We have had the weekend to think about what happened in Perak and to aid us on our way, three Hindraf leaders were released from ISA detention.Scores of protesters were also freed, so was the man who asked us to wear black.
The other weekend bonanza was the audit report of the Port Klang "scandal" that is still not ready for public release.If, as reported, the price-tag has ballooned to RM12 billion, this is a monumental waste of public funds.Thinking of the schools, bridges, hospitals, low-cost housing that could have been built wiped away the good feelings the government generated by "freeing" of ISA detainees, political activists and a very politically-aware fashion guru.
Basically both the Perak and Port Klang "scandals" are merely symptoms of a wider problem.They point to the growing anxiety of the middle ground. It is an uneasy feeling generated by some government politicians who continue to ignore public aspiration for a freer, more efficient and fairer administration.Why are Malaysians suddenly concerned about their rights? Why would they wear black to mourn the "demise" of democracy?
When a country reaches a certain level of development, like a person of a certain age, the people begin to face existentialist problems. This is basically "why" questions: "why are we here", "what is the meaning of life"?
In short, Malaysians are asking those questions about their country. Their eyes are fixed on the future.Can we achieve equitable growth with our economy intact? Can I tell my children that this is a good place to grow up and live in? Is the government competent? Do we have impartial judges? Do politicians understand the rule of law? Do civil servants know that their loyalty is to the government of the day?Is royalty really above politics? Will I go to jail for having these thoughts?Is development the answer?
For those trapped in the old paradigm, who still read the mainstream media as gospel truth, the answer lies in development.Give them some land, clear it of jungle, call it Felda and they should be happy.Free Uthayakumar, the Indians will come back to the MIC and we can go back into the ethnic silo. Build some Tamil schools and the Indians will be happy.For the rest, make sure the economic pie becomes bigger, let them have their private colleges and they will vote the government back into power.No doubt, the BN has delivered a lot and many still gratefully vote BN at every election.
But the trend is also changing especially now that government no longer has a monopoly over information; when its delivery-system in low gear; and development projects suffer from financial leakage through incompetence, mismanagement and corruption. All this translates into a lower quality of life.To make things worse, the electorate now has high expectations, with many expecting their politicians to be as quick witted as Barack Obama.
Malaysians are also consumerists par-excellence. Their mantra in life is "instant gratification".In short, there is a disconnect between mass high expectations and low quality services. The result - massive loss of votes for whoever is the ruling party.
Of course, as March 2008 and the various by-elections since has shown, there is also a new type of electorate around.They are mostly young, driven by something more than merely bread and butter and they know how to use their votes. Some are even driven by ideology, whether that be Islam, equality or justice. They have access to new technology and they are making an impact.
Some politicians believe that this new type of voter is an ingrate. The best thing is a demonstration of naked power and we can cow him or her.Catch up with the votersIn Perak, so the story goes, the BN has 28 state assemblypersons and 3 friendly-independents on their side.
Even a school boy can do the maths. Simple majority, forget about procedure, forget about the groundswell, just call in the boys and remove the speaker. We are back in business, with a budget bursting at the seams. Three months from now nobody will even remember that we had a change of government in Perak.
The cynical politician may be right when he/she says that most Malaysians are not even aware of politics. But they make a potentially fatal mistake when they suggest that this means Malaysians do not want better government. Certainly, being more educated, they also want more say in how things are done.
Seeing the Perak state assembly speaker dragged out of the hall and rushed into a room where he was held against his will is not something inspiring. In fact, it was downright shameful.The task ahead for the BN is quite heavy. It must maintain cohesiveness without Umno appearing to dominate and this means giving more space for the component parties to disagree.
Secondly, it must keep from bleeding supporters through tangible economic uplifting, the type of earth-shattering improvement in quality of life seen in the years of Razak's regime.Thirdly, it must win over the minds of Malaysians who are in the middle-ground, one that is quickly tilting towards the opposition because they cannot accept scandals like Port Klang and the Perak power grab. Finally, the BN needs to come up with a better creed, one that caters to the aspirations of a new generation of Malaysian voters.
It cannot rule effectively if it cannot hang on to the urban areas, especially in a country where the majority of people live in cities and towns.As the Perak power grab unfolded on the Internet and twitter, sympathy for the opposition has increased exponentially amongst the young.
The other weekend bonanza was the audit report of the Port Klang "scandal" that is still not ready for public release.If, as reported, the price-tag has ballooned to RM12 billion, this is a monumental waste of public funds.Thinking of the schools, bridges, hospitals, low-cost housing that could have been built wiped away the good feelings the government generated by "freeing" of ISA detainees, political activists and a very politically-aware fashion guru.
Basically both the Perak and Port Klang "scandals" are merely symptoms of a wider problem.They point to the growing anxiety of the middle ground. It is an uneasy feeling generated by some government politicians who continue to ignore public aspiration for a freer, more efficient and fairer administration.Why are Malaysians suddenly concerned about their rights? Why would they wear black to mourn the "demise" of democracy?
When a country reaches a certain level of development, like a person of a certain age, the people begin to face existentialist problems. This is basically "why" questions: "why are we here", "what is the meaning of life"?
In short, Malaysians are asking those questions about their country. Their eyes are fixed on the future.Can we achieve equitable growth with our economy intact? Can I tell my children that this is a good place to grow up and live in? Is the government competent? Do we have impartial judges? Do politicians understand the rule of law? Do civil servants know that their loyalty is to the government of the day?Is royalty really above politics? Will I go to jail for having these thoughts?Is development the answer?
For those trapped in the old paradigm, who still read the mainstream media as gospel truth, the answer lies in development.Give them some land, clear it of jungle, call it Felda and they should be happy.Free Uthayakumar, the Indians will come back to the MIC and we can go back into the ethnic silo. Build some Tamil schools and the Indians will be happy.For the rest, make sure the economic pie becomes bigger, let them have their private colleges and they will vote the government back into power.No doubt, the BN has delivered a lot and many still gratefully vote BN at every election.
But the trend is also changing especially now that government no longer has a monopoly over information; when its delivery-system in low gear; and development projects suffer from financial leakage through incompetence, mismanagement and corruption. All this translates into a lower quality of life.To make things worse, the electorate now has high expectations, with many expecting their politicians to be as quick witted as Barack Obama.
Malaysians are also consumerists par-excellence. Their mantra in life is "instant gratification".In short, there is a disconnect between mass high expectations and low quality services. The result - massive loss of votes for whoever is the ruling party.
Of course, as March 2008 and the various by-elections since has shown, there is also a new type of electorate around.They are mostly young, driven by something more than merely bread and butter and they know how to use their votes. Some are even driven by ideology, whether that be Islam, equality or justice. They have access to new technology and they are making an impact.
Some politicians believe that this new type of voter is an ingrate. The best thing is a demonstration of naked power and we can cow him or her.Catch up with the votersIn Perak, so the story goes, the BN has 28 state assemblypersons and 3 friendly-independents on their side.
Even a school boy can do the maths. Simple majority, forget about procedure, forget about the groundswell, just call in the boys and remove the speaker. We are back in business, with a budget bursting at the seams. Three months from now nobody will even remember that we had a change of government in Perak.
The cynical politician may be right when he/she says that most Malaysians are not even aware of politics. But they make a potentially fatal mistake when they suggest that this means Malaysians do not want better government. Certainly, being more educated, they also want more say in how things are done.
Seeing the Perak state assembly speaker dragged out of the hall and rushed into a room where he was held against his will is not something inspiring. In fact, it was downright shameful.The task ahead for the BN is quite heavy. It must maintain cohesiveness without Umno appearing to dominate and this means giving more space for the component parties to disagree.
Secondly, it must keep from bleeding supporters through tangible economic uplifting, the type of earth-shattering improvement in quality of life seen in the years of Razak's regime.Thirdly, it must win over the minds of Malaysians who are in the middle-ground, one that is quickly tilting towards the opposition because they cannot accept scandals like Port Klang and the Perak power grab. Finally, the BN needs to come up with a better creed, one that caters to the aspirations of a new generation of Malaysian voters.
It cannot rule effectively if it cannot hang on to the urban areas, especially in a country where the majority of people live in cities and towns.As the Perak power grab unfolded on the Internet and twitter, sympathy for the opposition has increased exponentially amongst the young.
New voters and soon-to-be voters know of the "cascade" of illegalities that the BN got itself into, they read the minute-by-minute account of the incident. Some, as the blogs reveal, are angry for being treated like fools.It does not help that some newspapers continue to rub the simple BN majority in our faces, or that politicians cry "tyranny of the minority".
The BN public relations machinery has to learn to be more sophisticated. Believe it or not, but some of us can read and understand the constitution.It is about time, BN politicians and their reporters in the mainstream press catch up with their electorate. The consequences of not doing so will cost them many future elections.
(First Published on: May 11, 09 12:00pm)
The BN public relations machinery has to learn to be more sophisticated. Believe it or not, but some of us can read and understand the constitution.It is about time, BN politicians and their reporters in the mainstream press catch up with their electorate. The consequences of not doing so will cost them many future elections.
(First Published on: May 11, 09 12:00pm)
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