Selangor PN secretary Dr. Afif Bahardin has openly chided non-Malay voters during a recent ceramah in Kempas, Johor. He reportedly said that: "I want to tell the non-Malays, the Malays have rejected the corrupt (perasuah). To the non-Malays, are you willing to let the country be ruled by a corrupt regime?"
This was after DPM and Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was (sensationally) accorded a discharge not amounting to acquittal (DNAA) by the High Court for 47 counts of money-laundering, criminal breach of trust, corruption and others of the money belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi. Apparently, the Attorney General's Chambers had decided not to proceed with the case pending more comprehensive investigations.
He further went on to claim that the discharge for Zahid Hamidi is proof that reformasi is dead and urged the Chinese community not to support BN. He added: "It's embarrassing for the Chinese to want the current government."
Yes, he may have a point. But wait, nothing is that straight forward in Malaysian politics!
Meanwhile, predictably, Dr Mahathir also joined in the chorus of criticism against the unity government, sarcastically hailing its judicial system as "the best in the world". He might have forgotten - but wasn't he the country's PM when Anwar was first convicted by the courts and sent to prison for sodomy on what many still believe were "trumped up" charges?
Meanwhile DAP, forever caught between a rock and a hard place, responded by trying gamely to make it sound as if they were not blindly going with the flow. Its secretary-general Anthony Loke has urged outgoing Attorney-General Idrus Harun to explain the government's move to drop 47 corruption charges against the DPM Zahid Hamidi.
He further stressed that an explanation is important to ensure the confidence of the public and the international community in the country's legal system is protected.
Going back to Dr Afif who had reportedly teased: “Is this the government that the Chinese people want?” Well, surely the short answer would be : "No!"
But honestly, for as long as PN unabashedly rides on the "race and religion" bandwagon with the ultimate goal of setting up an exclusive Malay-Muslim government (in a multiracial nation at that!) - how can one expect the Chinese and other non-Malays to play ball with them? Surely, its leaders must know this!
As citizens of the country, the Chinese, with their own distinct culture and faith, definitely wouldn't want a government where religious leaders call the shots. Neither would they wish to be subjugated by proponents of racial supremacists (ketuanan); where they may feel like they are second class citizens with no meaningful representation in the government - where even their basic choice of clothing may be questioned?
Dr Afif had also claimed that reformasi is dead. But isn't that the rallying call of PM Anwar's party (PKR) which is a component of PH? Whereas the current government is not a PKR (PH) government but a unity government formed with BN and other like-minded parties on the advice of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong?
Truth be told, it's a fragile coalition whereby if BN decides to pull the rug from underneath PH's feet, the unity government is bound to collapse, potentially paving the way for PN to return to power. Seriously, will non-Malays (especially the Chinese) want that to happen? Haven't the Chinese electorate always been known to be pragmatic rather than idealistic?
Realistically though, reformasi on a large scale can only take place when the majority of the Malays are on board with PH. Isn't that why PM Anwar seems to be going all out to nail that down with his Islamic Madani-themed government? But will the Malays come on board? Sadly, until they do, reformasi may have to take a breather.
Actually there has been some progress on PM Anwar's reform agenda but it's perceived to be slow. Perhaps, PM Anwar's team may have to brush up on their communication skills? They can start by learning from PN who have already become masters of the art on social media!
On the other hand, for all of Dr Afif's talk, would there have been any reforms if PN had been in power with Muhyiddin, Hamzah Zainuddin, Rina Harun, Azmin Ali and the like sitting in the Cabinet? And probably with Hadi Awang occupying the Deputy PM's chair? The last time they had a chance didn't they declare “emergency” and shut down parliament?
PN leaders might have been busy lately mocking the Chinese and other non-Malays. But in the dirty world of politics, is it not often the case of having to vote for the lesser of the two evils?
Anyway, it's now "by-election season" and perhaps the opposition leaders cannot be faulted for exploiting the issue. Maybe they are hoping that non-Malay voters will cast protest votes in their favour or abstain from voting?
Then again, there will be some who might scream “conspiracy” and claim that Zahid was freed as a reward for his loyalty to PM Anwar. Also that it was meant to create a feel-good factor for Bossku Najib's supporters who would be hoping that he may be pardoned soon; so that they will start to view the unity government favourably?
Still, with the by-election for the Simpang Jeram state and the Pulai parliamentary seats ever so near - and with Indian votes no longer assured of being in the bag for PH-BN - perhaps now the ball is in the Chinese court. Could that be the reason why PN leaders such as Dr Afif have now started training their sights on the Chinese as campaigning draws to a close?
Admittedly, Zahid's discharge has put the non-Malay voters in a catch-22 situation. But it's only a by-election, the results of which may not greatly jeopardise the position of the unity government though some collateral damage is expected.
Nevertheless, one cannot discount the possibility that some politically-savvy Chinese voters may adopt a tactical approach by sending a warning to PH by boycotting the election or perhaps by casting protest votes.
In fact, PN leaders can be forgiven for oozing with confidence ahead of the upcoming twin polls. But what chances are there that the Chinese and non-Malays will vote for them come the next General Election? Maybe Anwar is willing to lose the small battles in the hope of winning the big war?
After all, surely he would have known full well of the expected backlash from the opposition (and the public) from Zahid Hamidi's Houdini act, wouldn't he?
JK Joseph 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!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Newswav.
