In an insightful and fascinating take on the astonishing comeback win by twice-impeached former US president Donald Trump, columnist Praba Ganesan has cautioned that there are some lessons to be learned by local politicians from the just concluded elections over there.
Trump’s opponent Kamala Harris’ stunning loss may have been attributable to among others, taking for granted that the country’s vibrant stock market, its low unemployment figures and its aggressive “push” to counter China’s economic rise should be more than enough to convince voters to reject a rival who has enough political and personal baggage; however, all that proved to be insignificant!
The writer stressed that this was because voters react to what they “feel”, not what they actually experience; in other words “perception” may matter more than the reality they experience; in fact, it was reported that most sentiment polls had indicated that Americans actually “felt” the country was heading in the wrong direction in spite of the strong, positive economic data.
In the Malaysian context, he issued an important reminder to Pakatan Harapan that, amongst others, not to ignore the voice of the minorities here by presuming they will always be on its side - just because the opposition Perikatan Nasional may be seen to be overly communal (with their exclusive race-religion agenda)!
Moreover, he also warned that local players should rein in their over-enthusiasm with what they feel resonates with the majority especially in the area of morality (read: religion).
Interestingly, this may bring into focus recent actions by the current government, first with the “proposed” blanket imposition of halal-certification for restaurants which at one time threatened to boil over into an ethno-religious conflagration; and it was then promptly followed by the equally controversial Mufti (Federal Territories) Bill 2024.
While the halal-certification brouhaha may have been dealt with, albeit clumsily (and belatedly), the Mufti Bill conundrum continues to divide Muslims in this country till this day; strangely, now non-Muslims have also found themselves not spared from the fallout of the highly combustible subject.
Isn't leveraging religion a double-edged sword…?
In fact, according to renowned academic Prof Dr Ramasamy, PM Anwar’s recent interpretation of criticism levelled against the proposed Mufti bill as "Islamophobia" may have risked undermining legitimate discourse over a key legislative move in a country where religion has always been a thorny issue.
The former DAP veteran also pointed out that if opposing the bill is deemed Islamophobic, then Anwar may be aligning himself dangerously close to the rhetoric of more extremist religious political factions in the country.
But, ironically, even PAS president Hadi Awang and Perlis Mufti Dr Mohd Asri Zainal Abidin – both conservative Muslim scholars – had surprisingly voiced objections to the bill; does that make them peddlers of “Islamophobia” too?
Prof Ramasamy then highlighted that their resistance to it may not be rooted in anti-religious sentiment but rather in the potential risk that it may alienate other schools of thought by narrowing the Islamic interpretation rather than promoting a pluralistic, inclusive approach.
More significantly, according to the former Perai assemblyman, such a drastic move could also potentially infringe on the constitutional powers of the Malay ruler, creating unnecessary political and religious tensions.
Additionally, the former Penang chief minister II warned that it could have serious repercussions for non-Muslim communities here as well; this is especially so if the future FT Mufti decides to issue religious edicts that impact interfaith interactions such as guidelines on food consumption or even participation in non-Muslim cultural functions.
The former academic then signed off with a grim reminder to Anwar that attempts to bolster his Islamic credentials should not be at the expense of national harmony and inclusivity - or it will risk fracturing the country more along religious lines.
The bottom line is, for Anwar and his Madani government, neglecting the grouses of the minorities here and “misjudging” the shortcomings of the enemy may prove to be disastrous; however, more crucially, in attempting to outshine his religious nemesis in order to win over the hearts and minds of the majority group in this country, there is a greater risk he and his PH coalition might actually end up playing into their enemy’s hands come GE16!
Information source: Malay Mail, NST and Focus Malaysia
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