Show maturity, support BN when beneficial, Zaid tells Pakatan
The former Umno minister also urged Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to take a firm stand on sensitive issues that touch on race and religion, even if his deputy, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, was against it.
This, he claimed, were the main ingredients needed if the country wanted to break free from divisive and race-based politics to achieve national unity.
In a summary of his speech on national unity delivered at a function in Batu Pahat tonight, Zaid (picture) stressed that leaders from both sides of the political divide needed to stop their petty bickering and show some political maturity by standing together on longstanding issues that needed to be resolved.
“A show of unity would send the right signal that elected representatives are the ones who decide on policies for the rakyat and not some theologian or bureaucrat.
“I believe the opposition must support the government when it is good for the people,” he said.
Zaid, who is now the Pakatan Rakyat coordinator and a contender in the PKR deputy presidency race, also said that bipartisan support in Parliament should be encouraged as it was a reflection of a mature democracy.
“This is especially when the government needs help in dealing with certain difficult issues,” he said.
He expressed disappointment that PR lawmakers had kept silent when the Najib Administration wanted to present three bills in Parliament to resolve sensitive, outstanding issues – the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976, the Administration of Islamic Law Act 1993, and the Islamic Family Law Act 1984 – in early July last year.
The bills were aimed at clearing up some of the ambiguities in the country’s legal system pertaining to jurisdiction issues surrounding the Syariah law and common law, which have oftentimes caused much difficulties to families engaged in divorce matters, religious conversions or custody battles.
“Unfortunately of course, the Rulers Conference deemed it fit to review the bills themselves first and hence, the effort of the new Prime Minister was stopped and we have heard nothing since then.
“But still… PR parliamentarians had not taken the opportunity at the time to support the BN and the new PM to resolve these issues,” he lamented.
Zaid added that it was easy to talk about the intention to unite the nation and to come up with a to-do list on how to achieve it but finding a strong enough political resolve to do so was difficult.
“And this is where PR and BN must show some political maturity. It will be a test for [Prime Minister Datuk Seri] Najib [Razak] on the one hand and PR leaders on the other, on their commitment to national unity and political stability.
“The nation awaits to see an effective and responsible leadership to guide them through an uncertain future. This is the real challenge to all present political leaders,” he said.
Zaid claimed that former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s model of politics – to reign by securing and maintaining power at all costs – is contrary to the reconciliatory politics needed for nation-building.
