An early PRU14 is imminent
Umar Mukhtar
Scandal-infested Prime Minister Najib Razak has painted himself into a not-too-uncomfortable corner. Under no circumstances is he going to allow a parliamentary debate on the divisive RUU355.
By allowing only PAS the air-time to make the amendment motion and then abruptly postponing the debate (and voting) over it, he hopes the juicy rationale PAS elucidated for its acceptance will wallow in the heads of on-the-fence voters. He will never give the opposition the platform for opposing it. Not beyond allowing Lim Kit Siang to reinforce his anti-Islam image among simple minds.
RUU355 is highly divisive. Both within the Barisan Nasional coalition and among the opposition parties. Najib has successfully made it the centre-stage limelight away from the 1MDB scandal that hangs over his neck. Even at the risk of widening the gap in communal politics that this country thrives on – for both sides. His plight appears more important than the nation’s.
So the parliamentary debate is postponed to the next parliamentary session scheduled for July 2017. You believe that and you believe pigs fly! Najib will have to dissolve Parliament by then if only to avoid showing the deep differences and distrust among BN component parties which carry the risk of a damaging spillover come PRU14.
Not that a longer wait will favour the BN. The economic conditions are not to the liking of the voters and there’s not much BN can do about it. No matter what ranking in economic management the government selectively announced, they do not dispel the suspicions that it is a kleptocracy and Najib may be instrumental to that.
So hopefully the peninsular-based non-UMNO parties will remain paralysed out of the awareness that their shelf-lives are up and their fear of withdrawal pain from not being tokens in the government. The Sabah and Sarawak non-Muslim parties will be expected to stick to their guns in opposing RUU355 but will remain in BN awaiting the goodies the BN government will dish out. They will control their respective states anyway, whichever way the cards are dealt.
Furthermore, they have had no overtures from the clueless opposition; for example, a firm commitment to truly translate and practise the Malaysia Agreement to the letter; an agreement that had been raped by consecutive BN governments. Probably because the peninsular-based opposition is also divided over the extent of being fair to Sabah and Sarawak. So they will choose the devil they know! And goodies to boot!
PAS, the joker in the deck, will be the one in a quandary. RUU355 amendments would still not be a reality but nobody in UMNO can be quoted to be against it and therefore be the targets of PAS and Malay voters’ vile, except for PKR and Amanah who will burn in hell for opposing PAS version of Allah’s laws. So the gap between these non-government parties will widen to BN’s glee. DAP is hell’s firewood, anyway.
In that circumstance what will PAS do? Not much choice really. It can pray hard that BN will come to an electoral pact with them to allow it a free ride in some constituencies in exchange for being nuisance candidates in mixed constituencies like Sungai Petani to spite PKR for the benefit of BN. After all, PAS would be vulnerable to similar tactics from Amanah in Malay constituencies. Why Amanah would want to do that only to strengthen BN’s quest for a parliamentary majority is a testimony to the shallow-mindedness of Malaysian politics. Or PAS can go it alone. In that case, ‘Audi-ous’ PAS, it better be worth it!
What about Parti Pribumi Bersatu, you’d ask. You mean, the 2017 version of splinter Parti Semangat 46 of eons ago! Maybe winning a few seats. But the bulk of rural Malays and urban businessmen, while skeptical of Najib’s innocence, will favour the devil they know. The opposition has not done enough to endear themselves to the rakyat in the almost ten years they held the reins in Selangor, Penang and to a longer extent, Kelantan.
The opposition has about five months to get their act together. But to be led by the very person who laid the foundations of destroying social institutions and enriching family members as if they are business geniuses; and a morally suspect reformed (?) racist now useless in jails or his sexual adventurism; and a machiavellian racist who believes the ends justify the means, revealing his true Putrajaya motives for just being satisfied to lead a 20% opposition; and a theocratic-politician who changed his gospel about multi-racialism and secularism, the opposition doesn’t stand a chance.
As long these four old farts are not removed from the scene, the political terrain will remain the type on which BN thrived for 57 years.
