Zaid stares into the GE crystal ball
The Kita boss predicts that Pakatan Rakyat may win fewer seats in the next polls, and share his views on BN winning back opposition-held states.
“I wanted the three parties to solve their problems. One way to solve this, is to have a single organisation. That is when you have to have the ‘ketua’ (chief), the ‘timbalan’ (deputy), the vice-president. You have to share power with the three parties. They never wanted to form a single party. Why do you think Anwar refused to form the shadow cabinet?”
Mariam Mokhtar, Free Malaysia Today
Having brushed off the criticisms which Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim levelled at him, Zaid Ibrahim then set out to explain how his party would contest in the next general election.
He aired his views on Pakatan Rakyat’s chances “with or without Anwar” as well as Barisan Nasional’s ability to retake the opposition-held states.
As for his fledgling Kita, Zaid stressed that his party’s vision “was based on the principles by which I live my political life”.
Zaid, who once promised to reveal his party’s leadership structure once “things had settled”, confirmed that Kita’s leadership was already in place and that its manifesto would be unveiled at the end of June.
He then set about the strategy that he would use, to guide Kita in the forthcoming general election, such as the number of seats to be contested and the calibre of candidates to be chosen. He also stressed that the party had to “live within its means”.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, he also rubbished the claim that Anwar was a reformist, calling the latter a master spinner instead.
Commenting on Kita’s electoral chances, Zaid said: “I don’t know how many seats (we will contest) but we will only field credible candidates in that particular area and if that person has the resources.”
“I don’t have that kind of money to support the candidates.”
The former man Umno, who joined PKR, and then later quit PKR to form Kita, also revealed the source of his party’s funds. “I am funding the party. Parties don’t need that much money, if they have a limited programme, limited scope and do not contest in every seat. We will just live within our means.”
According to Zaid, Kita has 3,000 members and although he did not know how many women there were in the party, he hoped they would hold important posts.
“The party is not interested in looking for big numbers because we don’t think that model works. More members mean more expenses and more problems. What we need are more supporters; people who believe in the party’s struggle. They don’t have to be members. Just support us.”
When he was in PKR, Zaid was in charge of putting together Pakatan’s common policy. Asked if he has seen his common policy for Pakatan being implemented, he replied: “They will dispute whatever they have got now. When I left the party, they said my rôle was minimal. That’s their style.”
“They wanted to reduce my importance but the fact remains that before I joined, there was no convention of Pakatan. There was no common policy platform. People can reason for themselves who contributed to that.”
‘Pakatan will win fewer seats’
To a question if Pakatan would remain strong post-Anwar, Zaid was emphatic. “If PKR can form the next government, then the answer is ‘No’”.
“Whether they can get some seats in Parliament, similar to what they have now? Maybe. I am inclined to think they’ll probably get fewer seats.”
And he emphasised: “With or without Anwar.”
Zaid’s responses, when asked if Pakatan was doing the right, or possibly the wrong things, compared to BN, were revealing.
“I think the state government in Penang is doing well. DAP is able to manage the economy. I think Selangor is doing as well as it can. So it is good they are doing that because you must show the people, for them to decide.”
People now have experienced both BN and opposition governments. Selangor and Penang are doing okay.
“I think PAS will win in Kelantan, but PAS has been there for 22 years. There’s always a problem over governments which have been around for too long. There’s a certain staleness in Kelantan now. I think that’s the place to watch.”
Kedah was one place which Zaid was unfamiliar with. “I don’t know much about Kedah although I imagine that it will be difficult to unseat an incumbent. There will be a good fight in Kedah. As much as it will be difficult to unseat BN at the federal level, it’s difficult to unseat the state government, even if it is held by the opposition.”
Asked if there was any truth in former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad manipulating behind the scenes to position his son Mukhriz as a possible future menteri besar of Kedah, Zaid scoffed at the suggestion.
“I’m not surprised, if that’s the plan. But I don’t know if Mahathir’s son can even take Kedah.”
Zaid then cited Najib Tun Razak’s mistake in Perak. “DAP is very strong and has 18 seats there. The chances of the opposition are not bad if PAS can deliver the Malay votes.”
When reminded about the way Perakians reacted with fury towards Najib’s coup, Zaid was quick to censure the prime minister.
“Najib made a mistake for BN to take over in that process. Although the courts decided in favour of the federal government, the reasoning was flawed. It was not good for democracy.”
“The people should accept the election outcome. Regardless of whatever flaws, there is no perfect system. I think BN will be better off fighting rather than using this method or ‘crossing over’. That is not a good precedent.”
Give EC more powers
Elections in Malaysia are perceived to be neither free nor fair, and Zaid was asked for his views on how to resolve the election rigging, because ultimately, Kita would also be affected. “I wouldn’t say our elections are rigged… then the opposition wouldn’t have won so many seats. So I don’t agree that our election system is so bad.”
“I agree that a lot of the powers are not with the Election Commission (EC). That’s why the EC is weak. I don’t believe there is a deliberate attempt to cheat in the election by the EC. If that is true, then BN would have won all the seats. Our elections laws are outdated and the power is not given to the EC.”
“Whenever there are problems, they have to check with the attorney-general and police. Even the posters are security issues. I wouldn’t say that the EC is engaged or actively involved in cheating. It is not a perfect system and we can do a lot more to enhance the EC. Our EC needs to have the powers to investigate and decide.”
“Our EC is just to manage the election, to set up rooms, booths and counters. We can empower the EC by changing the law. That’s the way to address the issue. The BN government is very insecure and it wants to keep all the power to itself. That’s not good for democracy.”
Zaid then talked about the Kita manifesto which he hoped to launch at the end of June. “Manifestos are your policies, your wish-list, what you hope the government will do for the country. We can propose many things but if the politics of the country is such or if the people are not ready, then we will try to be as compact as we can.”
Zaid was asked if he thought the Pakatan coalition of DAP, PKR and PAS would be able to put aside their petty squabbles and contest as one organisation. He was also asked if Kita would join the coalition.
“Pakatan cannot contest under one banner. It is not possible as it comprises three different parties. When Pakatan was formed, I insisted that we should have one party. I was asked to be the pro-tem chairman of that party. Anwar would tell people I insisted on it, but it’s not true.”
“I wanted the three parties to solve their problems. One way to solve this, is to have a single organisation. That is when you have to have the ‘ketua’ (chief), the ‘timbalan’ (deputy), the vice-president. You have to share power with the three parties. They never wanted to form a single party. Why do you think Anwar refused to form the shadow cabinet?”
“He didn’t want to face the truth. This is how power is going to be shared. His people are going to hold the posts. He just wants to gain power and decide on issues later.”
Asked if Anwar was a power-hungry individual, Zaid said: “I am glad you used that word because I am just telling you what happened in my one year there.”
