Governance Without Politics?

By Nathaniel Tan

In the wake of Perak and the recent photograph scandal, it has become vogue once again among some commentators to decry the lowbrow quality of Malaysian politics. Hands wrung, some decry how politicians should instead be concentrating on problems of the economy, crime, education and so on.

I stand with those who hope for a cleaner brand of politics in Malaysia, just as I stand with those who hope that the focus of both our politics and our government is always first and foremost the interest of the rakyat, and not who is sleeping with who or who is being paid to join which party – nobody enjoys the mudslinging, backstabbing and skulduggery of politics.

However, I am also of the view that those who believe politics, in all its often unsavoury shapes and sizes, can be divorced from questions of good governance are misguided. Expecting politicians to act as saints, and turn away from wasteful political conflict to concentrate purely on governance demonstrates an lacking understanding of the game and its players.