Enter a Game Changer for PKR Sarawak? - Anthony Ibong

Sng was having breakfast with Anwar? It was said that eyebrows were raised because of this. To those gnashing their teeth at having just found out about the event, I say this: save your energy. Don't bother to raise even half an eye brow. Whatever phase of denial mode you are in, get a good dose of reality. Get over it, for by virtue of his present connection, Sng is embedded in PKR whether formally or informally. It appears that Sng has many more friends in PKR than people would like to admit. Therefore, appreciate the situation for what it apparently is. Only then can you begin to appreciate some elements of Sarawak politics.

by Anthony anak Ibong via e-mail

---

Oh, how a seemingly innocent breakfast between Anwar Ibrahim, the Ketua Umum (of PKR) and Sng Chee Hua, a long-time friend of his, together with a few other respectable men could send some people in our party into a tizzy. The occasion was held in the open, not in secret. Why then did a simple chow ignite the proverbial rashes and hives among some? Politics being what it is, what could be the significance of the event?

In case you are wondering why a meeting of men talking amid the soothing flow of background muzak in a hotel restaurant got strong reactions from some people, consider these two words: Sarawak matters.  

Sarawak is said one of the so called "fixed deposits" for the governing BN. In a manner of speaking, Sarawak (and Sabah) anchors the Government. In 2008, its MPs managed to keep BN in power in Putrajaya. For now, for better or worse, the loyalty of Sarawak's many MPs is still a primary factor in keeping the BN government in Putrajaya. In the future, where goes Sarawak, so goes the Government.  

It was an apparently innocuous enough breakfast. In addition to the national leader, it was said that there were YB Dominique Ng; the newly minted Dato John Tenawie, PKR Vice President; Jimmy Donald, a long-time MP who is currently in between roles, although he is understood to be keenly eying the state seat of Bukit Begunan. Jimmy is known to the many local political aficionados as Sng's ally and friend. In our PKR hierarchy in Sarawak, he is a party "bigwig", a member of the state's leadership. And then there was, if the news reports were to be believed, the man himself, Sng Chee Hua.

And by the way where was Baru Bian, the chief of PKR Sarawak? He appeared to have been somewhere else when this breakfast took place. How come? Your guess would be as good as mine in this respect.

Sng was having breakfast with Anwar? It was said that eyebrows were raised because of this. To those gnashing their teeth at having just found out about the event, I say this: save your energy. Don't bother to raise even half an eye brow. Whatever phase of denial mode you are in, get a good dose of reality. Get over it, for by virtue of his present connection, Sng is embedded in PKR whether formally or informally. It appears that Sng has many more friends in PKR than people would like to admit. Therefore, appreciate the situation for what it apparently is. Only then can you begin to appreciate some elements of Sarawak politics.

In any case, it is Anwar and Sng's right to have a meal together, even if the issues they discussed never went beyond the level of talking about the curvature of Sarawak River and its alleged e coli contents as it meanders through Kuching. Who among us could be so maniacally suspicious that we become apoplectic when a group of people sit around have a meal and talk? Surely they have the right to do so. Anwar Ibrahim and Sng, like the rest of us, have the right of to assemble - or meet. In my view, they can meet anywhere, any time. Not just over breakfast. And the wise James Masing, who have known Sng for years, is reported to have said the two men met all the time. So there you have it.

The relevant thing is that observers do remember well that Sng is a veteran political operator. It has been said that he was active in Sabah in the 1990s and of course Sarawak for many years. The man is known for hard work and is no stranger to success. Perhaps those who have had a string of disaster stories lately, including by-election losses, need to rub shoulders with old friends in the hope that the downward trend could be reversed. It was, after all, a New Year and wishing for loads of luck should not be out of order.

Still, why did some people go ballistic when they found out about the event?

It is a measure of the (Sarawak) political climate that we are in and the capabilities of some political fixtures we have that when these two and a few others on sat together for some food in Kuching, the event immediately set tongues wagging. The appearance of Sng together with Anwar Ibrahim, no matter how innocently contrived, does elicit intense discussion among some people. Particularly so since Sarawak is in the brink of a state election that could spell the beginning or the end of political careers.  

As a consequence, questions were asked too. What were they doing? What were they thinking? More importantly, what are they going to do, if anything, in Sarawak politics? Does this represent a new alliance and how will it impact anyone's roles and political future? Or, to put it more graphically: who will win and who will lose?

These are no idle concerns. It is particularly pertinent to those who rather not share the same political bed with Sng. For one thing, they probably have different political dreams from him. For another, politics being what it is, they possibly have had a few brushes with him in the past. And so perhaps, if they could help it, they would rather not revisit those experience or engender new ones lest they be subjected to the stresses that those are likely to entail.

To many people, Sng exudes the image of an accomplished gentleman. Many knew him when he was with the Sarawak National Party (SNAP). And then he was with the Parti Bangsa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) and finally with Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS). If you should wander through the major towns in Sarawak, it is likely that you would find someone who knows him or knows of him. If we want to accentuate only the positive here, which is what I want to do, you could say that he was a particularly effective political operator. This was why the breakfast he had with Anwar Ibrahim assumed an importance of enormous local proportion: it was pregnant with possibilities.

But that is the man's alleged past. How about the future. Particularly the immediate future? Here lies the real enchilada: Sng is that he is said to have a stable of candidates ready to face the coming state elections. By some accounts he has fifteen (the number varies) all primed and ready to be launched at the right time and some pundits say that at least five are capable of winning seats. If this is correct, then his domain is even bigger that a couple of BN political parties in Sarawak whose number of designated seat allocation is certainly a lot less than 15. And, to cap it all, there is this little but highly vital factor: he is said to be financially sound and a keen player, if that is the play. By any measure then, Sng is potentially a major political force in Sarawak. You better believe it.

If he has his strengths, Sng also has his needs and ambitions. What real man does not? His son is the young and hard working Larry who is the Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri member for Pelagus. Larry is said to have no known vices. No cock-fighting for him, no gambling. None whatsoever, sir.  And he was ensconced as a senior leader of Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) until it started to unravel, albeit briefly, a few years ago.

Larry's apparent predicament is that he is partyless, a consequence of having been entangled in the internal political struggle that sent PRS to its near death experience in 2008. It is a measure of the man's crucial positioning, not to mention his extended networkings, that despite being without proper party support, Larry retains his seat of Pelagus and his assistant minister post in the Sarawak government. Not surprisingly, many in the PRS leadership consider his ministerial position as an anomaly and have made it known that they want him replaced as assistant minister and as candidate in the coming election by a person of their choice.

But to be a minister, even an assistant one sans a political party, is clearly not a satisfactory arrangement. It is too much an ad hoc, a makeshift and politically rickety effort that probably would not last. Besides, if you have even bigger ambitions you will begin to ask yourself how you could climb the political ladder if you have no organization with a strong foundation.

It seem clear then that Sng's need is to find a political party for son Larry, one that will allow the YB to contest again in the coming election and even attain greater position. Could Sng the elder then be sizing up PKR as a possible party to accommodate his son? Anwar Ibrahim said that they did not discuss politics during breakfast. And who is to disbelieve him? After all, there would be plenty of other occasions when they could meet and discuss various issues.

And so, what could critics of the breakfast meeting really want? They should remember, in PKR the byword is inclusiveness. As Anwar Ibrahim himself was reported to have said: people should be more mature in politics and take a view of befriending everyone but exercise the rights to preserve the interest of the party. In other words, if someone is to show up, no matter how unexpectedly, at least one could be decorous to the visitor. Thus, for those who want a different tack to be taken, those who dream that Sng be made some kind of persona non grata in this circle, the message is as obvious as the colour of the waters of the Rejang River (which is dirty brown, by the way): it is not going to happen.

Sarawak (and Sabah) are therefore the present Ground Zero when it comes to Malaysian politics. That makes the goings-on in Sarawak important at this time. For those in the state who view themselves with a sense of exceptionalism and some kind of manifest destiny (to have one of them be the next CM, no less?), any slight movement or any new wrinkle of perceived prior advantage at the local scene would be subjected to hard and close scrutiny. After all, a new development or event could spell the beginning of a change. The irony is that those who have been screaming for change could all of sudden become sullen and even abusive should changes happen to disadvantage them. Witness, for instance, the epithets thrown at SNAP recently. Here was a party that is merely trying to regain its footing, to be wholesome again, after years of being involuntarily moribund. How has the response been to SNAP's initiative? From what I can evaluate, the party is fast gaining strength as veterans and new members realise their potential. There are others, for reasons better known to themselves, who are clearly uncomfortable with SNAP's recovery. And they have responded with sniffs and brickbats.

And now, evidently, what we have is the apparent emergence of a person with a history of executing uncommon things and unprecedented consequences in the person of Sng Chee Hua. Many observers believe that he has the capabilities of a "game changer." No wonder those who believe that they hold a kind of franchise in the PKR leadership and an exalted position in PR in Sarawak appear to be greatly perturbed at the apparently changing situation.

And so, where does that leave those in PKR who simply do not like Sng and the way that he has been carrying on. Assuming that there are those in our party who hold those attitudes, the choices of these critics are basically three.

You could, if you like, do nothing. What could happen is that you accept the apparent emerging trend. If you have difficulties accepting this trend yet want to remain in the party, you could always bury your head in the sand like an ostrich and hope, like all ostriches in a similar predicament, that no person or thing would come by and pluck your feathers out.

The other choice is to fight it out internally, in which case such questions as resources and manpower become relevant. Presuming that Sng is really interested in PKR, could you hope to match his reach and power base? Even if you think you have the resolve to fight, and you think you have the time and resources, there is no guarantee that people will adhere to your views.  

The last option is, well, you have to identify it yourself and follow it, if you wish.



ANTHONY ANAK IBONG

Too Little Too Late, PKR - Govan Naliah

My message to Anwar and his Indian cohorts in the party is very simple and straightforward: whatever plan they might come up with, it is way too little, too late, too patronising and pathetic.

by Govan Naliah via e-mail

---

I understand that Anwar Ibrahim last week had a meeting with PKR’s Indian leaders, several Indian NGOs and individuals to hatch a plan to bring back the support of Indian voters to Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

I would like to say that I am very unexcited and unimpressed by the news and I believe I am not alone among Indian voters to feel that way.

My message to Anwar and his Indian cohorts in the party is very simple and straightforward: whatever plan they might come up with, it is way too little, too late, too patronising and pathetic.

Only after more than 1,060 days since the tsunami of 2008 that PKR has finally realised that Indian support for it and PR has waned. If the party is wondering why that happened, let me explain.

Indians have now woken up to the fact that they have been made use of. Many of us voted for the opposition in 2008 because of the Hindraf factor and our bitterness towards MIC and Samy Vellu.

Anwar and gang had very cleverly made use of that anti-government sentiment. All kinds of promises were made to help poor and marginalised Indians. And so we placed out trust on the opposition parties. Don’t anyone underestimate the impact of the swing of Indian votes. Our numbers may be small but the modest margin of victory for many opposition candidates tells you that our votes have been invaluable.

But now, more than 1,000 days later, what has PR done to alleviate the plight of many poor Indians? Ilek, nothing, zero. That’s why I say Indians feel that we have been made use of.

It is understandable why people like Gobalakrishnan, Kottapan and Jenapala have left the party. The latter, legitimately nominated to contest for the PKR deputy president post, even had one sacking letter very suddenly and suspiciously appearing out of the blue to put an end to his nomination. Was it because PKR didn’t want an Indian to contest such an important post? I leave that to everyone to decide. Jenapala might not have won but he could have carried the votes of a majority of PKR’s Indian members and made use of that to cut a deal with the other two candidates to make assistance to Indians a higher and more urgent priority in the party’s plans.

Whether you are an MIC supporter or not, you cannot deny that in the Interlok issue it has been quite effective in conveying the concerns and worries of the Indian community. If it becomes even more effective in serving its Indian constituency, I will have no hesitation to give it my support.

To PKR, I say it again: it’s too little too late.



GOVAN NALIAH

John Mallot's WSJ Article: A Response - Umar Mukhtar

Mallot's article runs the risk of completely absolving non-Malays from any responsibility in the racial predicament that the country is in. That is nothing less than avoiding reality and counter-productive to any effort to improve race relations in Malaysia. Malays have their grievances too against the Chinese. The fact that they seldom get aired does not make those grievances any less legitimate or valid.

by Umar Mukhtar or via e-mail

---

John Mallot has waded into the debate on Malaysian race relations with half an analysis when obviously a fuller one would have been of greater service to the discourse. Granted, his piece was intended more than anything else to be a critique of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's handling of the current situation in the country. However, in doing so, he has highlighted only the non-Malay responses to what is described as Malay racism. This is very misleading and the reason for my saying that he had written only half an analysis of the situation.

A more robust and honest assessment of race relations in Malaysia would take into account the fact that what appears to be Malay racism is in itself a response to non-Malay racism against Malays. Yes, two wrongs do not make a right. But as the Malay saying goes, "It takes both hands to clap". That is to say, Mallot's article runs the risk of completely absolving non-Malays from any responsibility in the racial predicament that the country is in. That is nothing less than avoiding reality and counter-productive to any effort to improve race relations in Malaysia. Malays have their grievances too against the Chinese. The fact that they seldom get aired does not make those grievances any less legitimate or valid.

Education for the very young is one obvious area where racist attitudes can be nipped in the bud. The importance for racial integration to begin at a young age is recognised, so much so that in the 1960s and 70s, the U.S. supreme court sanctioned the forced busing of students in order to break down the racial segregation between white and African-American schools. That was in America. In Malaysia, a different approach towards early education was adopted. In concession to the non-Malays, especially the Chinese, vernacular education was retained as part of the national school system. The liberalism was well-intentioned and in line with the spirit of Malaysia's constitution whereby minority communities are given the right to use and develop their own languages.

In practice, and perhaps this was unforeseen by Malaysia's founding fathers, the national-vernacular dichotomy in the school system has resulted in precisely the kind of early-age racial segregation that the busing laws, upheld by the U.S. supreme court justices, sought to eradicate in America. While desegregation of schools may or may not result in greater racial integration, segregation virtually guarantees that there will be no racial integration.

The racial polarisation that we see so shamelessly capitalised on by politicians in Malaysia today is partly, if not wholly, attributable to that segregation in the school system. When you see not a few non-Malays unashamedly, even proudly, declaring that they cannot properly speak Malay, the national language, you can bet your life that these are the ones who graduated from the vernacular schools. This is forty-four years after Malay was declared the national language.

The Chinese community jealously guard the existence of the vernacular schools, implicitly reinforcing the message of their racial and cultural separateness and exclusivity but yet insist that they should not be looked at as the 'other' by Malays. For many Malays, including this writer, that smacks of having your cake and eating it too.

Often the excuse given by the Chinese for insisting that their children go to vernacular schools and for more such schools to be built is the poor quality of national schools. Surely the solution is not to build more racially-segregated schools but to join hands with Malays and Indians in insisting and ensuring that the quality of national schools be improved for the benefit of children of all ethnicities. Perhaps that is considered such an outlandishly 'out-of-the-racial box' thinking that I have never heard any Chinese make that call.

Any sincere and honest effort to improve race relations has to take cognizance of the fact that racism exists in and racial discrimination is practised, to one extend or another, by all the races in Malaysia.

However, my own honest observation is that the Chinese never want to admit or acknowledge their own racism against Malays or other races.

Official and overt discriminatory policies can easily be criticised as institutionalised racism but covert racial discriminations by their very nature are harder to pinpoint. That does not mean they don't exist or any less invidious than the former.

When a "Mandarin speakers only" requirement is stated in job advertisements, even for jobs which do not conceivably require much language skills, that surely is equivalent to saying "Chinese only". But you will be hard put to find any Chinese who would admit that the practice is racially discriminatory.

When Malaysia's most famous blogger, Raja Petra Kamaruddin, related some years ago in his blog how Chinese businesses ganged up to ensure the failure of his motorcycle dealership, none of his Chinese readers cared to acknowledge that he was the victim of racism. His was probably just the tip of the iceberg of similar cases.

And it's always with a mixture of amusement and sadness when I read the many comments in the internet from non-Malays complaining about the racial policies of the Malaysian government which scarcely conceal their own racism towards Malays in general. If Mr Mallot doubts the truth of what I am saying, he should read the comments that followed the publication of his recent article in Malaysian news portals.

To many Malays, given the refusal of non-Malays to even acknowledge their own racism, the prospect of a rollback in whatever few affirmative action policies left on the plate appears to be concessions which are unlikely to be matched in a similar spirit by the Chinese in the spheres that they predominate, namely the commercial and economic.

If Najib can be accused of pandering to militant Malay groups, Chinese political leaders in the government and opposition too can be accused of pandering to their racial constituency.

In my lifetime, I have yet to hear of any Chinese leader asking that the Chinese to join in and contribute towards the betterment of national schools. I have yet to hear of one calling for Chinese businesses to assist or at least not to gang up against their fellow non-Chinese businesses or to not practice discrimination in their employment policies.

Mallot failed to take into account one side of the equation in his brief exposition of the race relations situation in Malaysia. Hopefully, I have managed to redress that and allow a better understanding of why things are the way they are in Malaysia.

It would have been more gracious of Mallot if he had used his relationship with Malaysians during his tenure as a diplomat to impart his country's experience and firm action with regard to vigilance against the emergence of the evil that is racism, than to make things worse by dogmatically adopting the attitude that sympathising with the minority makes one righteous.



UMAR MUKHTAR

PKR Failed “Direct” Elections - Dr. Joyce Lee

PKR “direct” elections which should be a milestone in Malaysian politics have turned out to be a fiasco with party members leaving the party, holding mass protest, vituperating each other and crucifying top leadership in the media, social networking, blogging and microblogging sites.

by Dr. Joyce Lee via Bloggers Reports

---

PKR “direct” elections which should be a milestone in Malaysian politics have turned out to be a fiasco with party members leaving the party, holding mass protest, vituperating each other and crucifying top leadership in the media, social networking, blogging and microblogging sites.

The imbroglio has started when Dato’ Zaid Ibrahim who joined PKR for less than a year declared his candidacy for deputy presidency. This triggered PKR de factor leader Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim to interfere in the election by making sure his “right hand man” Azmin Ali would win PKR deputy presidency at all costs. False allegations were carried out by many top leaders including Anwar himself against Zaid by labelling Zaid as “Trojan Horse”, denying him was ever the PR co-ordinator and many more. Also, telephone calls were made by Anwar to many division chiefs to tell them who to vote by promising “sweets” would be rewarded.

When party leaders and members saw how things were going, many jumped on the bandwagon. Further, Azmin, the incumbent PKR Women Chief Zuraida Kamarrudin and gang used every means in their positions, power and manipulated the party machinery to win.

Party leadership turned a blind eye to the allegations of electoral fraud, coercion, violence, malpractice and even vote-rigging during the polls process. This led to much frustration among party members who had hoped the party would set a benchmark in local politics. The furious and disappointed Zaid opted out of the race halfway and left PKR to set up a new party, KITA. Party members’ frustration finally reached its peak when the party election official results were announced and new central leadership are formed by ignoring the irregularities and without disclosing all the divisions’ polls results of the last two weeks.

To this point, not only no action has been taken by party leadership on the alleged malefactors. But the unscrupulous duo, Azmin and Zuraida have been crowned Deputy President and National Women Chief of PKR respectively. Worst still, the influential PKR Election Director post who will decide candidates for the coming general election was taken away from Fuziah Salleh who has more conscience comparatively and given to Azmin also. Meanwhile, Dr. Xavier Jayakumar who is aligned to Azmin but alleged using gangsterism in various divisions during the polls was given award on the stage during the recent PKR convention, as well as being appointed to the powerful central political bureau.

Many staunch supporters’ dreams have now been shattered and they no longer believe those lying and unethical PKR leaders will be able to lead Malaysia to a clearer and brighter tomorrow.



DR. JOYCE LEE

PAS fails Tenang test, lesson for Pakatan - Zefrey Dahalan

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a PKR leader and a PAS leader admitted that the PAS leadership decided that PKR not be allowed to campaign in Malay-dominated areas. Instead PKR was only allowed to campaign in areas with mixed population, while DAP was asked to concentrate on the Chinese-majority areas. But since racially-mixed areas were a scracity in the constituency, PKR’s role in Tenang was slashed. The reason for this was because PAS felt that the Malays in Johor were not accustomed to PKR’s aggressive style of campaigning.

by Zefrey Dahalan at Free Malaysia Today

---

After being outclassed by Umno in the Tenang by-election, Pakatan Rakyat must consider revising its strategy if it wants to make an impact in the upcoming Merlimau state seat by-election in Malacca.

Critics blamed the internal strife in Pakatan for the dismal performance in Tenang, which saw Barisan Nasional (BN) retaining the seat with an increased majority.

If there was any impact, it was minimal, especially among the Felda and estate voters. The chief cause, however, was the failed campaign strategy formulated solely by Johor PAS.

It is an open secret among the Pakatan leadership that PKR was not given a prominent role in the campaign.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a PKR leader and a PAS leader admitted that the PAS leadership decided that PKR not be allowed to campaign in Malay-dominated areas.

Instead PKR was only allowed to campaign in areas with mixed population, while DAP was asked to concentrate on the Chinese-majority areas.

But since racially-mixed areas were a scracity in the constituency, PKR’s role in Tenang was slashed.

The reason for this was because PAS felt that the Malays in Johor were not accustomed to PKR’s aggressive style of campaigning.

PAS thought that it stood a better chance of capturing Malay votes with its “tarbiyah” approach, or heart-to-heart talk with the voters.

“I admit that we still need PKR to pull in Malay votes, the so-called soft-approach by PAS doesn’t really work,” said the PAS leader. “We lacked the firepower to counter BN’s assault.”

As for Merlimau, the PAS leader said he felt that PKR should contest the seat since PAS had failed in the Tenang and Bagan Pinang by-elections.

Field PKR candidate

Meanwhile, the senior Malacca PKR leader urged the Pakatan presidential candidate to field the right candidate for Merlimau irrespective of the party.

“We have done a survey, and Pakatan grassroots want a PKR candidate. In fact, most PAS branches in Merlimau want a PKR candidate because they feel PKR can do better there. Unfortunately, the state PAS and national PAS Youth leaders feel otherwise,” he said.

However, he added that if the candidate was from PAS, PKR would throw its full backing behind the person in the spirit of Pakatan.

To be fair to PAS, the dwindling of Chinese support for PAS in Tenang was mainly due to only 50% of Chinese voters turning up at the polling stations.

Due to lack of transport provided by the authorities during the flood, many could not make it in time to cast their ballots. The authorities were said to be focusing on ferrying the flood-hit Felda inhabitant, who were traditional BN voters.

If Tenang was not drenched in rain, the outcome could have been different, at least in terms of BN’s majority in the seat, which is considered a ruling coalition stronghold.

The handing out of expensive hampers on a daily basis to voters in Felda and the estates also played a significant role in swinging the votes in BN’s direction.

So in the final analysis, Pakatan is facing its adversary on an uneven playing field, so perhaps a revision of strategy is needed, especially on seat allocation.



ZEFREY DAHALAN

Sarawak State Election: Is Sarawak PKR up to par to lead? - Tomas Madang

Does PKR Sarawak deserve this role of lead organization which it feels entitles it to take a big chunk of seats available for contest in the coming election? Let us look at the facts.

by Tomas Madang ak. Ijau via e-mail

---

Sarawak is facing a state election which many feel will be held by May this year. Is the opposition really ready? More precisely, is PKR really in the position to assume leadership of the opposition?

By most accounts, it is going to be a mother of all elections. For one thing, there is little doubt that the ruling coalition is facing its toughest test as the present Chief Minister is probably at the tail end of his long and controversial political life. For another, there is the question of a successor administration: who, or which group will wear the mantle of state leadership after the current one is eased out?

It is an open secret that there are a few possible centres of power on both sides of the political divide that are beginning to emerge and they are all working to carve out their own political lebensraum in post-election Sarawak. Speculations about the state BN involve, among others, on who will take the plum post of Chief Minister? Will it go, no matter how briefly, to a long servile, subservient and suffering Dayak leader? Or will a more upstanding and capable one be brought back from KL to Sarawak to take over the reins? But that is not our concern today. Our focus here is the state opposition, particularly PKR and its state of affairs.

For a while now the party presumes that it is the lead organization in the opposition. There is ample evidence for this presumption. For instance, in the allocation of seats, PKR makes the argument that it should take the lion share of seats to be contested in Sarawak.

Does PKR Sarawak deserve this role of lead organization which it feels entitles it to take a big chunk of seats available for contest in the coming election? Let us look at the facts.

First, let us look at the structural design of the party as a whole. PKR is a national party which is led by the President and the Central Leadership Council in Kuala Lumpur. There are a lot of advantages to being a national party, just as there are a number of disadvantages as well. Of the latter, lets look at the request for some form of autonomy, for instance. Some in PKR Sarawak have been clamouring for some form of local autonomy so that local leaders could decide on matters at their own level. Admittedly, there have been promises of some form of local decision-making but that is as far as it has gone. Promises were believed to have been made, but not delivered. In the ill-fated adventure of the Batang Ai by-election for instance, the eventual selection of the candidate was believed to have been against local and formal recommendations. In other words, the Centre (Kuala Lumpur) has tended to be deaf and blind to local conditions and opinions.

Second, there is the matter of state PKR leadership. In the last five years there have been at least five state leaders. First there was Dato' Hafsah Harun, an elder statesperson, then there was YB Dominic Ng who was succeeded by Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Mustaffa Kamal Ayub and finally by Baru Bian himself. Five state heads in five years do not bode well for organizational stability, no matter how good the heads are. Indeed, it makes Sarawak PKR very much like the Italy of the post-war years, where governments rise and fall with unnerving frequency.

Why were there such frequent changes in Sarawak state heads by the Central leadership under Anwar Ibrahim? One explanation is that PKR Sarawak is wrecked by factionalism. There are simply too many groups that seemed to be able to reach the top of the decision-making structure in Kuala Lumpur. Changes were made seemingly without too much consideration for stability and long term impact. Thus very often people who should have stayed much longer to effect more changes and strength for the party in Sarawak found their services terminated because the central leadership was listening more to their rivals' arguments.

Third, the present PKR Sarawak is divided into a number of informal spheres of influence. As a multiracial party, this is not supposed to happen. But the reality is that the Bidayuhs have one informal paramount leader; the Orangs Ulu another, the Ibans yet another. Likewise, the Malay-Melanau also have one paramount leader, although his hold on this position appears to remain tenuous.

The bulk of PKR apparent strength, such as it has been, is found in the Dayak areas (Iban, Orang Ulu, and Bidayuh). As for the Malay-Melanau areas, the party has not been making much inroads, except for constituencies in the Betong Division. Indeed, it is doubtful whether the party could find really suitable candidates for most of the coastal constituencies (Malay and Melanau). How is this possible? What are the missing ingredients here? Why focus on inland constituencies and be basically non-existent in coastal ones? What is at play here? The Central leadership of PKR in Kuala Lumpur has a lot to answer for this.

Fourth, a number of observers are convinced that PKR is not serious about the state party politics. The argument goes something like this: so long as a particular seat goes to the opposition, it matters little which party it belongs to because it is in Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and PKR is the head organization in PR. This being the case although the Centre would prefer that people identify themselves with PKR, it is not absolutely necessary that this should happen.

Fifth, there is the matter of current developments in the party. To many observers, that PKR Sarawak is in turmoil is the product of constant manoeuvres by different and differing factions. There was, it was said, a very recent move to remove the current head, Baru Bian which led to the man losing his post in the Central level. Then there is another unresolved problem: who is supposed to run in which constituency? Different lists are said to be proffered to the Central leadership for consideration. There are other goings on as well, but these are perhaps best left unstated.

Sixth, there is the curious role of the party's apparent "courtiers" who have evidently attached themselves to the party's state leadership. They have been making outrageous statements in which they tried to ridicule fellow opposition parties and their leaders. These publicists and "courtiers" ought to exhibit statesmanship and bold plans for collective actions. Instead, they have tried to seek sympathy by their outbursts. Are they trying to push political parties out of Pakatan in Sarawak?

For a party which is of very recent vintage, the impact of these internal struggles has been debilitating for PKR Sarawak, to say the least. Many potential supporters feel that this is a party that "cannot shoot straight". PKR Sarawak would want to lead the coalition against the state government in the coming election but clearly it is in no position to do so. Structurally, it is organized in such a way that the top leadership under Anwar Ibrahim has continued to tinker with the state party machinery with unsettling frequency.

Further, powerful figures in PKR Sarawak seemed unable to stop undermining one another. Why, the latest spate of changes in the leadership musical chair happened only a few weeks ago. Furthermore, despite its multiracial stance and past efforts, the party is largely limited to Dayak support. Then there is this problem of terminal factionalism: it has stymied the party's efforts in strengthening itself and election preparations, one or two exceptions notwithstanding.

Sarawak PKR appears to be wallowing in a morass of its own making. And for this it has to thank its many local factions and their allegedly multiple candidates' lists and the interventionism of its Central leadership in Kuala Lumpur.

Is PKR therefore ready for the coming election? Time will tell. For the moment, PKR Sarawak certainly appears to be preoccupied with what observers have euphemistically refer to as "internal matters."



TOMAS MADANG ANAK IJAU
PKR Member, Kota Samarahan

Gobalakrishnan leaves the poison behind - KTemoc

Gobala wasn’t the first to exit PKR with animosity; he won’t be the last. So, will you anwaristas again blame those who leave, or will you open your eyes wide and recognize the Anwar-Azmin poison? It's time PKR members wake up from their mesmerized hypnotized hallucinations, and stop imagining your icon and his blue-eye boy are infallible.

by KTemoc at KTemoc Konsiders

---

So the virtually impossible has happened - Gobalakrishnan, once PKR’s chief bodek-er of Anwar, has resigned from PKR in disgust. Who would have ever predicted this prior to the recent party polls - a poll which had led many party stalwarts as well as notable and neutral socio-political observers to question the integrity of its process.

Silence from the party leaders, or their caught-with-pants-down inability to reply the challenges by the complainants have invited the inevitable destructive implosion.

And instead of pressuring the party leaders to be fully accountable, predictably, the moronic PKR fanatics lambasted Gobala as a snake, frog, UMNO-MIC mole, running dog and with various animal appellations. Will they do likewise to other complainants like Chegubard, Jonson Chong, Mustaffa Kamil as they did to Zaid Ibrahim, Gobala, Nallakaruppan, etc?

As I mentioned in my previous post The Poison within PKR - Part III:

Gobala might have hailed from MIC, supposedly a stigma that anwaristas have been hurling at him since he spoke out against Anwar Ibrahim. That’s the infantile stupidity of anwaristas. They seem to have forgotten that their very own icon and his blue-eye boy hailed from UMNO, and as another example, Chua Jui Meng was from MCA, etc.

Dismissing Anwar’s critics by pointing to their original political affiliations (Gobala from MIC, Zaid Ibrahim from UMNO, etc) while ignoring those of Anwar and Azmin (and Chua JM) is childish, double-standard, not objective, self deceiving, and can even eventually lead/escalate to accusing-stereotyping people like Gobala of being a “typical Indian”. Bet you that label has already been voiced within some groups in PKR.

and also

And haven’t party seniority and living the party's ‘trials & tribulations’ been the Azmin Ali camp’s arguments on why Azmin was far more deserving than Zaid Ibrahim of the post of party deputy president?

The blind double-standard hypocrites they are, their argument of ‘no to parachutist’ in the Azmin versus Zaid Ibrahim election tussle obviously doesn’t apply to the Gobala vs Surendran case.

Such double standard hypocrisy and Machiavellian manipulation to marginalize those members posing a threat to Azmin Ali have been the deadly ingredients which brew the poison with PKR.

Just double-standard fanatics, blind to their own follies, without the ability to think independently.

I believe it has been Anwar’s blind devotion for and non-negotiable support of Azmin Ali that have fermented the poison within PKR which will eventually kill the party off like Roundup does for lallangs.

Yes, perhaps Gobala may not be an intellectual, as some snobs in PKR suggested and thus better out of the party, but how many intellectuals does PKR have? Is Azmin Ali an intellectual? wakakaka! In reality he is nothing more than a pretty boy, a relative lightweight in the intellect department. His only strength in PKR is that Anwar Ibrahim backs him up 101% - nothing else.

Gobala was a loyal PKR member and an erstwhile staunch supporter of Anwar Ibrahim. The reason for him leaving PKR with such anger is no different to that of Nallakaruppan, where Anwar and the party had done him grave injustices. For Gobala, they were a mix, namely, the questionable party polling process and the refusal or inability of the party leaders to answer the challenges of the complainants, the deliberate snubbing of him in favour of Surendran (showing PKR's double standard where Surendran is okay as a parachutist but not so for Zaid Ibrahim), the outrageous 45-page show-cause letter with a demand to respond within an unreasonable 7 days, etc. Any reasonable man would have been driven off by such rot.

Gobala wasn’t the first to exit PKR with animosity; he won’t be the last. So, will you anwaristas again blame those who leave, or will you open your eyes wide and recognize the Anwar-Azmin poison? It's time PKR members wake up from their mesmerized hypnotized hallucinations, and stop imagining your icon and his blue-eye boy are infallible.



KTEMOC

Hari Mengundi Pilihan Raya Kecil DUN Tenang

 

Hujan lebat dan banjir di Labis.

 

Jalan masuk ke Labis sesak dengan pelancong politik.

Mesej untuk pengundi - dari siapa, dan untuk siapa?

'Jentera pilihanraya' membawa penyokong BN merentasi
kawasan yang ditenggelami air.

Abang Polis efisyen menjalankan tugas

Amoi Labis comel dengan payung pink

Suasana di bilik gerakan utama PAS. Menunggu Borang 14.

Pekan Labis mula ditenggelami air. Kenderaan ringan tak boleh keluar.

Jentera PAS di bilik operasi utama mulai risau - BN sedang leading 

 

Kawalan Polis di pusat penjumlahan undi agak mantap.
Dengar cerita ramai pembesar nak turun celebrate.

 

Suasana dalam dewan. Kakitangan SPR sibuk mengira undi.

Ketibaan MB Johor, Ghani Othman dan payung-payungnya

Tengku Adnan tak bawa payung. Steady je dengan baju hujan warna pink.

Beramah-mesra dengan peminat di pintu dewan.

Semua OK ya? Bos sampai kejap lagi. 

Peti undi baru tiba. Ada yang terpaksa menaiki lori polis.
Keadaan banjir semakin teruk.

MB Johor: "Undi Cina lebih positif..."

Minta pendapat Pak Menteri...

Koh Tsu Koon: "undi Cina masih belum memuaskan. Perlu kerja keras lagi."

11 peti undi terakhir baru saja tiba. Ok, lepas ni TPM boleh datang dewan.

Haaa... Sekarang boleh buat pengumuman rasmi yang rasmi

Calon BN, Azahar Ibrahim dijulang penyokong apabila keputusan diumumkan.
Beliau mengalahkan calon PAS, Normala Sudirman.
BN dapat 6699 undi, PAS dapat 2992. Majoriti: 3707. 

Muram tetapi tetap bersemangat. Syabas untuk jentera PAS

Azahar Ibrahim dikelilingi wartawan selepas kejayaan BN di PRK Tenang

Pegawai SPR yang selesai menjalankan tugas dalam PRK ini.
Pegawai JPP pemilihan PKR, macamana? Aduan semua dah settle ke?

Ulasan Keputusan Pilihan Raya Kecil Tenang - Mazlan Mutallib

Kelemahan yang terdapat di dalam PR dan kurang mantapnya pakatan itu sebagai satu gabungan politik pada dasarnya adalah berpunca dari kelemahan pimpinan di dalam PKR. Pucuk pimpinan parti itulah yang yang sering disebut-sebut sebagai faktor penggandingan kesefahaman dan halatuju di antara parti-parti lain yakni PAS dan DAP yang menganggotai pakatan tersebut. Pimpinan PKR yang lemah dan telah tidak menjalankan tanggungjawabnya untuk menangani permasalahan dan percanggahan yang telah timbul dan mungkin akan terus timbul di dalam permuafakatan politik itu memberi kesan negatif kepada PR. Juga masalah dalaman PKR dan dalam negeri Selangor yang diperintahnya memberi gambaran negatif kepada umum. Para pengundi mungkin telah melihat akan kelemahan ini dan di Tenang, PASlah yang telah menerima penangan dan tempiasnya.

oleh Mazlan Mutallib melalui e-mel

---

Calon BN untuk pilihanraya kecil Tenang, Azahar Ibrahim
dijulang penyokong setelah keputusan diumumkan.
Calon BN ini menang dengan majoriti 3,707 undi.

Pilihanraya kecil kawasan DUN Tenang pada 30 Januari telah berakhir dengan kemenangan calon BN ke atas calon PAS, seperti yang telah dijangkakan oleh banyak pihak.

Ini adalah berasaskan hakikat bahawa kawasan tersebut memang telah sebegitu lama asyik memilih wakil dari Umno/BN ke DUN Johor dan juga terdapat tiga penempatan FELDA yang merupakan kubu kuat Umno di dalam kawasan tersebut.

Bagaimanapun, memandangkan penurunan mendadak majoriti kemenangan BN pada pilihan raya umum ke-12 (PRU 12) pada Mac 2008, iaitu lebih kurang 2,500 undi daripada lebih 5,000 semasa pilihan raya 2004, maka Pakatan Rakyat (PR), yang diwakili oleh calon dari PAS, beranggapan bahawa terdapat peluang untuk membuat kejutan.

Ini pula berdasarkan faktor terdapatnya peratusan pengundi bukan Melayu yang tinggi iaitu 52%, berbanding pengundi Melayu sebanyak 48%. Walaupun kawasan tersebut secara tradisinya mempunyai ahli parlimen MCA dan mempunyai reputasi sebagai kubu MCA, PRU 12 telah melihat ramai pengundi Cina dan India memberi undi kepada calon PAS. Peratusan pengundi Cina yang berbuat demikian adalah 64% manakala bagi pengundi India peratusan mengundi PAS adalah 50%.

Faktor tambahan yang menambahkan harapan PAS untuk menang adalah calon parti itu seorang anak tempatan yang pernah bekerja sebagai guru di kawasan tersebut dan sudah dikenali dan disenangi ramai.

Walau tidak menang sekalipun, adalah juga harapan PAS dan PR untuk sekurang-kurangnya terus menguncupkan lagi majoriti kemenangan BN dari 2,500 undi yang diraih semasa PRU 12.

Keputusan pilihan raya kecil Tenang setelah diumumkan secara rasmi amat mengecewakan bagi PAS.

Undi PAS telah mendadak turun dari 2,992 berbanding 3,875 yang didapati dalam PRU 12. Ini adalah penurunan 883 undi atau sebanyak 23% dari pilihan raya sebelumnya.

Peralihan sokongan besar-besaran pengundi Cina dari BN ke PAS telah tidak menjadi kenyataan. Peralihan inilah yang diharap-harapkan sangat oleh PAS dan PR bagi menembus kubu BN tersebut. Peratusan pengundi Cina yang mengundi PAS adalah dianggar 64%, sama seperti yang berlaku semasa PRU 12.

Manakala bagi pengundi Melayu, peratusan yang memberi sokongan kepada BN naik sebanyak 4% kepada 83.3% berbanding PRU 12. Pengundi India juga naik peratusannya yang mengundi BN iaitu lebih 80% berbanding hanya 50% semasa PRU 12.

Penurunan sokongan kepada PAS secara drastik ini tidak diramal langsung sebelum pilihan raya kecil ini.

Satu-satunya kesimpulan yang mungkin boleh dibuat berdasarkan keputusan pilihan raya kecil Tenang ini ialah sokongan kepada pembangkang sebelum ini bukanlah bersifat tegar.

Berpunca dari ketidakpuasan hati dan marah yang amat sangat di kalangan para pengundi terhadap kerajaan BN yang diterajui oleh Abdullah Badawi, 'tsunami' PRU 12 telah berlaku di mana ramai calon parti pembangkang telah meraih banyak undi dari orang yang sebelum itu tidak pernah mengundi parti pembangkang. Ini juga telah terjadi di Tenang pada Mac 2008, walaupun calon pembangkang tidak menang.

Pada pilihan raya kecil Tenang kali ini, pengundi mungkin telah melihat dan sedar bahawa Pakatan Rakyat yang disertai oleh PAS adalah satu pakatan politik yang serba lemah dan kurang mantap. Statistik kawasan peti undi menunjukkan 11 dari 12 kawasan peti undi telah dimenangi oleh BN berbanding hanya 9 dari 12 semasa PRU 12. Pengundi yang dahulunya mengundi PAS memilih untuk tidak memberi sokongan kepada parti itu lagi.

Kelemahan yang terdapat di dalam PR dan kurang mantapnya pakatan itu sebagai satu gabungan politik pada dasarnya adalah berpunca dari kelemahan pimpinan di dalam PKR. Pucuk pimpinan parti itulah yang yang sering disebut-sebut sebagai faktor penggandingan kesefahaman dan halatuju di antara parti-parti lain yakni PAS dan DAP yang menganggotai pakatan tersebut. Pimpinan PKR yang lemah dan telah tidak menjalankan tanggungjawabnya untuk menangani permasalahan dan percanggahan yang telah timbul dan mungkin akan terus timbul di dalam permuafakatan politik itu memberi kesan negatif kepada PR. Juga masalah dalaman PKR dan dalam negeri Selangor yang diperintahnya memberi gambaran negatif kepada umum. Para pengundi mungkin telah melihat akan kelemahan ini dan di Tenang, PASlah yang telah menerima penangan dan tempiasnya.

Sekiranya dilihat 'trend' di kalangan pengundi muda pula, penunjuk dari Tenang juga pasti tidak menggembirakan PAS dan PR.

Pengundi muda kerap dilaung-laungkan sebagai segmen pengundi yang lazimnya menerima dan menyokong mesej perubahan yang dibawa oleh PR. Bagaimanapun, di Tenang, analisa saluran undi di kawasan-kawasan peti undi menunjukkan sokongan terhadap PR di kalangan pengundi muda telah jatuh mendadak dan bertambah pula untuk BN. Ini adalah sesuatu yang PAS dan PR perlu beri perhatian serius oleh sebab perubahan selera pengundi muda ini adalah tidak dijangka dan mungkin diulangi di kawasan-kawasan dan negeri-negeri lain.

Majoriti kemenangan BN sebanyak 3,707 undi, 63% darinya telah didapati dari tiga kawasan Felda iaitu Felda Tenang, Felda Chempelak dan Felda Chempelak Barat yang rata-rata adalah kawasan pengundi Melayu. Mengambilkira keseluruhan 83.3% undi Melayu yang diraih BN, satu-satunya kesimpulan yang boleh dibuat adalah pengundi Melayu tidak ada ataupun telah hilang kepercayaan  dan keyakinan terhadap PR dan kepimpinannya yang diterajui oleh Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Mereka tidak menganggap PR sebagai satu alternatif yang mantap dan berupaya untuk memerintah negara oleh sebab kelemahan kepimpinannya dan ketiadaan kesungguhan di kalangan pemimpinnya untuk memantapkan pakatan itu untuk menjadi satu gabungan politik yang tulin dalam erti katanya yang sepenuhnya.

Satu gabungan politik yang benar sekurang-kurangnya akan mempunyai satu formula atau jalan penyelesaian yang boleh diterima sesama sendiri untuk menetapkan calon parti manakah yang wajar bertanding di sesuatu kawasan bagi memaksimumkan peluang untuk gabungan itu menang. Sama-samalah kita saksikan sama ada di Merlimau, di mana pilihan raya kecil seterusnya akan diadakan, PAS dan PKR akan mencapai satu persetujuan calon siapakah yang wajar bertanding berdasarkan sebab-sebab yang rasional dan munasabah dan yang boleh mencerahkan harapan untuk Merlimau dirampas dari BN.

MAZLAN MUTALLIB

Who and what Anwar is, is still a mystery - Wong Mun Chee

A good politician serves society without the typical grandeur that we observe with Anwar as and when it fits his personal agenda. Whether I have my doubts about Anwar is secondary but it is your call as members of society to hold the notion of oneness without the typical 1Malaysian and Malaysian First to flush out artificial politicians.

by Wong Mun Chee at Free Malaysia Today

---

A simple recap, in 1972 he formed Abim and served as their leader. In 1982, he surprised everyone joining Umno. In 1993, he was made the DPM after forcing out Ghafar Baba. In 1999 after his incarceration, PKR was formed and the rest I guess is the new politics that we see today with the same old political agenda.

The Economist ran a pretty decent piece on him with facts and actuality as they described him as the Malaysian chameleon (see link). Now let’s get down to facts to see whether he is a chameleon. While in Abim, it was a Muslim agenda, then in Umno, it was more a Malay agenda by introduced numerous pro-Malay policies in the national school curriculum.

One of the major changes that he did was to rename the national language from Bahasa Malaysia to Bahasa Melayu. I wonder where 1Malaysia or Malaysian First fits in here.

Other notable events such as the Kampong Rawa incident on March 1998 where there was a tense stand-off when politically induced Muslims emerged from Friday prayers in an adjacent mosque and marched in numbers to the Sri Raja Raja Madurai Veeran temple in Kampung Rawa.

During this incident, the negotiator, Anwar threatened the Hindus there to accept whatever he said, otherwise he said no temple bells will be sounded in Penang. Knowing, MIC, what would you expect. Naturally the temple was demolished and relocated even when it had stood there before the mosque came into the picture.

Another interesting event is of course the insertion of Umno proxies in Sabah since its inception in 1991. Naturally the progenitor is none other than Anwar. Anwar sympathisers will naturally cry foul for his follies and frolics of during his reign against the community generally, as after all he did face persecution for his ambitious attempt to overthrow the mighty Machiavellian, Dr Mahathir by another Machiavellian.

Basically it was a 'Clash of Titans' with little relevance for public concern or their need but the race to power. The interesting point to be taken into consideration is, the charmed character of Anwar did not serve his imprisonment for a cause for society, but being a sour grape and a seasoned politician, he was able to gain public sympathy through his Reformasi.

Fast forward 2011, amongst the three opposition coalition parties, the one that’s a time-bomb seems to be PKR. Why? Same principle, all proxies to ensure Anwarism, no difference from Umnorism style with their allies. Why am I bringing this up. I tell you why.

Little-birds in the sky have been chirping to me that Anwar has recently met with Taib (Sarawak) and Musa (Sabah) beyond the Malaysian waters. Now what is the purpose of meeting Umno cronies? Trust me in politics it is not about principle but where and when the deal can be struck. Even the enemy is your friend. Naturally we all know that Peninsular is 50-50, but East Malaysia is swing.

What they discussed or why, is a good guess for you as much as it is for me. Taib and Musa have been under a lot of heat and it is unlikely that Umno can hold it together for them as they need take care of their backyard in Peninsular.

Anwar has his days numbered, either he goes behind bars or strike a deal for a swing in power and in exchange for these blokes to continue with their billionaire lifestyle and fulfill his own agenda to become the PM.

You see once you in power, it is very difficult to question anything – look at Umno, a classic example for 53 years. Why go so far, even Pakatan within their four states exercise and exhibits similar agenda with lots of media propaganda for the feel-good factor, so what more with seasoned politicians.

For all you know, Anwar maybe negotiating with Najib as he would now realise that PKR is falling apart as most are Umno rejects or his proxies. I would do that, if I am a politician, wouldn’t you? Why would Najib negotiate with Anwar? Well for one, a common enemy – Dr M. Najib has Dr. M nibbling at his feet from day one since he has been the Premier.

The current DPM, a crony of Dr. M comes up with such contradictory statements from the current Premier alike another subtle proxy war. Is it so difficult to fathom this? It is always good to read between the lines to find the true agenda.

I won’t be surprised that one day Anwar will turn around and say, Najib, I think you are doing the right thing as we have a common enemy in sight, so keep me loose to enhance your position and avoid me from serving a prison sentence.

The crux of this letter is, politicians are never our savior, but we the people need to be savvy enough to understand and comprehend, with apprehension, the true objective of a politician. This can only materialise if they are steadfast in their principles from day one, not swaying and swinging for political need no matter how you see it.

A good politician serves society without the typical grandeur that we observe with Anwar as and when it fits his personal agenda. Whether I have my doubts about Anwar is secondary but it is your call as members of society to hold the notion of oneness without the typical 1Malaysian and Malaysian First to flush out artificial politicians.

Say What? Ketuanan Rakyat? - Aktivis Reformasi

What seems to have escaped the MB is that it also gives the impression of a government wanting to make wanton use of constitutional amendments to cover up its own leadership shortcomings and incompetence. How different then is a Pakatan Rakyat government from any other ruling party in its blase attitude towards the sanctity of the constitution?

by Aktivis Reformasi at AktivisReformasi.net

---

It has indeed been a strange and surreal one month in Selangor. You have the spectacle of a state government grappling with the problem of having as its top civil servant a person who is not to its liking. And all the time while doing this, it had neither the courage nor the honesty to admit what the real problem is. Thus, it is like trying to untie a bothersome knot without knowing where the ends of the rope are. You'll just end up looking like a fool.

The real problem that the Menteri Besar of Selangor has to contend with is not Mohd Khusrin Munawi, per se, but rather the poor relations that the MB has with the palace. Had the palace decided that it would agree with the advice of the MB to change the recent appointment of the state secretary after the slip-up caused by the MB's own tardiness in responding to the Public Service Commission's request for the state's list of nominees, the impasse would have been broken or wouldn't have arisen in the first place.

So because he didn't have the courage or the honesty to admit to his failings, the MB went about to untie the knot without knowing where the ends of the rope are. Muddle-headedness and blunders inevitably ensued.

The first was to succumb and dance to the opportunistic tune of his political detractors that anything which smacks of being critical of the palace constitutes sedition or derhaka (treachery). This is a total misreading of public sentiment on the matter. The MB seems to have forgotten that when Mahathir Mohamad pushed through the 1993 constitutional amendments on the role of the monarchy, cheered on by his ever so willing deputy Anwar Ibrahim, support for the amendments was enormous from both sides of the political divide. No one accused anyone of being treacherous. The public did and probably still do want the monarchy's role to be limited and better defined constitutionally.

In the present state secretary impasse, however, his detractors' opportunistic pro-royalty stance was vociferous enough to cow the MB into deciding that it was politically unpalatable for his party to even let out a whimper calling for the palace to stick to constitutional forms and conventions. From then on, everything that happened was in the realm of charades with all sides involved assiduously ignoring the elephant in the room; which was the deviation from constitutional conventions.

The second blunder was to personalize the impasse into the person of Mohd Khusrin. Despite its past disdain for his actions when he was the head of the state religious department, the state government should have had the discipline and clarity of thought to maintain that the issue at hand was not about the personality appointed but the manner by which the appointment was made. That is to say, had the best civil servant in the country been appointed as state secretary in the same said manner, the state government would still have objected because constitutional norms and conventions had not been abided with. But to take such a principled stand, sadly, seems to be a notion so very alien to a government which purports to be the champion of Reformasi and Ketuanan Rakyat.

The third blunder was to resort to amending the state constitution to grant more powers to the palace in the appointment of the top three civil service posts on the state. By what strange logic such a move would solve the MB's problematic relationship with the palace, no one could fathom. That the attempt would fail must certainly had been anticipated by the state government. So the exercise of a special sitting to amend the state's constitution could be put down as a feeble attempt in political point-scoring and to 'democratize' the impasse by trapping the state assemblymen from the opposition to declare whether they are 'pro-rakyat' or otherwise, in accordance to the MB's perverted sense of logic. That's putting it kindly.

What seems to have escaped the MB is that it also gives the impression of a government wanting to make wanton use of constitutional amendments to cover up its own leadership shortcomings and incompetence. How different then is a Pakatan Rakyat government from any other ruling party in its blase attitude towards the sanctity of the constitution?

After all have been said and done, the state government is back at square one and nowhere near solving the impasse. Astonishingly, the MB now appears amenable to having Mohd Khusrin as the state secretary. So what was the previous one month all about? One can only assume that he's finally realised that he has been trying to untie a knot without knowing where the ends of the rope are – and has only managed to look like a fool in the process.

If there is one lesson from all these, it is that if we want Ketuanan Rakyat and genuine Reformasi, we won't get it from spineless and gormless political leaders, such as the ones you have in the Selangor state government. My sympathies go out to all those honest folk who really thought those same politicians had the courage and competence to achieve those goals. God permitting, the truth about these pretenders to the throne will be revealed sooner rather than later.



AKTIVIS REFORMASI