Time to make the change

Certainly, my colleagues and I in BN need to effect change and reform. BN Youth has started the ball rolling by taking stock of our partnership and renewing our focus on the principles of unity, inclusiveness, relevance and pro-activeness.

Zaki Zahid, The Malaysian Insider

Change is inevitable and irresistible. And change has hit politics hard, globally. We have seen governments tumble and leaders change in many parts of the world, for a variety of reasons.

Here in Malaysia, we have just had a change in leadership as well. Datuk Seri Najib Razak has taken over from Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi after the latter served as premier for just over five years, on the back of a roller-coaster electoral ride, from the best victory in Barisan Nasional’s (BN) history in 2004 to its worst showing last year.

There are obvious lessons to be learnt from this dramatic change in fortunes for the BN. The mere call for change and reform is not sufficient. The key is implementing change and reform. BN has to achieve real results in service delivery and consistently stand for values that people could feel and believe in.

Notwithstanding the many changes in service delivery at the federal government level, led by a determined Chief Secretary, it is still a steep climb. Delivery at state and local level is still unsatisfactory.

The electorate have become more discerning. But vested interests, from all sides and at many layers, are still strong.

This writer saw – up close and personal – how frustratingly difficult it was to make change and reform stick in government, even when our electoral life depended upon it.

So this writer salutes the prime minister for introducing the concept of “1 Malaysia”. If translated into the right measures and programmes, it is a concept that would show BN’s seriousness and capability in delivering “People First, Performance Now”.

And yet we already see many detractors surface. Some don’t want their narrow interests circumvented by inconvenient notions of unity and inclusiveness. Some don’t like the concept as it has not yet been thoroughly defined. And some of course don’t agree with it simply because it comes from the current prime minister.

But this is a golden window of opportunity that should not be cast aside by petty criticism. Having been on the inside, I know full well that the chance for change is highest when the iron is hot, as it is now. People want to see whether this time there will be movement.

Certainly, my colleagues and I in BN need to effect change and reform. BN Youth has started the ball rolling by taking stock of our partnership and renewing our focus on the principles of unity, inclusiveness, relevance and pro-activeness.

But we know that we have barely scratched the surface. We must capture the imagination of the Malaysian people, particularly the young, and show them our vision and seriousness in having a shared future for all Malaysians. A future grounded in merit and performance, but tempered by compassion and justice.

It is patently clear to all politicians now that Malaysians want a choice. No party can afford complacency or denial. And so BN – particularly BN Youth – has its work cut out for it.

Zaki Zahid is a national exco member of Umno/BN Youth. He returned to the private sector after serving the Fifth Prime Minister in a policy capacity for 8 years. He can be contacted at [email protected]