The Happy Majority....

Most Malaysians are very happy that the election is over and everything is back to normal. Even if they don't know who the new Ministers and State Excos are, or whether they represent the electorate or not let alone be happy with their selection, someone is there in the seat of power to look after the interest of the people and nation. Only the buddies of the ex-Ministers and Exco members will really feel the lost of the big cables they have been hanging on to in order to help them achieve their goals. For the men-in-the-street, they have fought their own battle with little or no help from the powers that be.

Yes, everything is back to normal, including the traffic jams on the main highways and roads. A few hours journey from one point to another may now take half a day or a whole day. Bumper to bumper and not a single traffic policeman to help smoothen the traffic. They are perhaps too busy controlling the traffic flow on the city streets or directing traffic at some of the big national celebrations like The Colors of Malaysia and the Youths Festival. While enjoying the very slow ride on the roads, observe that some of the election posters, banners and buntings had yet to be removed although more than two weeks have passed after the election. Many are blue in color with the 'dacing' (weighing machine) prominently displayed. No wonder the authorities concerned could not take the offenders to task. Who dares touch the 'dacing' people? - the power behind the throne, so to say.

It is at the time when the political leaders are sorting things out and getting the Cabinet in order that the civil servants are left pretty much to themselves. They have to get things done while trying to get to know their new bosses, if they are new and of an unknown quantity. The top civil servants themselves must make some adjustments, especially when the new boss had not been a real favorite or friend while he was serving in another lower capacity. Some will have the unpleasant experience of finding a person you once rebuffed or refused to cooperate with suddenly becoming your own boss. In politics the villain of yesterday can suddenly become the power-that-be of today, (It might also work the other way around). In the bureaucratic organization itself, a nobody of yesterday might suddenly become your superior since he or she enjoys the trust of the new boss. Well, that's the name of the game and you jus t have to play it.

Be that as it may, a change of the political leadership at the top of an organization offers a good opportunity to rescrutinize the organization's past and on-going programs. Many weaknesses can be removed since the new boss will only be too eager to set his own mark and standards. Many will want to bring about a big change. to stamp his or her personality on the organization's book of record. That's when civil servants can make their own recommendations to "remove previous weaknesses." Must be careful though or you yourself might be removed. Those who have moved up the scale before based on favoritism, will find themselves in trouble.And that is good for the 'apple polisher'(or bottom fanner) can now be removed.

Come to think of the 'transformation' (transformasi) that the PM has been harping on. Is there a real change for the better or will it be more of the same like before. The civil servants can be in the best position to judge. But make peace with your new bosses first or you will end up in pieces. When most Malaysians are happy with the leaders that they have voted into power, who are you to say that you don't like the new boss. Yoiu're the lot that's supposed to be innovative and creative. But do or say something that the new boss doesn't like. No matter how innovative or creative it is, you'd better get ready to be phased out. It's better sometimes to just smile and dance to the new tune set by the new boss.

Back to Normalcy

The general election is over and Malaysians returned to their normal life, when politics seems to be a remote power influencing their destiny. There're rumblings about the opposition mounting a campaign to protest against frauds in the election, about old faces occupying the same seat of power with some shuffling around and only a few new faces being placed in important Cabinet posts, and about how MCA is going to react to the new Cabinet line-up. But otherwise, every Malaysian is happy to continue with their normal life like before. New Chief Minister of Kedah

One wonders how the world would be without politics, leaders vying for power to rule over the masses, using organized institutions to achieve their end. In Malaysia, teachers used to be the moving power behind UMNO and the National Front. And we enjoyed peace and stability for decades. Now the professionals take over the leadership, including professional politicians. Politics become a business with power to control human interactions and the market. We the consumers can shout our voice hoarse without any effect unless,of course, you've huge cables to pull. Correction. Even little cables are okay if you are in the right group. If you're in the opposition camp, say what you want. You can do nothing till the nest GE, four or five years from now.


First thing that I noted after the GE is that the flags, buntings and posters lining up the roads are not entirely removed yet. Some can be very hazardous to drivers because you can't see the other side of the road or what's in the next corner. After a heavy rain these paraphernalia of election campaign are a real eyesore. Two weeks given by the authorities to remove them is too long a period. They should be removed within a week.

The share market shot up in volumes of transaction and values immediately after the election. A real bonus for those in the game but means nothing to the those who don't or couldn't afford to gamble away their meager earnings. Price of things remained the same or even showed a slight increase. There certainly is no new regulations for price control in the next few months and anything can happen. In and around KL the pipes run dry for hours and even days. The opposition (Pakatan) is returned to power and I'm sure it will continue to be blamed for the water stoppage in Selangor and some areas in the Federal Territory of KL.The argument continues and the people affected will continue to suffer. There has been a lot of rain lately and it pays for those affected by the water shortage to harness the gift of Nature and the Creator in their own way for their own use.New Minister of Youths and Sports

Kedah has been recaptured by Barisan ( the National Front) and the son of our illustrious ex-Perime Minister, Tun Mahathir, installed as Chief Minister. It's too early to expect any immediate change of policy or its method of implementation. But many eyes will certainly be focused on what will develop there as well as in the MInistry of Youths and Sports where the son-in-law of our ex- Prime Minster, Tun Abdullah Badawi, has been installed as the Minister. Other Ministerial shuffles are not too surprising although the new Minister of Tourism and Culture had raised some eyebrows since the post required a tremendous amount of good PR stuff and cultural sensitivity.
New Minister of Tourism
The GNP growth for the first quarter of this year is 4.1%, short of what is expected to achieve the high-income aspiration of the nation. But since the PM, the author of the High-Income-Nation goal, shall remain as the Minister of Finance, he will certainly do something to jolt up the economic growth. We can only hope that it shall be done without causing the prices of foodstuff and other consumer goods to take a big leap upward, thus creating a false impression of a faster economic growth and a higher standard of living. Of course, by returning the Barisan to power,we have implicitly agreed to the current price of patrol, the toll rate, and the cost of housing - items which the opposition had wanted to review.

A Government without MCA Representation?

If MCA's decision not to allow its members to participate in the government at Federal or State level is strictly enforced, then there will be no MCA Chinese representative at all in the Barisan government. There'll only be opposition members from DAP or from other parties in Pakatan. What will the philosophy of multiracialism and concept of power sharing in the government then become? All Chinese interest can only then be represented by the opposition as set against the interests of other racial groups. Racialism will be the order of the day.


God forbids. Even if all Malaysian politicians are wise and sane enough to avoid open racial conflicts and confrontation, there cannot be any goodwill and love between the multiracial citizens anymore.Their interest would be totally divided along racial and political lines. Disaster would befall the country.

The Prime Minister is thus faced with a very difficult situation now in forming his Cabinet line-up. Who can he get to represent the Chines in the Government since MCA will refuse any position offered? Only four major alternatives are open to him,
(1) form a Cabinet with only Malays and Indians representatives
(2) get some representatives in Cabinet from prominent Chinese community leaders outside MCA, through non-political association,
(3) appoint some Chinese leaders from among his own trusted friends as Ministers, and
(4) include some elected Chinese leaders from the Opposition party to join his Cabinet ( which requires a coalition of sort).
Of course the PM can resort to all those alternatives in various degrees.

But will that overcome the real issue faced - that the Chinese community had rejected MCA to represent their interest and that Barisan as it is does not command their confidence anymore. No matter what Datuk Seri Najib will do to assure them that BN and he himself ( as a Prime Minister for all, irrespective of races) will take care of their interest, the trust once enjoyed is gone. And the door to regaining that trust through MCA seems closed by MC's own decision itself, which may have been done to rebuke the Chinese for the lack of support.

We have thus a very complicated problem for Datuk Seri Najib to solve.He might need to reestablish the Department of National Unity again, and maybe tun it into a Ministry to deal with the reemergence of the racial issue.. The current situation may well be the result of a neglect on the significance of maintaining harmonious community relationship and allowing material progress to exceed multiracial cooperation by the government. The goals of national unity as spelled out in the NEC, especially that of spreading wealth and not allowing it to remain in the hands of a few billionaires, had not been pursued well. And the need to assist the underprivileged and the poor, irrespective of race, had been terribly misunderstood.

The new 5-year term of office as won by Barisan should, therefore, be used as a period of rescrutiny of the national objectives and bringing the Malaysians of all races together again. This should remain as the most important overall goal, over and above creating a modern high income nation.

A Solemn Victory for Barisan Nasinal ( National Front)

GE 13 ia over in Malaysia and the ruling party BN or NF won 133 aeats in Parliament as against a total of 87 ( DAP 38, PKR 28 and PAS 21) won by the opposition. That gives BN a majority of about 22 seats in Parliament, no 2/3 majority. That could explain why the PM Dato Seri Najib seems to accept the victory with a solemn look at the victory reception in PWTC. Nor was Datin Rosman who sat by his side together with DPM,flashing a victory smile.Even those standing behind them - nor representative from MCA or MIC it appears to me - were not too happy as were the other supporters of BN who were present.present leaders and the exPMs behind them

Why the solemness? 4 Cabinet Ministers, 2 Chief Ministers and 8 Deputy Ministers went down. The Ministers were mostly from MCA while the two Chief Ministers were very strong UMNO personalities.It certainly reflects very poorly on the popularity of the Najib's former Cabinet line-up.The two Chief Ministers were doing very well at the state level but when asked to contest for a Parliamentary
seat, failed to get sufficient support.

The defeat of former Johore Bahru Chief Minister, at the hand of the DAP strongman Lee Kit Siang who has no earlier footing in Gelang Patah, reflects another issue which could have saddened the PM. That the Chinese votes will go to their popular candidate irrespective of party affiliation with BN. Most MCA candidates have been trounced by their DAP contenders. The Chinese citizens of Malaysia seem to be putting all their faith on DAP. DAP continues to dominate Penang. Najib would do well to invite DAP to share power with Barisan rather than continue to play host to MCA. If that is done PKR and PAS would of course become a very weak coalition.

PAS' spiritual leader Dato' Nik Abdul Aziz, its President DS Hadi Awang and other Pas stalwarts are of course unshakeable as are some of the PKR leaders like its supremo Anwar Ibrahim and its most prominent general TS Khalid Ibrahim, the Chief Minister of Selangor. Selangor, Kelantan, Terengganu and Penang remain in the Opposition's hand while Kedah has been wrenched back by BN. Tun Mahathir's son is certainly going to be the Chief Minister as a stepping stone perhaps before going for the Primiership in the near future until Najib's son grow of age to join politics.

Now where does that leave TS Muhyiddin? Is he going to be a DPM forever without a chance to become PM? That could be another issue which could disturb Najib very much. Tun Mahathir had given himm all the support during this election and everyone can see why he wants BN to remain in power.The tradition of passing on the baton to the first born in Malaysian politics is a known fact. TS Muhyiddin seems to be the odd man out in the race for the no one post.

Whatever it is, Malaysia is back on track now with the nation's agenda of becoming a developed country with a multiracial identity. The Opposition and AnwarIbrahim will have to wait another four plus years to make another attempt at grabbing the reign of power.Malaysians have chosen their leaders for the next five years in spite of the unanswered allegations and suspicion of high-level corruption which had plagued the BN. Perhaps Najib transformation program had retrieved the bumipitras's faith in UMNO but not the Chinese faith in MCA. More will have to be done to bring back the old qualities and glory of BN. The victory in GE 13 could only be the result of a last flicker in the magic of the old BN although Najib's Father Christmas' style of bringing the goodies to the poor had won him considerable admiration in the year before the election.

A most disturbing observation made by a panelist discussing the outcome of GE13 on the night of May 5th (or morning of May 6th ) on RTM1, was that (free quote) the Malays show their grievances on the street but not in the ballot box while the Chinese show their grievances in the ballot box and not in the street (as had happened in Gelang Patah). It amounts to saying the the Malays grumble a lot but do not take action to change a situation while the Chinese don't grumble much but act positively to change things. There's indeed a lot that the Malays should learn from their more prosperous and wealthy fellow citizens. The only wealthy Malays are those BN politicians who have been holding public posts in the BN government during its half a century's hold on power and those businessmen under their aegis.

The Cult of Violence....

For more than fifty years after Independence and with the exception of the May13th incident, Malaysia had enjoyed peace and stability. Relatively speaking that is for intermittent criminal activities take place in all societies, however stable and peaceful. Malaysia also had its fill of atrocities and violence during the Japanese and Koumintang regime. After Independence even a nightclub or a street murder was a rare and disturbing news.a look of fear

But today, things seem to change. Other than the rampant drug related scourge, reports on serious crimes like infanticide, murder and rape of even children, street murder, abduction and extortion, vicious gang-fights and gruesome killings can be read in the Papers almost every day. Police statistics of about 4000 serious crimes a year is an abject underestimate since many go unreported.The frequency of bloody crimes are only matched by gruesome deaths on the road due to motor accidents. There could be as many as five fatal accidents on the road every in Malaysia but the number of serious crimes committed could triple that number.terror and destruction

The number game is one thing but the gruesomeness of the crime is more disturbing. You can be pumped off with hot lead at a road junction where you've too stop your car, be gunned down while eating at a stall, opening the gate to drive home, or while shopping. A rape victim could be slashed and dismembered, put in plastic bag and left by the roadside. Underage girls could be abducted, gang raped, murdered and dumped into the drain or river. It's clear that the cult of violence has penetrated into our culture, rthe culture of hospitality, warm smiles and and tolerance which Malaysians were famous for at one time.when terror strikes

Of course our Police force is as competent as any in the developed world and solving more that 40% of the serious crimes reported each year. Percentage can be manipulated any way you want and does not tell much.The traffic police is doing better by issuing millions of summons each year for traffic violations and collecting millions (or is it billions now) of ringgit in fines. Both the criminal investigation and traffic branches of the police force are being rapidly expanded to cope with the rise of cars and crimes on the road.

But the cult of violence is something more than just the intermittent crimes that are on the increase. It indicates a loss of the human sense of value towards human life, a rise in sadistic tendencies and a thirst for personal revenge, and the unlimited destructive forces that monetary gains can induce. People can kill for money or personal satisfaction and seemingly enjoy the torture involved in the process. Allowing the the maniacs to hide behind their mental dysfunction, the cold blooded murderers seem to enjoy what they are doing, taking pride in the number of victims they chalked.Whether that has to do with the increase in their bank account is something the police should investigate. Killing for money should be the first order of the day for the police to stop. It should take precedence over the crime of passion since the former is more rampant, though the latter should not be considered lower in terms of gravity.

The cult of violence must be stopped before it spread any further and destroy society's sense of value on human lives. To me even drug related offenses can be given a lower priority since those involved already know the consequence. But to allow the senseless murdering of people on the street for whatever reasons to go unchecked, and not putting the perpetrators to the gallows, is inviting the cult to spread like a cancerous growth in the Malaysian society, erstwhile known for its warmness and hospitality.

New Development in Malaysian Democratic Process.

The registration and announcement of candidates for the 13th General Election in Malaysia on 20th April, saw a number of new development in the democratic process in this country.Healthy or not is a matter for the political parties involved to consider. What Malaysians in general can see is that political parties and the coalitions they formed to wrestle for power in the GE cannot underestimate the will of individual interests and conviction. Individual Malaysians are now courageous enough to voice their disagreement or discontentment with party leadership when the leadership takes things into his own hand. In any country it is such deviants who can remind a powerful leader that not everyone will bow down to his or her dictate.Or afraid of his fury.

No I'm not against the formation of political parties, the formation of coalitions and amalgamation of political power. Nor am I against the enforcement of some strict discipline in the parties or coalitions. I'm just saying that total agreement and support of what the party supremo says can lead to a kind of dictatorship, however mild and covert. We need to have people who can challenge the decisions and action of the supremo or supremos, to remind him or them that the spirit of democracy is still alive. Democracy will ultimately die under the hand of an adulated and sanctified leader. Many sacrificial lambs in the history of mankind caused a society to reexamine itself and make radical changes changes.

In the recent nomination day for GE13th, we see number of party bigwigs or wannabes abandoning the party to become independent candidates. We see 'overlapping candidatures" where the candidates of two parties under one coalition will contest the election under separate flags.Is this an indication of disagreement and conflict between the bosses of the two parties in the coalition and that the coalition is breaking up? Not necessarily. As a leader of one party explained, it was because of a late submission of names.Rather than allow a seat to go uncontested, a name by the concerned party is submitted, But at the last minute the other party also named another candidate representing that party. Wasn't there a dateline for the naming of candidates in that coalition party? We don't know but even if there is, last minute entrants in an election contest is not unknown.

But in the other development, a party bigwig is not agreeable to the candidate chosen by the party or coalition supremo. Hence the party bigwig chose to contest on his or her own as an independent. A number of such cases appeared forcing the coalition supremo to issue an ultimatum that party members contesting the election as an independent will be sacked from the party. Wow this is like being fired from an assured job while the outcome of an election is not known as yet. Couldn't this be considered as a double assurance for the party. If it's candidate wins, well and good. If the independent candidate wins, the party still wins. It only shows that the candidate picked up by the party is not that popular as construed by the supremo and his close buddies. In fact this is a move against within party hegemony. Afterall,within the party it's always possible for jealousy to develop against a popular figure who does not always kowtow to the wishes of the supremo.

In fact this latter issue is the worst that can befall a party or coalition party which had been in power over a long period of time. The supremo becomes almost a demigod and no one dares to go against his will. No one dares criticize him. Cronism and within party hegemony develop leading to the spluttering or disintegration of the party, It is the party member who dares to stand up for his or her own conviction and sense of righteousness, at the risk of being kicked out, who can transform the party and bring to to its senses - that it's just a political party which can be thrown out of power by the electorate if the leadership does not identify with the needs and prior concern of the people in general, and not just those of the party bigwigs who make him a supremo.

A true leader will not fear a candidate who wants to contest the election on his or her own capacity, even if expelled from the party. Afterall such a person can create his or her own party of sypathizers and supporters. Such people are the real kingpins of democracy.

Who do we look for in PRU13 (part2).

The list of candidate for Parliamentary and State seats in the 13th General Election, is already out. For both the ruling government coalition at federal level and for the opposition which rules in four States i.e. Selangor, Kedah, Penang and Kelantan. Within the next few weeks before the Election Commission finalized its register of candidates for the Parliamentary and State Assembly seats, there can be a lot of wrangling and arguments. But, in Malaysia once the leader has spoken, the last word has been said. Any dissident might find himself or herself blackballed.

In the light of the ruling coalition's promise to bring about a transformation in the ruling coalition, Barisan does not seem to make too much of a change in the candidates line-up.The 33% changes in the Parliamentary line-up and 49% in the States' seem to be made up mainly of shifts from State to Parliamentary seat, relocation of candidates to be fielded,and inserting new names to vacated seats or seats currently held by the opposition. The people and the faces remained the same.In Pahang for example, most of the candidates are current incumbents. Only two Menteri Besar will vacate their seats and a number of controversial figures are again in the running.


If transformation means to change the faces of incumbents so that any suspicion of corruption can be removed, a lot of questions can be asked. The fact is that those who have been disciplined for corrupt practices or who have even been widely suspected of such practices will continue to mar the image of the ruling government if retained in a Paliamentary or State seat. Of course such suspicion is sometimes thrown at the entire government, not only in Malaysia but anywhere else in the world where politics have become a rather dirty word. But that's life in a modern democracy where money talks irrespective of social ethics, faith or religion. However, known culprits must be removed if trust is to be restored.

But the worst thing about Malaysian politics, as I observed it, is the haughtiness of the political bigwigs. More interestingly it is not really the big guns that swing around and talk with full authority and pride. It's normally the lesser ones, with no real power to show but close to the top. They might even be the party flag-bearers or messenger boys. The wannabes. They could really damage the image of the party, if they ever get to the top, through the bosses they serve. So, watch out guys. You might not even get a chance to see the real Wakil Rakyat or People's Representatives, i.e. the YBs is these people fill up the corridors of power.

What I am stressing here is that humility is what is wanting in some of the party leaders and their supporters. Humility is what is lacking in the struggle for power, in the bit to win an election. Humility makes the difference between an astute politician and a humble statesman. Thus in many countries throughout history the best leader is one who had undergone a hard life,with many trials and tribulations, sufferings and even torture in a prison cell. This is true of great leaders like Gandhi, Mandela and many others while those who haven't undergone such a life might become powerful leaders but finally fall by the power that they themselves created. Only those with humility and moral integrity will withstand the tests of time.

So, do we go for candidates who go up on the stage and beat their chests saying that they are the best and only they can deliver while others would not be able to do so? Or do we go for those who can tell us what is not coming out right in our current development efforts and progress and which must, therefore,be remedied? Do we go for those who examined themselves for any shortcomings and promised to overcome them or do we prefer those who are overbrimming with self-confidence and promised to give you wealth and riches?

This is of course a free society. You make the choice, for better or for worse.