Mudslinging, bias reporting, falsifying statistics and engaging the Opposition in uncouth and forceful ways are not going to favour Najib, the prime minister, and UMNO in the long run. Najib being the leader of the ruling coalition should instead engage the Opposition leader in a worthy debate to hammer out the many issues encrusting the nation.
This would be the most cultured manner to do politics in a democracy.
They will express their rage
Despite all the pomp and fair prompted by UMNO the rakyat are yet to be convinced by Najib and his team of leaders. When Mitt Romney and Barack Obama of the US are now seriously debating national issues in a highly cultured manner in their race for the Presidency, Malaysians are left with gutter politics for the rakyat to relish after 55 years of Independence.
Facts, fictions and fables are not allowed to be discerned by the rakyat through fair debates and media reports. It’s all politics of the incumbency and they decide what is best for all.
Threats, violence and lies are texturing the nation’s political landscape with UMNO-led government not doing much to curb this set of symptoms affecting the nation. The nation is riveted with social and economic issues but they go undebated in public for fear that the incumbent government will lose power.
Politics seems to be marred with barbarous media attack and at times violent physical acts on the Opposition that usually go untended by those in command. The rakyat are not at all pleased with this development in the country and they will express their rage through the ballot box in the next general election.
A level-headed political debate
Critics observe that the political climate in the country is not working in favour of the incumbent government.
“The rakyat see Najib and UMNO engaging in ruthless politics. It’s the Opposition now that is getting more sympathy from the rakyat,” said a former UMNO party member in Kuala Lumpur.
“The lies and propaganda spewed out by Najib and UMNO are not convincing the rakyat. The rakyat want to see a sensible debate taking place between the Prime Minister and the Opposition leader,” said a political analyst.
“Najib’s ‘self-gratifying’ mode in politics is not going to work to his advantage. The rakyat are now able to gauge the actual state of affairs affecting them and the nation,” he added.
Apparently, Najib is still not able to convince Malaysians of his leadership and achievements. Beyond that, the rakyat’s perception of him is weighted by personal and political baggage. Unless and until Najib engages Anwar in a level-headed political debate the rakyat cannot be won over with his policies.
The perception of the rakyat is that Najib has actually failed to live up to his promises – answerability, transparency, control of public spending, curbing corruption, reducing crime rates and dipping the burden of high costs of living that is affecting the poor and the middle class. Seemingly, all he has done in his tenure as prime minister are just game ‘walkthroughs’.
For this reason he is now self-doubting and is now at the end of his tether to win the affection of the rakyat. The next general election must be held before April 2013 and time is running short for Najib now.
Sprucing up his image
Najib’s repute locally and abroad is discoloured and for this reason Najib is full of activity in sprucing up his image. And in the process he is wasting taxpayers’ money and is justly earning the wrath of the rakyat.
It was reported that The Guardian has thrown out its journalist, Joshua Trevino, for conflicts of interest and for bringing the media industry into opprobrium.
Supposedly, Trevino had belonged to FBC Media, a public relations company, which had been paid by Najib to portray him in a good light, depict falsely that the country is under favourable circumstances, gloss over all the misdeeds of the government and censure the Opposition leader – Anwar.
Also using taxpayers’ money, Najib has been alleged to have paid overseas public relations companies such as APCO, FBC and CNBC millions of ringgit to promote him and his administration.
Najib and UMNO are at their scrawniest point right now and their despairing bid to retain power at all costs is making the situation worse for the nation.
Fantasies of achievements that the economy is improving and crime rate is dropping and resorting to fake Merdeka55 tweet-up to confuse the rakyat are just too much for the rakyat to swig. To the rakyat they have come to realise that Najib’s triumphs are mere illusions.
The misapprehensions created by this ignominy have made the rakyat sceptical of any statistics pertaining to the economy and crime proffered by the government.
Racial unity under UMNO-led Barisan is just another delusion. Apparently, racial unity is now more noticeable in the Opposition camp than in Barisan. Political observers feel that Najib and UMNO are by design using race and religion to divide the nation to frenziedly stay in power.
A flip-flop leader
Najib has been labelled as a flip-flop leader by many critics, as he has changed his stand on many issues to shore and buttress himself up as a popular leader. The MAS-Air Asia contentious share swap carved for the benefit of the country's aviation industry and for the revival of MAS has to be ditched when the strong MAS workers’ union objected to the move.
The Public Service New Remuneration Scheme (SBPA), which was introduced on Jan 1, 2012, was obliterated, while the previous Malaysia Remuneration System (SSM) was brought back with ‘some improvements’. On the face of it, the workers’ unions in the country are too copious for Najib to handle.
So when it comes to ‘numbers’ it means ‘votes’ and Najib shivers, goes flip flop and then caves in. Najib has no choice but to accommodate to the demands of the many workers’ unions in the country to save him from tumbling in the next general election.
The Cabinet is inopportunely led by an utterly weedy and flummoxed Najib. Najib, who earlier seemed to agree with most of the Internet users that the controversial section 114A of the Evidence Act needs further review, initiated the move for the Cabinet to discuss the matter.
But this was checkmated by his infectiously ambitious deputy who chaired the Cabinet meeting to discuss the matter and Najib had no choice but again to cave in. This is an intimation that Najib is in trouble within UMNO.
No tangible moves
The rakyat see no tangible moves made to curb corruption, financial leakages and cronyism that have affected the country. Najib is perceived as a leader who lacks the political will to handle these issues and this deportment of his will affect Barisan’s chances of retaining power in the next general election.
In fact Najib has defaulted on many promises to the rakyat. For this reason, his Merdeka slogan, ‘Janji Ditepati’ (Promises Fulfilled) – purportedly coined by the Information, Communications and Culture Minister who will be best remembered in the future for his hand-kissing exploits of senior UMNO leaders – is an affront to the rakyat.
Heaping on the one-sided media and demonising the Opposition is making Najib none the wiser, neither has this made him popular. Only a serious open debate with Anwar will prove Najib's capability and convince Malaysians of his aptitude, political and economic acumen.
Otherwise, Najib is just living in illusions trusting so much that he can buy almost anything with taxpayers’ money including ‘popularity’. Najib’s rhetorical artifices are not going to make him popular as the rakyat are able to discern the real situation in the country – which in reality is not as pleasant as daubed by Najib and UMNO.
Exercise of prudence
Small things matter in politics. The rakyat know that Anwar, if he becomes the next prime minister, is not going to waste RM12 million ringgit a year to pay for electricity bills and RM1.9 million a year to pay for the water bills by staying at Seri Perdana, Putrajaya.
Anwar has vowed that if he is voted in to become the prime minister he will choose to stay in his humble home in Segambut. Prudent management of the country is what Anwar is in quest of. This exercise of prudence can also be readily witnessed in the four states run by the Opposition after the 2008 general election – Penang, Selangor, Kedah and Kelantan.
High inflation, rising costs of living and when prices of almost everything have spiralled out of control Najib has lost his momentum in steering the country out of the mess. Under Najib, Malaysia recorded a government debt to GDP of 52.60 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2011. This is worrying the nation.
Generally, government debt as a percent of GDP is used by investors to measure a country’s ability to make future payments on its debt, thus affecting the country’s borrowing costs and government bond yields.
When lavishness is not Anwar’s way it has expediently become the attribute of Najib and his government. There thus need to be an open debate on the many issues affecting the nation. Nevertheless, critics opine that Najib is avoiding a political debate with Anwar for fear that the latter will have a considerable edge over him. It’s possible that Najib may simply not be able to take on perky Anwar.
Let the best man win
However, without an open debate UMNO would not be able to convince Malaysians of Najib’s or Anwar’s ‘popularity’. Najib has no choice but to take on Anwar in a national debate to demonstrate his competence.
Anwar bashing by the media, alleged police intimidation of the Opposition, Perkasa’s approach to barbaric politics, violent acts against the Opposition and the exploitation of trivial issues to denounce the Opposition and the numerous other foul means used by the ruling party to demonise Anwar and the Opposition do not seem to work in Najib’s, UMNO’s or Barisan’s favour.
Malaysians are now a mature lot. The more Najib and UMNO are into this weighted and ‘self-gratifying’ modus operandi the more support Anwar and the Opposition will garner. The rakyat are not interested in hearing intently concocted political, social and economic tales and fables using the one-sided media to favour Najib and the ruling coalition.
No Malaysians will fall into this evil trap set by Najib and UMNO.
They very much desire for a decent debate between Najib and Anwar to take place before the next general election – to be held any time before April 2013. Let the best man
Malaysia Chronicle
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