melaka quartet as friends or partners of Pakatan, I urge them to stay calm.
In preparing for a battle, the leader alone must make some key decisions and their trust in their general will resonate with the voters.
Likewise, the more they question their leader’s judgement, the voters’ perception of Anwar would be less favourable. If you want to win, you must show solidarity with your leader. Debates and political philosophy can wait.
Whether they contest the election or not, the other political parties will naturally take a swipe at Anwar for seemingly accepting “frogs” into Pakatan’s fold.
They conveniently ignored that in 2018, Parti Warisan Sabah accepted state assemblypersons from UMNO, and later on, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia under Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad accepted 13 UMNO MPs.
They did all that to bolster their strength. That is the reality in this “’less than perfect’ ” politics of our country. We do not have to follow every action taken by other parties, but we also have to win an election, if serving the people is the ultimate aim.
The state assembly in Melaka has been dissolved as Pakatan needs to seek a fresh mandate from the voters. If it requires them to work with Idris to secure victory, I think that is practical and necessary thing to do.
Is the conduct of the Melaka quartet in bringing down the former state government down despicable? It depends on the situation. Not all defections are bad.
The 2020 Bersatu/UMNO/PAS and PKR frogs had no proper justification to topple Mahathir’s Government via the Sheraton move, other than gaining power without going through an election.
Melaka is different. Should the state government in Melaka be “protected” and not overturned under any circumstances?
Principles yes but look at the situation
If that is a political high principle cast in stone then one can never justify a vote of no confidence against any Government, no matter how corrupt or useless that Government might be? Is that what we want?
DAP leaders have a strong sense of idealism but they too would apply them selectively. This is laudable but like all ideals, we need to temper the application with common sense.
Even Napoleon Bonaparte, who famously said, “nothing is impossible”, would whisper to his generals that in seeking the impossible, to also never lose sight of what is possible.
In that sense, DAP was cosy with Mahathir on many issues and PKR did not criticise them openly. The current attacks launched against Anwar is not warranted when polling is just two weeks away.
The Melaka state election is significant and important in other ways. UMNO’s attempt to go on its own and not working together with Bersatu and PAS is to be appreciated. UMNO may enrich their leaders from time to time but the party does not deliberately make the Malays stupid and not working with PAS is the best thing UMNO has done lately.
The inclusion of many young candidates also augurs well for UMNO. The election is also an acid test for the Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi team to try and win an election on UMNO ticket, and not working with PAS and Bersatu.
As for Anwar, it is another hill to climb, especially when the Government does not allow for campaigning. Free gifts, including cash, will be permitted if they are from the Government’s party – it may not be construed as an election offence – but Pakatan will have to be careful in doing the same thing. Anwar has to win to show that Pakatan has the strength to take on BN and others in GE15.
Melaka is a scintillating prospect for many young aspirants who have decided to go into politics and it will be interesting to see how well they perform. Pakatan too will have a mix of young and experienced leaders who can take over the reign of government if given the opportunity to do so by the voters. The outcome of the election will also open up possibilities of new alliances for the bigger battles ahead. – Nov 8, 2021
Datuk Zaid Ibrahim is a former Law Minister.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
