One year after historic verdict

One year on and still waiting for change

Only the people can bring change

We are in the eve of the first anniversary of the historic elections on March 8 when people put aside their racial and religious differences to vote for a stronger opposition thereby denying the Barisan Nasional(BN) its 2/3 majority in parliament for the first time in over 50 years. It was the people’s civil way of saying enough is enough to the increasing arrogance, abuse of power and corruption that had become prevalent in the country.

It was the first time a significant opposition alliance, the Pakatan Rakyat(PR) came into existence, that really threatened the BN to the core. The credit for the formation of alliance was largely due to PKR Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his comrades Datuk Seri Hadi Awang and Lim Kit Siang. PR’s consistent campaign against power abuse, corrution and its stand for multiracialism, won the people’s hearts and they gave PR the additional bonus to rule five states.

This massive victory for the opposition was not only unprecedented but unexpected that shocked the mighty ruling BN, the opposition and the people alike. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi should be commended for his gentlemanly attitude in graciously conceding defeat and that resulted in the peace and tranquility that followed. However chaos and turmoil continued to reign in Umno and its major partners, the MCA, MIC and Gerakan, till today.

The outcome of the polls sent a stronger and formidable opposition to parliament and the people’s hopes for a better performance in the 12th Parliament were raised. There were hopes for the evolution of a two-party political system that would provide a better check and balance governance. There were hopes for the dismantling of racial politics whereby all citizens will be considered as Malaysians without any racial prejudice.

However with the unfolding of events in the subsequent months, these hopes of the people seem to be slowly eluding them. The most miserable disclosure was the failure of our parliamentarians to meet the high expectations of the people. They failed to realize that they have a wiser and more mature electorate who want greater openness and accountability. They want a more intellectual and democratic debate in parliament on all issues that affect them. A year has passed by and regrettably our wakil rakyats have yet to rise up to these expectations.

Instead of effecting the change demanded by the people, our elected representatives are preoccupied with undermining the government elected by the people by unethical and corrupt means. Instead of allowing the people’s government to continue serving the people until the next elections they want to topple it by mass defections by luring political crossovers with money and position, that are unethical and immoral. It is sad that certain lawmakers have betrayed their voter’s trust by succumbing to such temptations.

The ruling and opposition MPs refuse to unite to confront the common problems facing the nation. They treat each other as enemies whereas in actual fact they are supposed to be comrades in their service to the nation and the people.

The call for change that was voiced by the people on March 8 was repeated on two subsequent by-elections in Permatang Pauh and Kuala Terengganu but regrettably these calls too appeared to have fallen on deaf ears. The ugly constitutional crisis in Perak bears testimony to this uncaring attitude of our politicians.The way the Perak government was ousted leaves much to be desired and the whole episode simply goes to show the total disregard for the wishes of the real masters – the rakyat.

Meanwhile there seems to be no end to racial politics as it raises its ugly head from time to time. Instead of trying to quench the tensions that arise from racial disputes it is sad that there are those who fan these racial sentiments for political mileage. We are left wondering whether a day will ever come when Malaysians will be not guided by color and creed but by the love for their country in dealing with one another as fellow citizens.

Despite the win by the opposition, it was not given due recognition as elected representatives of the people. Their rights were denied and voices ignored. The public institutions like the police, judiciary, anti-corruption agencies that were supposed to be totally apolitical and independent were not even seen to be so in dealing with the opposition.

Our politicians seem to be least perturbed by the warnings of the imminent financial crisis by economists worldwide. According to the Human Resources Ministry over 100,000 Malaysians will lose their jobs by the end of this year which highlights the gravity of the economic turmoil that we are in for in the coming months. Instead of pooling our resources and putting aside their differences, to brace for these rough times ahead, our politicians are preoccupied with their political game of gaining power by any means. The present the ‘ends-justifying-the-means’ style of governance is beginning to cause a lot of anxiety among all sections of the people.

Despite these setbacks, the most important positive change that was brought about by the historic elections was the change in the mindset of the people to accept the opposition as a viable alternate government in the future. This was unimaginable a decade ago when the opposition was painted as the villain always causing problems for the hero, BN. The people have come to accept the opposition as also their rightful representative whose role is equally important to that of the ruling party.

The people should be saluted for their exceptional maturity in ensuring that this change was brought about peacefully. Our hopes are ignited that with this maturity and wisdom of the people they will continue to resist attempts by unscrupulous politicians from exploiting racial and religious sentiments to gain power.

The alternate Internet media should be largely credited to the development of this high maturity and wisdom of the voters who are increasingly becoming more literate and discernable. This cyber-media is going to be crucial factor in deciding the outcome of the subsequent elections and with that tool easily available to more and more Malaysians, especially the young, the voters are not going to be easily fooled.

Unfortunately of late the political game has taken a turn for the worst where ethics, democratic principles and respect for the law have become irrelevant. The efforts in promoting change have been bogged down over issues of race, religion and the royalty.

These new challenges were aptly described by Anwar in his address to his party stalwarts recently,” We are facing an emotional propaganda — three Rs — race, religion and royalty. These three emotive issues have developed into the Malay psychology. If the people are not shown the real picture on these issues they will be fooled with arguments on the symbols of race, religion and royalty, which will bring their way of thinking back into the feudal era.”

All parties must appreciate the volatility and sensitivities of these issues and handle these them logically with great care and moderation. After coming this far we should not allow rash actions dictated by emotions to reverse the change we are striving to promote.

The BN,in particular Umno, being the backbone of the ruling coalition must take the lead to bring change to benefit all Malaysians. It has promised to bring change and reforms but we are yet to see any genuine and tangible change for the betterment of all. Instead Umno is changing to please only its 3 million or so members, to be exact its 3000 party delegates, not the more than 20 million other Malaysians who also have a legitimate stake in their motherland.

After a year of bitter politicking we are back to square one as far as democratization of our nation is concerned. We are again at the crossroads between greater democratization and lawlessness. The ongoing Perak crisis has created genuine fear that our new leadership will not have the wisdom to steer the nation towards the path of the former but return to a state of lawlessness and mob rule that has been rejected by the people.

In the midst of these uncertainties,one thing is sure, Malaysians today are beginning to be convinced that the rakyat, not the politicians, are the ones who can bring the change that will help realize the aspirations of the people for a peaceful, democratic and united Malaysia. With the increasing wisdom and maturity of the people and the cyber-media easily available to them our hopes for a brighter future is still very much alive.

Dr.Chris Anthony