Urgent Vacancy: A credible opposition

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Dr. Mahathir was never going to deport Zakir Naik. As explained here over a year ago, there is this sense in all the Malay parties that he is so loved by the Malay voter that taking any action against him would lead to an immediate decline in their political fortunes.

After a year and a half of so called “Tun-phoria”, it is suddenly dawning on most Pakatan Harapan voters that Dr. M has, after all, not changed his spots. This romantic notion that most PH voters had that the famous electoral victory last year would usher in an era of clean governance based on merit, needs and a sense of social justice has not only not come true, it is increasingly difficult to see the difference between this administration and the past one.

If Najib Razak’s time in power could be erased like a bad dream, the electorate could be forgiven for thinking that this was the late 90’s again. Ketuanan Melayu, another national car project, MAS in the red, a rudderless education system, unelected pals like Daim Zainuddin holding real power and a looming economic crisis on the horizon.

A government that was swept into power on the back of an overwhelming desire for change seems to be paralysed with fear, in thrall to a 94-year-old who only knows one way to rule-by harking back to his own period in power decades ago. There is a new sex scandal, Anwar is again on the brink of being pushed out and the internal bickering is non-stop.

 Where are the individual minister’s own policy initiatives on their portfolios? The new youth minister has a lot of time for everything beyond his official remit, including… dinner with Zakir Naik and images of him bathing, while just rebranding the previous minister's popular programmes. Changing the colour of school shoes or giving free breakfasts hardly qualifies as an overhaul of the education system.  What the hell does “Visit Truly Asia Malaysia 2020” even mean, the official tagline for Tourism Malaysia’s latest campaign?

Where is the reform of the judiciary, the closing of loopholes on child marriage, justice for victims of unilateral conversion and progress on myriad other promises in the PH manifesto? 

Compounding the problem is a worrying ineptness in PH when it comes to communication. Whatever happened to the millions of ringgit donated by the rakyat to Tabung Harapan? PTPTN write-offs? Abolition of tolls? A government that ignores its constituents and its own promises can only ever be seen as arrogant or clueless.

The real need of the hour is a credible opposition. With Zahid Hamidi at the helm and Najib back as the principal advisor of UMNO, PH leaders have no real incentive to work hard, secure in the knowledge that the rakyat will support them over UMNO, at least the way it looks now.

As PH under Dr. M begins to look more and more like the old UMNO that Malaysia rejected, there is a real opportunity for a party or coalition to take up the space it has vacated. That stands for equal opportunities, social justice, reducing income inequality and inclusion. That is committed to strengthening the institutions of governance, that makes important decisions of government accountable to parliament, and that fights to make Malaysia a true example of a developed yet inclusive and a diverse yet united nation.

Because just getting rid of the corruption of the previous regime is simply not enough.

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