©The Malaysian Insider (Used by permission)
FEB 10 – Let’s cut through the fog and spin. V Arumugam is not a victim, a martyr or a hero. He is a politician who was forced to resign as the Bukit Selambau state assemblyman because his wife lodged a report accusing him of bigamy.
He is no different from any other politician around the globe who has been forced to put his political career on hold in the light of allegations.
Tom Daschle and Bill Richardson had to withdraw their names from the Obama Cabinet because they were being investigated for tax evasion and alleged misconduct in the award of contracts respectively.
President Barack Obama accepted responsibility and said that he screwed up in not vetting the candidates more thoroughly.
Daschle was eminently qualified to become the Health Secretary but his position became untenable the minute he admitted that he was a tax evader. There were no ifs or buts.
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his comrades in Pakatan Rakyat claim that Arumugam resigned as the Bukit Selambau state assemblymen because undue pressure was being exerted on him to defect to Barisan Nasional. This allegation could be true.
PKR officials say that the authorities were threatening to expose Arumugam’s legal problem if he did not switch political camps. This allegation also could be true.
But it does not alter the root of the problem – that Arumugam messed up.
It is perfectly understandable why Pakatan Rakyat wants to portray the assemblyman as the victim of a dastardly act by BN. They want the voters of Bukit Selambau to burn with rage and punish the BN during the by–election.
But forget the spin and fog. The only issue before the voters in the constituency is which political party or candidate can serve their best interest.
If Arumugam has been a standout state assemblyman for the past 10 months, then perhaps the candidate fielded by Pakatan Rakyat in the by–election deserves the continued support of the Bukit Selambau electorate.
If Arumugam was a slouch, then the voters have every right to send a stinging message to Pakatan Rakyat.
That’s democracy.