Can Umno change?
Sebastian Loh, Malaysia Impact
If the year were 1999, I’d almost certainly be voting for DAP. Anything but Umno. Growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, I was always repulsed by Umno’s shameless cronyism and corruption, ego-driven incompetence, and brutish hostility to basic freedoms. So, I’d never imagine that, 18 years later, I’d be on the verge of crossing the box for Umno-led Barisan.
What in the world changed my mind? What turned me into a self-loathing ‘traitor to the Chinese race’, as some DAP chauvinists would no doubt put it? The answers have a lot to do with how much Umno changed after the Mahathir years, and how much Pakatan remains stuck in a bizarre time warp.
Pakatan, the Umno clone in all the worst ways
It’s said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Pakatan today is little more than a throwback to Umno’s disgraced past. While publicly denouncing Umno in every shape and form, opposition forces also tried their best to look and act more like it. ‘Anything but Umno’ is a laughable battle cry when Pakatan slavishly inducts ex-Umno rejects and discontents into their leadership ranks.
Their de facto leader and likely PM candidate is an aging former dictator, who himself is dogged by financial scandals and a troubling record on human rights. As the world strides into the 21st century, Pakatan is intent on taking us back to the darkest days of the 20th. Like many Malaysians, I happen to think it’s criminally stupid to be mistaking the poison for the antidote.
And then there’s the absolutely farcical family dynamic going on in Pakatan. For most – if not all – of their history, three out of the four Pakatan parties have essentially functioned as the exclusive property of one family. So much for meritocracy: the Lims reign supreme over DAP, the Anwars PKR, and Mahathirs Pribumi. The change they keep promising us doesn’t happen even in their own parties.
Yes, Umno is still crowded with yes-men and plagued by money politics – which political party isn’t? But at the very least, it has seen 7 different party presidents and 6 prime ministers. And if these changes at the top are merely superficial, then why does Mahathir so passionately despise his successors? Could it be that he was horrified by the earnestness of their wide-ranging reforms?
