There’s a moment when you watch a political debate and you cringe not because of a disagreement, but because you expected better. That was the mood when Wan Fayhsal, the Perikatan Nasional MP, stepped onto the stage of BBC’s “World Questions” and… promptly stumbled into old habits.
And by old habits, I mean:
Again. And again. Like a broken karaoke machine stuck on one track.
Malaysians Are Smarter Than That
Let’s be honest Malaysians have grown. We’ve weathered scandals, elections, pandemics, inflation, and TikTok politics. We scroll, we fact-check, we watch debates on YouTube and judge people not just by what they say but how they say it.
So when Fayhsal was asked a direct question about hate speech allegedly coming from PAS, he could have done a number of things:
- Acknowledge the concern.
- Offer clarification.
- Show maturity by distancing from extremism.
- Speak like a future leader.
Instead, he took a panicked step back, pointed a trembling finger and said:
“But DAP also…”
Cue the audible groans from the audience and an invisible “facepalm” from Malaysians watching at home.
Answer the Question, Sir
You know what’s tiring? Politicians who play the blame game instead of answering questions. It’s like asking a student why he failed SPM and hearing:
“Well, my classmate also failed PMR!”
Politics is not about dragging your opponent down to justify your own fall. It’s about standing on your own policies, your own decisions, and owning up to them especially when they’re unpopular or controversial.
Courts Don’t Run on Ceramahs
Let’s talk defamation and DAP.
PAS leaders have long accused DAP of all sorts of wild conspiracy theories from communist ties to imaginary threats to racial. But when taken to court?
- Siti Mastura (PAS MP) had to apologize and pay after wrongly linking DAP leaders to Chin Peng.
- Jamal “Ikan Bakar” got grilled legally and ended up paying legal costs to Teresa Kok.
- Multiple DAP leaders like Lim Kit Siang, Guan Eng, and Teresa Kok have won defamation cases proving that courtrooms don’t respond to ceramah-style allegations. They respond to facts.
So yes, if you're going to drag people through the mud in Parliament or on stage, you better bring more than vibes.
Live Stage, Live Mistakes
Being on a BBC global panel is not like speaking to your usual political ceramah crowd. It’s not about rallying the choir. It’s about showing the world what kind of leadership you can offer.
And on that stage, Wan Fayhsal looked unprepared, nervous, and out of place. As if the spotlight was too bright, and the cue cards were in the wrong pocket.
He had a chance to rise, to speak boldly but wisely, to build credibility for PN beyond local race-religion lines. Instead, he fell into the same old trap and the audience wasn’t having it.
Malaysians Want Ideas, Not Excuses
The rakyat isn’t asking for perfection. We’re just asking for politicians to:
- Stop playing the blame game.
- Start offering real solutions.
- Speak with courage, not calculation.
- Respect the intelligence of voters.
Because the truth is Malaysians are done being underestimated. We’re not blind followers. We’re informed, nuanced, and increasingly impatient with empty rhetoric.
Final Thought
If you want to lead, Wan Fayhsal, lead.
Stop hiding behind the same overused DAP-bashing routine every time things get tough.
The future of Malaysia isn’t in old rivalries it’s in bold, honest leadership.
And as for us voters?
We’re watching. We’re listening. And more than ever We’re thinking.
Signed: A Malaysian who’s tired of being underestimated
Annan Vaithegi (annanvaithegi@icloud.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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