All posts by Gertrude

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About Gertrude

I am a little left of centre 21st Century person. What all that means you'll discover as you read my blog!

PN needs to be more Malaysian Malay

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The Pulai parliamentary seat and Simpang Jeram state seat elections were won by Amanah, a partner in the incumbent coalition unity government. However, it must be noted that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidates in both by-elections won over a significant number of voters, more than in the 15th General Election (GE15) last November.

Suhaizan Kaiyat won the Pulai parliamentary constituency with 48,283 votes and an 18,641 majority compared to his predecessor former Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub, also from Amanah, who had won the seat in GE15 with 64,900 votes and a 33,174 majority. The Pulai by-election was called after Salahuddin’s death on July 23.

The PN candidate, Zulkifli Jaafar, gained 29,642 votes compared to the PN GE15 candidate who got 20,677 votes.

In the Simpang Jeram state election, the Amanah candidate, Nazri Abdul Rahman, won with 13,844 votes compared to the PN candidate Dr Mohd Mazri Yahya’s 10,330 votes. In GE15, the PN candidate won 6,350 votes.

In both these two by-elections, although the PN candidates lost, they gained more votes than in GE15. But voter turnout was low which means there was a whole lot of votes out there for the taking that PN did not reach.

It is clear that the PN strategy that worked up north successfully did not work fully in Johor. By now PN should realise that a different strategy is needed to appeal to the more urban voters south of Perlis, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu. It must also realise that in this large swathe of land, relying on the Malay votes will be insufficient to get a majority to form a government. PN also needs the non-Malay vote.

Telling voters that it is haram (forbidden) to vote for a candidate of Pakatan Harapan (PH) of which Amanah is a member and focussing on the Malay first strategy will turn off more urban voters — Malays included — than attract them.

In the subsequent elections, PN needs to find suitable candidates who can connect with the voter base in the urban areas. They should keep away from religious issues and discuss them in other forums like the mosques unless it involves the whole or a significant segment of society.

Since PH has abandoned the reform agenda, PN should pick up the slack and aggressively capitalize on reform-worthy issues and be determined to deliver once elected to office. PN candidates must show that he/she can handle urban issues with more open-mindedness.

Once, PN learns to connect with the urban voter base, it will appear more attractive to the whole bunch of voters out there disenchanted with the status quo — non-Malays included — and it can not but win elections.

If PN does not fill the vacuum in the urban areas for a responsible, credible, constitution-upholding and others-sensitive alternative choice, it will only make a dent in the PH strongholds in Selangor, Negri Sembilan (supported by a strong Umno presence) and Penang and Umno-led governments in Perak, Pahang, Malacca and Johor.

To win PN must become less parochial Malay and more open-minded Malaysian Malay and confidently inclusive while remaining true to its own struggles.

PM can’t wash his hands of Zahid’s DNAA

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Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim can not disclaim responsibility for deputy prime minister and Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s dismissal not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) because it was Anwar himself who extended Attorney-General (AG) Idrus Harun’s tenure by six months.

Two months after Anwar became prime minister, Idrus’ contract expired. In the year before his contract expired Idrus became a controversial AG because many Umno leaders who were charged in court by the previous AG, Tommy Thomas, were acquitted or had their cases withdrawn on the orders of the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) or were given a DNAA.

Anwar was fully aware of Idrus’ record and described the latter’s performance as “satisfactory” when he was asked why he had extended Idrus’ contract by another six months. In other words, Anwar was fully aware of the implications of his decision and Idrus delivered — up to expectations.

This firestorm of protest should have happened when Idrus’s contract was extended not now when the damage is done and it is too late.

A nagging question is why an AG considered letters of representation by the defence counsels. Shouldn’t the AGC get its facts and evidence from its own prosecution teams and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC)?

New AG Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh, however, emphasised that the AGC has a duty to give due consideration to letters of representation by accused persons, in conjunction with feedback from investigating authorities.

If so, then, perhaps, Idrus should have done what Terrirudin did yesterday by stopping court proceedings until the prosecution team could work on the new information and come up with a solid case.

Since a precedent has now been set, would it then follow that any accused person feeling unfairly charged can send letters of representation to the AG to review the case? This is absurd. A line has to be drawn somewhere. Hopefully, Terrirudin will draw out a clear protocol with regard to letters of representation so that defence counsels do not abuse this avenue.

Withdrawing the case or seeking a DNAA for particularly Umno politicians charged by Thomas now casts doubts on whether there was a basis for these charges. Thomas could have recognized criminal activity by the errant politicians and may have had the confidence, insight and ability to prove it which some others like Idrus might not have, in which case, a second professional opinion might have been needed.

A more important question is whether the escape of conviction by Umno politicians facing criminal charges in court during Idrus’ tenure as AG is according to the mandate of the people.

Thomas had the support of former second-time prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who got the mandate of the people to take corrupt politicians to court.

Idrus got the support of former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and current PM Anwar both of whom did not get the mandate of the people to spare Umno leaders facing criminal charges in court but who, nevertheless, used their positions to create advantageous situations for Umno such as keeping someone like Idrus as AG and including that party in the unity government.

Was this what the people wanted when they voted for Anwar in the last general election last November? Was Anwar mandated by the people to let Umno politicians who faced corruption charges go free? If not, why is this happening? If not the people’s, whose mandate is Anwar executing? That is the important question to address.

Anwar likes to present a public face of the innocent victim who has become the prime minister. In defending Idrus against the criticisms over Zahid’s DNAA, he said, ” I fault the backlash to the ‘system’ inherited over the last few decades, where politicians are seen as ‘greedy, cruel’ beings who victimised the people … I underwent the process. Now that I’m the prime minister, I’m not willing to use it against anyone else.”

Yet, he sent former prime minister and Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin and other opposition members to court on corruption charges. Yet, under his leadership Umno leaders facing court charges escaped conviction. How is he not doing the same things he accuses previous prime ministers of? His actions speak louder than his words.

Lest people forget, it must be mentioned here that in 1998 when Anwar was sacked from the government as deputy prime minister and as Umno deputy president, it wasn’t because he went against then-prime minister Mahathir. That is what he wants everyone to believe: that Mahathir was a dictator and Anwar was a threat to the former who removed him from office.

There may be some truth in that. If Anwar thought that Mahathir needed to be toppled and replaced, that is a legitimate reason. But, did he do it democratically? If he felt that he deserved to replace Mahathir as PM, why didn’t he go to the ground, rallied for grassroots support and stood for election against Mahathir in Umno? He didn’t do that.

Instead, he formed a pact with the then-opposition party, the DAP (that explains why PKR and DAP are thick as thieves!) and it is said that he got the help of the United States as well and was scheming behind Mahathir’s back to topple him. Mahathir heard about it and preempted it by sacking him from the government and the party.

Exposed, Anwar took to the streets, attracting thousands and destabilised peace and order. Again, Mahathir acted decisively and charged him with sodomy cases which he lost and went to jail. There was nothing politically charged about these moves; the incumbent PM dealt with a revolting former deputy prime minister who apparently had the backing of the US and who was acting in a way that threatened the peace and order of that time.

If Anwar had acted democratically and stood for elections and won, he would have become PM two decades ago. If he had lost the elections, he should have just stayed quiet like former deputy prime minister Musa Hitam and Umno supreme council member Tengku Razaleigh who had also contested against Mahathir and lost.

But Anwar did not follow the democratic route at that time and created a ruckus wherever he went and, frankly, simply got what he asked for. So, he has no reason to play the victim card; he is just using it to beg for sympathy and understanding and make Mahathir look like the villain.

Anwar then formed a political party but the premiership eluded him until the 15th general election in November last year when he became PM on the direction of the king and an undemocratic Memorandum of Understanding — without the mandate of the people. Since then he has been doing everything he can to stay in power, and, somehow Umno features significantly in his agenda even though the Malay voters are steadily abandoning Umno.

Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led unity government has 118 seats without the Umno-led Barisan Nasional’s (BN) 30 seats — enough to form a simple but stable majority government. With BN, Anwar has a two-thirds majority which is yet to be used to introduce meaningful new legislation.

Giving a two-thirds majority to a government without the mandate of the people is putting the people at risk of policies and changes that will affect them directly. The federal constitution can be changed but to benefit whom?

The current king’s term is coming to an end soon and if Anwar wants a king he can work in partnership with there may be a need to amend the constitution to remove the clause that restricts the constitutional monarch to act on the advice of the prime minister.

With a two-thirds majority, the Dewan Rakyat could remove the clause’ “… act on the advice of the prime minister …” thus giving the constitutional monarch more say in the affairs of government.

This is just an example and may not happen but it could and if it does that would be the end of parliamentary democracy and we may have a situation like in Johor when the Menteri Besar who got the mandate of the people was set aside by the Sultan who chose the Menteri Besar he wanted.

A government without the mandate of the people may act not necessarily for the benefit of the people. Another example is the RM95 billion New Industrial Master Plan launched last week to transform the industrial sector by 2030. Its approach is expected to be more liberal and that might affect the equity requirements nurtured over the years to distribute wealth equitably among the people.

The NIMP may be an attempt to attract foreign investment but if it sacrifices equity requirements that might not be the best policy in the interests of the people.

Political parties in a government without the mandate of the people need to think twice about who or what they are enabling and act proactively. They should not wait until the unthinkable happens because it would be too late then to correct the situation.

Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) need to realise that what is happening in Peninsular Malaysia could happen in Sabah and Sarawak as well and they should not be a party to an undemocratic precedent.

Look how Zahid got off the hook, and there was nothing anybody could do about it.

Let’s learn from our neighbours

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Malaysian Members of Parliament should take a good look at how their immediate neighbours handle political crises. Up in the north, Thailand finally resolved its leadership problem after three months of intense negotiations and chose a prime minister by vote.

Thai MPs risked political chaos for three months for the sake of following the democratic process of electing their prime minister. They understood what our MPs don’t seem to understand: A government led by a prime minister who is not democratically elected will always be unstable.

Thai MPs chose a period of uncertainty in order to install a democratically-elected government that could provide a longer period of stability.

There were gains and losses but they respected the final outcome when put to the vote. In the process, the progressive Move Forward Party which won the general election held on May 14 lost the right to form a government. The party’s leader and prime ministerial candidate Pita Limjaroenrat was voted out by pro-military MPs.

In conceding defeat, Pita also gave his party’s backing to the Pheu Thai Party, which came second in the general election, and so took the turn to form the government. After much negotiations, the party proposed a hitherto unknown party member, Srettha Thavisin, as the prime ministerial candidate, in the next vote. Srettha won with the support of the pro-military bloc.

Three months is, indeed, a long time to resolve the choice of a democratically-elected prime minister but it was a risk the Thais took in order to ensure that the democratic processes were followed, and it proved a success. No one can now argue about the constitutional legitimacy of Srettha’s government. Hopefully, next time though they will take a much shorter time to elect a prime minister!

The Thai MPs, however, should be lauded for their confidence in navigating the chaos in Parliament by themselves without external interference. The chaos was confined in Parliament and did not spill over to the rest of the country and the Thais must be commended for managing that period of uncertainty without putting the country at risk.

While their MPs did their job, the Thai king stayed out of the political fray and only endorsed the prime minister after Srettha was elected by the MPs.

In Malaysia, when faced with a hung Parliament, MPs failed to show the confidence the Thai MPs demonstrated; the former did not take the risk of momentary chaos for the greater benefit of the future stability of a democratically-elected government. They chose political expediency over constitutional legitimacy, and meekly followed the direction of the constitutional monarch and formed a government with the help of a Memorandum of Understanding without negotiating with major coalitions to form a majority government.

Now, we have a unity government with a two-thirds majority but which excludes representation by the major race in the country.

Perhaps, the irony of it has not been missed by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and that may be the reason why he has bent over backwards to give incentives to the Malays in and out of government before the just concluded state elections to win over their support but it was too late.

He should have thought of including the majority Malay representation before and not after he became prime minister. The state elections results clearly show that no amount of concessions to the Malays will win them over to support the Anwar-led government. Their choice is Perikatan Nasional (PN).

This is the reality that Anwar must accept: The majority of the Malays did not choose him to be the prime minister and he needs to act accordingly for the stability of the country.

Down south, in Singapore, Transport Minister S Iswaran who was arrested on corruption charges is now on bail and placed on a leave of absence until the disposal of his case. Two other MPs, former Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin and Cheng Li Hui resigned from parliament and the People’s Action Party (PAP) for having an extramarital affair.

In Malaysia, the prime minister and the deputy prime minister are both facing court charges but they stood for election, won and accepted the top two jobs in the country. Anwar has set a precedent that even PN politicians are following!

Kedah now has a menteri besar who is also facing court charges. Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor is from the Islamic party PAS, a PN member. Why an Islamic party that touts itself as a clean party unlike its rivals Umno and PKR (members of Anwar’s unity government) would make a party member facing charges in court the Menteri Besar defies logic.

Internationally, Malaysia’s image may be marred especially when compared to the neighbouring nations whose leaders are striving to hold themselves to a higher standard of performance and public conduct.

Malaysian MPs and politicians should likewise do the same and set a higher bar of public conduct and performance for themselves.

PN got its majority, your turn, Mr PM, to prove yours

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Perikatan Nasional (PN) has sent a strident message still ringing throughout the country that by winning 73% of the Malay vote in the just-concluded state elections, it has taken over from Umno the right to represent the Malays and form a government, which, in effect, is a notice given to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim that the days of his government are numbered.

The fact that PN won 146 of the 245 seats contested in the state elections held in Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, Penang, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan while Pakatan Harapan (PH) won 99 does not mean that Anwar’s unity government will fall. The federal government remains but PN has proven it has the majority support of the majority race and is in the position to take the lead to form a new government.

Anwar can wait for that to happen and prolong political uncertainty or act decisively now to preempt it. In any democracy, when doubts are cast on the support of the majority for the prime minister (PM), responsible PMs turn to the vote to test their majority (Consider all the examples in Australia, United Kingdom and Canada, to name only the developed democracies). That is the democratic way of resolving the issue of a majority or a lack of it.

Anwar’s supporters have been churning out page after page of suggestions of what he must do to save his administration. They have suggested a Cabinet reshuffle to include more Malay ministers, emphasised the development of the economy, urged reaching out to PN president and former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin to join the unity government, and encouraged giving more incentives to the Malays etc, etc. Yet, none — not even the MPs — have recommended following the democratic process.

This is simply a shocking lack of knowledge of the democratic principles upon which our parliamentary democracy is built according to the federal constitution and relying on those principles to find a solution. Any other way, while having its merits, is simply not democratic and, therefore, unconstitutional.

PN did not take to the streets to demand the right to govern. Its candidates calmly went down to the people through the democratic processes and won their majority support. By doing so, they have thrown the challenge to Anwar to prove his majority.

Now, it’s Anwar’s turn to prove his supermajority not in anyhow way as if this is a cowboy country without law and order where everyone does as he or she deems fit, but by democratic means. He must prove that his supermajority is an accurate reflection of the majority on the ground. Anwar needs to know what he apparently has yet to learn — that a prime minister is only as strong as his grassroots support, which is his responsibility to prove he has.

There are two ways a prime minister can prove his majority: Call for snap elections or a confidence vote in Parliament.

Calling for a snap election is not a suitable option now as a general election was concluded just about nine months ago. Calling for a confidence vote is the better and sole alternative left.

There are two possible ways to call for a confidence vote. Anwar calls for one or, even better, since he now has a supermajority, he introduces a law to amend the standing orders so that if a minimum number of MPs (the number can be fixed by the MPs after a debate) call for a confidence vote, it gets priority over all government matters, or he introduces a law to enable MPs to call for a confidence vote which must be carried out.

Once the law is passed, Anwar waits to see if MPs will call for a confidence vote. But, whether he calls for a confidence vote or the MPs call for one, he has to annul the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) he signed with all the parties who joined his unity government so that MPs vote freely, as representatives of their constituents and without compulsion.

If Anwar wins the confidence vote, he remains as prime minister of the unity government. If he loses, it is clear proof that he does not have the majority support of the MPs and he must facilitate a change of government. Either outcome will ensure that the issue of who has a majority is settled and political stability is restored.

A confidence vote is the only democratic option available now for Anwar to resolve the issue of a majority.

The question is whether Anwar will seek the democratic route to find a resolution or fall back to alliances and the backing of the king and other powerful forces to maintain the status quo and remain as prime minister?

If he chooses the democratic solution, he will restore political stability whether or not the status quo remains. If he does not, he should not be surprised if in a matter of time the status quo changes.

Tomorrow, vote with the majority for a majority

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Malaysian voters generally vote along race and religion lines and in the state elections tomorrow that might work for Perikatan Nasional (PN) to return to govern the states of Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah and for PH to retain Penang under a DAP government.

In Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, however, the voting trends are not so clear-cut. There may be a shift in voting patterns as PN has apparently made inroads in Selangor and voters disgruntled with PH may vote against the latter.

Today, just one day left before casting the ballot tomorrow, there may be a further slide in support for PH — especially from Indian voters — after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s treatment of the student who had asked him about the bumiputra quota at a session at Kolej Matrikulasi Pulau Pinang in Kepala Batas last week.

It should be an eye-opener to non-Malays of the treatment we will get as Anwar uses the advantage of incumbency to go all out to win Malay support.

This, together with the latest action by the Home Ministry to ban Swatch watches and related materials reflecting LGBT influences will surely result in a further loss of votes for PH.

In both of the above cases, PH may have taken the risk to lose some non-Malay votes in exchange for Malay votes. Whether this would be translated to a win by PH will only be known tomorrow. What is sure, today, however, is that the status quo in favour of PH is not guaranteed in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan.

A change in the status quo may result in a hung assembly and that is a likelihood that must be avoided at all costs as it raises the possibility of interference by vested interests — if assemblypersons do not conduct themselves according to the state and federal constitutions.

In the event of a hung assembly, elected representatives have to negotiate a way to form a majority government before presenting themselves to the Sultan whose role in installing a government as defined in the constitution is respected and defended.

The people do not want a repeat of Anwar’s manner of handling a hung government after the 15th general election (GE15) when he failed to convince other parties to join him and a unity government was formed on the instruction of the king with Anwar as PM but which excluded representation from the majority race, the Malays. This happened because Anwar failed to advise the king on the constitutional way of resolving a hung Parliament.

An unconstitutional government must not be formed even at the state level. It would, if no side gets a stable majority, and panicking assemblypersons unconstitutionally seek or facilitate the Sultan’s intervention and, in the process, rob the people of the mandate they entrusted in the hands of their elected representatives. In other words, the government will be compromised in holding itself accountable to the people.

That is the underlying issue at stake in these six state elections — not Malay rights versus non-Malay rights, although they are relevant, but protecting and defending the people’s right to self-determination according to the principles of parliamentary democracy that we practise and which was compromised at the federal level after GE15.

If Anwar did not ensure the uncompromised practice of parliamentary democracy at the federal level there is no certainty that he would practice it at the state level. He may, but it is a risk that the people of Selangor and Negeri Sembilan must not take if we want a democratically-elected majority that is accountable to the people and not to any vested interests.

Only a majority government can ensure that a government of and by the people remains as such.

That is the reason why in these state elections, the voters in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, must vote with the majority.

In the current context, the coalition that can attain a majority without excluding the majority race, the Malays, is PN. Malay support for PH is questionable and until proven otherwise, PH will be unable to form a Malay-based majority. So, voting for PH is a route to a very possible hung assembly which we must avoid at all costs — if we want to maintain the democratic principle of accountability to the people and keep vested interests out of influencing the affairs of government.

The Malays are with PN. In these state elections, for the sake of protecting our parliamentary democracy, the non-Malays should join forces with the Malays and vote for PN so that PN also undertakes responsibility for our rights. If we don’t, we may not be represented in government.

Non-Malays may hold back from voting for PN because of PAS which is a partner in PN. PAS fielded candidates in Malay-majority seats and voters can counter PAS’ wins by voting for Muda and PSM (Parti Sosialis Malaysia) in your constituencies. Whether in government or in the opposition, Muda and PSM will be the moderating influence on PAS’ fundamental extremism.

Consider what is at stake in these six state elections — the uncompromising practice of parliamentary democracy. If the majority wins in these state elections, it is a clear signal that the people are claiming back our right to self-rule and that we won’t tolerate any government that is not accountable to the people.

Tomorrow, fellow Malaysians, let us vote as Malaysians, not as Malays, Chinese, Indians or others. Let’s vote together with the Malays and install a majority-led government in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan and ensure the sovereignty of the rule by and of the people.

Normalising corruption, yes, no?

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If a prime minister will not censure his deputy for telling recipients of government allocations to vote for his and the prime minister’s coalitions, what are the people to conclude except that it is what Muda president Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman says it is: normalising corruption.

What was Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s response to criticisms of Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who — after giving an allocation of RM250,000 to the Terengganu Youth Council and RM200,000 to motorcycle teams throughout Terengganu — told the recipients there would be more aid if they voted for the blue (Barisan Nasional (BN)) and red (Pakatan Harapan (PH) wave?

He said it was not related to the state elections. Anwar is right, the allocations by itself may be unrelated to the state elections but he chose to ignore the fact that Zahid actually said “vote for the blue and red wave” after giving the allocations. Isn’t that a blatant and brazen, and very public invitation to vote for his side immediately after giving aid?

Zahid uttered the words but the prime minister failed to address it and by omitting this fact that is on public record, he dismissed the issue as a non-issue. By skewing the truth by omission, Anwar, has justified keeping an ally in government.

To make matters worse Anwar as PKR president has nominated a convict to stand for election in the state seat of Permatang in Selangor. Mohd Yahya Mat Sahri who was former Selangor menteri besar Khalid Ibrahim’s special officer, was jailed for two years in 2016 for cheating a businessman over a RM50,000 donation to sponsor an event.

Doesn’t PKR know what the federal constitution says about convicted politicians?

Article 48(1)(e) provides: 48(1) Subject to the provisions of this Article, a person is disqualified for being a member of either House of Parliament if –

(e) he has been convicted of an offence by a court of law in the federation… and sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than one year or to a fine of not less than two thousand ringgit and has not received a free pardon; or

(3) The disqualification of a person under paragraph….(e) may be removed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong…”.

Yahya was jailed for two years. How could he be nominated to stand for election? It can be argued that Article 48(1) is relevant only to either House of Parliament and does not apply to the state elections.

That’s a convenient cop-out, isn’t it? Shouldn’t the same principle of proper conduct acceptable in Parliament be acceptable for state politicians as well? What logic is it that the standard of conduct for parliamentarians does not apply to assemblypersons?

Surely PKR has qualified non-convicts to stand for election? They can’t be so desperate that they have no choice but to nominate a convict?

In addition, Lim Guan Eng, chairman of DAP, which is a partner in Anwar’s PH-BN unity government, and who is facing an ongoing corruption case in court, is standing for election in the state seat of Air Puteh in Penang.

Lim with Anwar, Zahid and Syed Saddiq, who are all facing ongoing court cases, stood for election in GE15 and won. They shouldn’t have, but they did and we can dismiss it as a first offence of a lapse in judgement. But, to repeat a mistake is no longer an error in judgement but a demonstration of a simply very low common denominator of public conduct totally inconsistent with the standard of integrity advocated by Anwar’s madani government in which they represent.

What else is mind-boggling is that the Election Commission accepted the nomination papers of these candidates! In Air Putih and Permatang, the people should vote to reject these candidates and make it clear to politicians that they will not tolerate compromised candidates.

It is a great relief that Syed Saddiq did not offer himself for a state seat! Hopefully, his corruption case will be disposed of well before the next general election so that he can stand for election confidently on a clean slate.

All these politicians, including all others facing court charges should not stand for public office until their cases are disposed of. These cases should be expedited so that the issues are resolved and the public is not left wondering whatever happened to them.

As to whether these court cases — including the new case taken against Anwar after he received a royal pardon for his previous sodomy case — will ever see the light of day under Anwar’s madani government is another omission that has left the public in the dark and which the prime minister makes no effort to address.

If Anwar keeps omitting pertinent facts regarding issues of public significance, he will be nurturing a culture that promotes a lack of transparency in government.

The PJD link is a case in point. Residents affected by the PJD link project took the Selangor government to court to get it to release the project documents which the state government claimed came under the Official Secrets Act.

After the Selangor Assembly was dissolved to pave the way for state elections, caretaker menteri besar Amirudin Shari cancelled the project. Then, he said the project could be revived if certain requirements are met.

The residents have given him a one-week notice to state the requirements, otherwise, they intend to continue with their lawsuit to get access to the documents.

Why is a state government not releasing information that the residents want to know about a project that would disrupt their life? It is the same lack of transparency the federal government exhibits in some of its decisions.

If all this isn’t normalising corruption and encouraging a lack of transparency, what then is it?

In the state elections on Aug 12, the people have a choice to maintain the status quo or elect leaders who will hold themselves to the highest standard of public conduct and honour the trust of the people to uphold their interests. So, think before voting so that we don’t regret after, because it may be too late then.

Jitters over PAS; Muda an alternative choice

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It is obvious that Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) strategy in the state elections on Aug 12 is to ride on the “green wave”. While that strategy might work in Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah among the largely more conservative voters, it might backfire in Penang, Selangor and Negri Sembilan dominated by urban voters.

In Kelantan, PN partner PAS is contesting 39 of the 45 seats in the Kelantan state assembly with Bersatu contesting the remaining six. In Terengganu’s 32 seats, PAS is contesting 27 seats, and Bersatu five. In Kedah, PAS is contesting 21 seats, Bersatu 12, and Gerakan three of the 36-member state assembly.

The fact that PAS was given the majority of the seats to contest in these states is an acknowledgment that the support for PAS that gave the Islamic party 41 parliamentary seats in the last general elections in November remains and will be demonstrated once again in the state elections.

It is likely that PN will win and return to govern Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu. What will be anticipated is whether Bersatu will increase its representation in the state assemblies.

In Penang, Selangor and Negri Sembilan, PAS has been given more seats to stand for election on the premise that the green wave may have extended to these states and that may aid in uniting the Malays in these three states to vote for PN.

Of the 40 seats in the Penang state assembly, Gerakan will contest 20 state seats, Bersatu, 10, and Pas, 10 under PN. In Selangor, Bersatu has the largest share of seats with 31, PAS, 17, and Gerakan, eight, out of a total of 56 seats. Of Negri Sembilan’s 36 seats, Bersatu will be contesting 15, PAS, 13, and Gerakan six.

Up to now, the voters in these three states have traditionally shunned PAS, with PAS winning only occasionally in the past. To give them a sizeable share of the seats in these three states may spook the urban voters, including the Malay voters, and that may be translated to a loss of votes for PN.

PN failed to factor in the fact that a sizeable number of urban Malay voters — while in favour of Malay unity — may not be willing to sacrifice their individual freedoms by voting for a coalition with a partner known for its hardline medieval brand of religion. The urban non-Malays will definitely not vote for PAS or PN candidates if they suspect PAS may end up as a dominant party in PN.

Therefore, in the seats where PAS is standing for election, Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidates stand a good chance of winning. Where PAS is facing an Umno candidate, considering the current sentiments against Umno, PAS stands a good chance of winning and that would be troubling for PN.

Non-Malays fearing a significant PAS presence in the state government may vote for PH even if they are disappointed with the PH-Umno alliance and PH president and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s performance.

So, it will be a close call for either coalition in Selangor and Negri Sembilan. The state elections will prove whether Umno is a liability to PH in general and PAS to PN in Penang, Selangor and Negri Sembilan.

After the hullabaloo that the former Kedah’s PAS Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor made over Penang being a part of Kedah, it would be an uphill task for PAS to win support for PN. In the spirit of Malay unity, however, PN may increase its representation in the Penang state assembly.

In Selangor, to hedge against a possibility of a hung state assembly, it would be wise for voters to vote for Muda.

Muda is contesting 14 seats in Selangor and three in Penang, two in Negri Sembilan and one in Terengganu. It may not make an impact in Penang, Negri Sembilan and Terengganu but with 14 seats in Selangor, it could, especially in the event of a hung state assembly.

Besides, Muda represents values the urban voters can identify with, such as its multi-ethnic, progressive people-centric politics. Its youthful idealism is a refreshing change from the jaded compromised politics of its seniors. Hopefully, Muda politicians will remain true to their stated agenda even after years of political engagement.

In Selangor, especially, in the coming state elections voters have an alternative in Muda and they should seriously consider giving it a chance to prove itself. The collective outcome of the state elections as a result of Muda’s participation may be just what the people want and need now.

What the voters must consider

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There is only one issue that voters must consider in the upcoming state elections in Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, Penang, Selangor and Negri Sembilan next month — which parties can form a coalition government that is truly representative of the majority without excluding the minorities?

Although they are state elections, the outcome will be an endorsement or rejection of the federal unity government led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. These six state elections are extremely significant because it is the only opportunity available to the people now to prove whether Anwar’s government has a majority.

The only other avenue to prove a majority when no party emerges with a majority is a no-confidence vote in Parliament which Anwar faced and won but only because the minority parties had their hands tied by a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which demanded that they do not vote against him as prime minister.

Directed by the king and coerced by the MOU, Pakatan Harapan (PH), Gabungan Parti Sarawak, Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), and a few other smaller parties gave Anwar the majority support of two-thirds of the Members of Parliament (MPs) in Parliament, thus enabling him to become prime minister.

However, these parties that now form Anwar’s unity government do not represent the majority of the people; they represent minority groups. In other words, Anwar’s mandate comes from minorities and those who helped put him in power. Not having the support of the majority, Anwar can not represent the majority and therefore does not have the mandate to govern on behalf of the majority.

That is the point the voters in the state elections must seriously consider. The incumbent Anwar government is an anomaly in democracy as it goes against the fundamental principle of democracy — rule elected by a majority.

The state elections next month will give voters a chance to correct this error. It is very likely that if the same people came out to vote as in the general elections (GE15) last November, the status quo will remain.

But, if those who didn’t vote in GE15 came out in full force the outcome will be different! They will be backed by the increasing number of voters disenchanted by Anwar and jointly it will be the clear voice of the majority!

The voters must realise that from Day 1, Anwar has made decisions that benefitted those who put him in power rather than the majority. He included two candidates who were defeated in parliamentary elections in his Cabinet, namely Minister of Investment, Trade & Industry Tengku Zafrul Aziz and Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution; he supported Umno’s efforts to leave the top two positions uncontested and made Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is facing numerous criminal charges in court, as Deputy Prime Minister without a blight of conscience!

The court cases involving Zahid, Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman and Anwar himself are no longer in the news except for those involving DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng. Is this how a prime minister supports the due process of law?

Anwar has abandoned the reform agenda on which he won support. He has revived the cancelled High-Speed Rail (HSR) project raising questions as to who would benefit from it, the people or already rich individuals and corporations?

No doubt Anwar has signed off Felda’s debts but the initiative to cancel the debts came from Muhyiddin Yassin’s term as prime minister. Is he now seeking credit for it to help his party and allies in the state elections? Or, is this another ploy similar to the actions taken by his predecessors to put cash in the hands of Felda settlers and civil servants to win elections?

And just this week, PAS’ Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Nor was arrested in the stealth of night at 3am and charged under the Seditions Act for making statements involving the Selangor Sultan.

In all of the above, was Anwar making decisions for himself and the minorities or the majority?

Now, it’s a foregone conclusion that Kedah will go to Perikatan Nasional (PN) of which PAS is a member. Kelantan and Terengganu will also go to PN.

In Penang and, particularly, in Selangor and Negri Sembilan, if the voter turnout especially among the Malays is high, it will make a difference in the outcome of the results.

The voters must know if they want a government that represents the majority or not and vote accordingly.

HSR project needs Parliament’s scrutiny

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MyHSR Corp’s high-speed rail (HSR) project to link Kuala Lumpur to Singapore was cancelled or set aside by the previous two administrations but it has been revived by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

MyHSR’s chief executive officer Mohd Nur Ismal Mohamed Kamal recently announced that it has appointed Fauzi Abdul Rahman as its chairman. While Fauzi might be a suitable candidate for the post, the project needs to come under the minute scrutiny of Parliament.

According to media reports, Nur Ismal said in a statement that Fauzi’s expertise and experience will steer MyHSR Corp to realise the HSR project. “Fauzi will provide strategic guidance and support to the board while ensuring MyHSR Corp fulfills the aspiration of the government to fully privatise the HSR project through a Private Financing Initiative (PFI),” he elaborated.

MyHSR Corp is owned by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated and Anwar is also the finance minister.

Fully privatising the HSR project through a PFI raises many questions. Will the government have a share in any private company or consortium which wins the award to undertake the HSR project? Will it be a controlling share? More importantly, will the government be able to intervene, influence and control the PFI in order to protect the interests of the people?

A controlling interest by the government will ensure that the fares and the cost of amenities for travelling on the HSR will not be prohibitive to the people and if they are, the government will be able to intervene and control prices for the benefit of the people.

If the PFI is 100% private, the government must ensure that it is not placed in a situation where it would be unable to negotiate to protect the interests of the people because the PFI is fully owned by powerful entities who the government can’t say “No!” to but who, instead, can summon the prime minister and/or his ministers and they run to meet these entities and can’t decline.

The selection process through tender would thus become very important and begs the question if Anwar will oversee it and whether he should, especially if the applicants are known to him and he is indebted to them.

The HSR is a multi-billion ringgit mega-project and only the big companies would have the funds and experience to take on such a project — or very rich individuals with the clout to form companies to privately fund such a massive rail project.

To ensure that the MyHSR HSR project does not fall into the hands of powerful entities the government has no control over, the project needs to be presented to Parliament and every aspect of the project scrutinised so that there is no abuse of power of any kind and the selection of the PFI is above board and it is owned by people the government is in an advantageous position to negotiate with.

The HSR project is too large a project involving thousands of citizens to be awarded to any PFI without a properly conducted feasibility study and the approval of Parliament.

RWMF — upbeat ethnic music to simply enjoy!

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While politicians started the word war to get votes for the soon-happening state elections, I decided to take a break and flew to Kuching to attend the 26th Rainforest World Musical Festival (RWMF) over the weekend. It turned out to be a pleasantly enjoyable musical experience!

The festival features indigenous/ethnic music creatively expressing a modern interpretation that most people can relate to. As the musicians played on both indigenous and modern instruments, people up out in front of the stage — and some elsewhere behind — danced and gyrated to the music while many clapped their hands, tapped their feet and rocked their bodies to the drum-driven rhythm and beat.

Even staid and never-let-her-guard-down me was moving my head and body and swaying — while safely seated — to the mysterious and vibrant sounds of the forests echoing loudly from the stage!

The musicians came from different parts of the world such as the big acts by Grammy-winning French band Gypsy Kings showcasing Catalan music from Spain and USA’s Big Mountain’s reggae/hip-hop/rap. Other international artistes included the Rastak from Iran, Chatusram from India, Fasylive from the Maldives and the Ethno Thai Fusions Sound Band from Thailand who gave a very energetic performance.

East Malaysian groups included the Nading Rhapsody, Zee Avi and Buloh Bekocak while Peninsular Malaysia was represented by the Orang Orang Drum Theatre, Nadir and the Aseana Percussion Unit who gave a rousing drum-driven performance.

All the performances were impressive and an eye-opener to how good ethnic/indigenous music can be!

It was a relaxed crowd in the open-air grounds of the Sarawak Cultural Village in Santubong — the RWMF venue — which is an hour’s drive by shuttle bus from Kuching. There were two stages and they were set against the rainforest behind with a huge open space in front.

The party-goers stood in front of the stage dancing to the music. Others sat or milled around. People of all ages attended the RWMF, including young families who brought their kids in prams and fanned them while listening to the music! There was no ugly scene with everyone enjoying themselves without bothering anyone else. And everyone was decently appropriately dressed with the exception of one or two in outrageous outfits who were noticed but left alone.

It is an uplifting musical experience that should also be shared with the rest of the world. The Sarawak Tourism Board organises the annual affair and should take a greater effort to publicise it to the world. It would be a money spinner and Malaysia would be recognised as spearheading the popularising of indigenous/ethnic music.

Concert-goers will not only enjoy good music but they will get a taste of untouched natural beauty. Rainforests on one side and the sea on the other side.

A short walking distance from the stage area is the seafront and Damai Beach. Concert-goers who come early enough can walk to the seafront and catch the brilliant sunset — if it doesn’t rain — before making their way to the concert grounds.

There are also food stalls and drinks so no one will go hungry or thirsty! (And, the wash rooms — are wet — but clean! More could be done to keep them dry.)

The RWMF dates for next year have been announced — June 28-30. I suggest book tickets early. There are hotels near the Sarawak Cultural Village like the Damai Beach Resort but they are usually booked for the musicians as early as April.

The alternative is to book hotels in Kuching and take the bus shuttle to the venue. The shuttle service is usually free for RWMF ticket holders. Unfortunately, the shuttle pick-up points in Kuching are usually announced in early June. However, the pick-up points are close to the main hotels in Kuching and the shuttle service ensures every concert-goer with a ticket is picked up from the RMWF venue no matter how late the concert ends and dropped off in Kuching.

Contact the Sarawak Tourism Board or https://rwmf.net/ for buying tickets and other details.

Foreigners may want to use a travel agent and, to make it worth their while, take a package to visit the Mulu Caves which is an Unesco world heritage site, and have the agent extend the trip to include the RWMF event.

The RWMF is Malaysia’s very own homegrown concert brand and it is something that every Malaysian should attend at least once! Not only Malaysians but the rest of the world as well. One needs to be there to enjoy the music and see firsthand and appreciate a different kind of music that one doesn’t hear all the time.