©The Malaysian Insider (Used by permission)
by Hsu Dar Ren
JUNE 9 — Since the last general election, the party that has gained the most is not PKR, unlike what many people think, but rather PAS.
Non–Malay voters used to view PAS as dangerous and fanatical, what with the constant reminders by the mainstream media that this is a party out to form an Islamic state and one that advocates implementation of the hudud.
Non–Malay voters used to view PAS as dangerous and fanatical, what with the constant reminders by the mainstream media that this is a party out to form an Islamic state and one that advocates implementation of the hudud.
Time and again, no matter how dissatisfied these non–Malay voters were about Umno and BN component parties, when it came to the elections, they would still vote Umno and the component parties. As the saying goes: “It is always better to deal with the devils we are familiar with than to vote for something that is unknown.”
After March 8 last year, this perception against PAS has drastically changed. Non–Malays now have no qualms voting for PAS, as seen in the recent Bukit Gantang by–election.
Does this mean that non–Malays will continue to support PAS?
Based on sentiments from the ground, the Malay vote is now split, with a slight advantage to Umno, maybe in the region of 53 per cent to 47 per cent against. However, 80 per cent of the Chinese vote is now for the opposition (and most of these will have no qualms voting for PAS), with about 65 per cent of the Indian vote supporting the opposition.
What this means is that if this level of support does not change, BN will find itself losing power come the next general election.
The support for PAS is not due to non–Malays suddenly embracing the ideas of an Islamic state. Many who supported PAS have expressed the feeling that things cannot be worse than now, so even an unknown entity is now better than the devil, so to speak. So the support for PAS is basically because the non–Malays yearn for a change .
PAS knows that its re–branding as a national party has a lot to do with non–Malay support. Without this support, it cannot hope to become a party with national appeal. . And this support is given because people want a change.
Now, the president and the deputy president of PAS are talking about forming a unity government with Umno. Is this what their non–Malay supporters want?
What is a unity government anyway? In my mind, it will be like what happened after May 13, when the Alliance gave way to Barisan Nasional, and in the process, opposition parties like PMIP (the present PAS), Gerakan, PPP and parties in Sabah and Sarawak all became coalition partners in BN. The BN then was a form of unity government, but as time went on, the concept of the unity government gave way to become a coalition in which one party towers over all the other component parties.
What followed the formation of BN was that opposition voices were weakened, and a dominant party surfaced. This dominance was translated to almost absolute power. As we all know, absolute power corrupts. That is what brought us to the present state we are facing: mediocrity in almost all fields including the judiciary and tertiary institutions, increasing polarisation, loss of transparency and accountability, loss of excellence , corruption, abuse of power and so on.
The good thing about 308 is that a rudimentary two–coalition system has taken shape. No matter how imperfect this two–party system is, it is still a better system of check and balance. Even those in BN have acknowledged that this will be good for the country in the long run.
As an example, even Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has mentioned that personally he was happy that a two–party system has resulted from the last election. Those in BN should not feel bad about this two–party phenomenon. In a way, if BN loses the next general election, it will pave the way for a revival and true reform of BN as in the case of the Kuomintang in Taiwan.
Partisan politics aside, a two–party system is good for the country and the rakyat in the long run.
PAS’s leadership should understand that the support from the non–Malays is not a certainty, rather this support needs to be earned. This support can only be earned if the party supports a two–party system that most non–Malays now yearn for.
After March 8 last year, this perception against PAS has drastically changed. Non–Malays now have no qualms voting for PAS, as seen in the recent Bukit Gantang by–election.
Does this mean that non–Malays will continue to support PAS?
Based on sentiments from the ground, the Malay vote is now split, with a slight advantage to Umno, maybe in the region of 53 per cent to 47 per cent against. However, 80 per cent of the Chinese vote is now for the opposition (and most of these will have no qualms voting for PAS), with about 65 per cent of the Indian vote supporting the opposition.
What this means is that if this level of support does not change, BN will find itself losing power come the next general election.
The support for PAS is not due to non–Malays suddenly embracing the ideas of an Islamic state. Many who supported PAS have expressed the feeling that things cannot be worse than now, so even an unknown entity is now better than the devil, so to speak. So the support for PAS is basically because the non–Malays yearn for a change .
PAS knows that its re–branding as a national party has a lot to do with non–Malay support. Without this support, it cannot hope to become a party with national appeal. . And this support is given because people want a change.
Now, the president and the deputy president of PAS are talking about forming a unity government with Umno. Is this what their non–Malay supporters want?
What is a unity government anyway? In my mind, it will be like what happened after May 13, when the Alliance gave way to Barisan Nasional, and in the process, opposition parties like PMIP (the present PAS), Gerakan, PPP and parties in Sabah and Sarawak all became coalition partners in BN. The BN then was a form of unity government, but as time went on, the concept of the unity government gave way to become a coalition in which one party towers over all the other component parties.
What followed the formation of BN was that opposition voices were weakened, and a dominant party surfaced. This dominance was translated to almost absolute power. As we all know, absolute power corrupts. That is what brought us to the present state we are facing: mediocrity in almost all fields including the judiciary and tertiary institutions, increasing polarisation, loss of transparency and accountability, loss of excellence , corruption, abuse of power and so on.
The good thing about 308 is that a rudimentary two–coalition system has taken shape. No matter how imperfect this two–party system is, it is still a better system of check and balance. Even those in BN have acknowledged that this will be good for the country in the long run.
As an example, even Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has mentioned that personally he was happy that a two–party system has resulted from the last election. Those in BN should not feel bad about this two–party phenomenon. In a way, if BN loses the next general election, it will pave the way for a revival and true reform of BN as in the case of the Kuomintang in Taiwan.
Partisan politics aside, a two–party system is good for the country and the rakyat in the long run.
PAS’s leadership should understand that the support from the non–Malays is not a certainty, rather this support needs to be earned. This support can only be earned if the party supports a two–party system that most non–Malays now yearn for.