In simple reasoning, a ruling party gets to elect a candidate from their party to be the country's Prime Minister to represent the entire nation. Eventhough idealogy, objectives and concept defers from the rest of the general population. Alignment of political parties is one way to stay in power and ensured the message of survivalist goes thru its course for the duration of any given agenda.
.
They must represent all Malaysians
By SHERIDAN MAHAVERA, The New Straits Times
Some 2,500 people will converge on the Putra World Trade Centre from Wednesday to choose, among others, Malaysia's next deputy prime minister. SHERIDAN MAHAVERA argues that the unwise use of such power can have tragic consequences for Umno.
A POLITICAL scientist once said that the real Malaysian election was not that nationwide exercise that we go through every five years but the triennial Umno polls.
This pre-2008 perception assumed that Barisan Nasional's monopoly of the Federal Government would continue unchallenged after every general election, and the top cabinet posts would be held by Umno leaders.
The posts of not just the prime minister but the ministers of education, finance, defence, foreign affairs, international trade and home affairs, for instance, will be determined by the delegates at Umno's electoral assembly.
This has been "how things are done in Malaysia" since Umno's first assembly in 1946. But since the 12th general election, the nation's altered political landscape is demanding that this arrangement be challenged.
A gulf is emerging between what the public and BN components want to see emerge from the assembly, and what Umno delegates want.
BN and some senior Umno leaders themselves worry that, if left to their own devices, delegates would vote in "likeable" leaders who do not necessarily inspire confidence in public.
Worse still would be for meritorious and substantial leaders to be overlooked because they lack pubic relations skills, in favour of those who are personable and who "take care" of the delegates.
The public has heard Umno presidents talk about how the party must represent all Malaysians, and cringed the very next day as other party seniors tell critical non-Malays to shut up.
The New Sunday Times asked several leaders of BN component parties what they thought of the race for Umno's top posts. While they were prepared to reveal their preferences for candidates, they were adamant about not being identified. Component parties are not supposed to interfere with the internal affairs of their partners.
In a Merdeka Centre survey, 79 per cent of voters felt that the opinions of ordinary Malaysians should be taken into consideration by Umno delegates.
Said one BN component leader: "The speeches in the assembly and who gets chosen is important because at the end of the day, we have to go down to the ground and explain to our members and community about what went on."
The 2006 assembly, for instance, with its fiery, chauvinistic speeches about how non-Malays should accept their lot, would only be popular with delegates and no one else.
The unsheathing of the kris at Umno Youth's assembly that year left such a foul impression on the minds of the non-Malay public, whose votes were crucial to the BN components, that many of these parties lost support in the 12th general election.
The stakes are even higher this year, as the BN is contesting three by-elections a week after the assembly.
Although much of the focus in the Umno assembly is on the candidates, another BN leader says what mattered most was the party's ideological bent as a whole. "What these leaders say after they get elected is crucial. If they continue to shout about 'ketuanan Melayu' (Malay supremacy) rather than stress multiracialism, we will suffer in the 13th general election."
Jingoism is not new in Umno assemblies, where delegates make little effort to tone down their Malays-first rhetoric, even when it rankles their BN partners. The 12th general election -- and Pakatan Rakyat's more attractive ethnic integration message -- put a stop to that.
Another BN leader opined that an ideology is only as good as the leaders who espouse it. The public has heard Umno presidents talk about how the party must represent all Malaysians, and cringed the very next day as other party seniors tell critical non-Malays to shut up.
Also, not all candidates are equal in image and public perception. In the Merdeka Centre poll, respondents said they wanted Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as the new deputy and chose Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim as the party's three vice-presidents.
They also chose Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir and Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil to head the Umno Youth and Wanita wings respectively.
However, ground reports suggest that at this time of writing, only two of these individuals are leading in their races.
There is a very real possibility that Malaysians will be getting a cabinet of leaders who do not inspire much confidence in them.
A Kedah Umno delegate, however, cautions against prejudging outcomes this early in the race -- and of underestimating delegates' ability to assess the candidates.
"I have been all over the country and spoken to delegates from many states about how they are voting," he says. "Just because a supreme council candidate is very friendly with us does not mean that we will be swayed by him. We know how to look beyond such things and we do consider factors like how a candidate is accepted by the public."
As the days wind down to the assembly, who will eventually win is still an open question. The dynamics of these elections can shift among candidates in the last moments, such as in 2004.
There is also the question of how Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam's supporters will vote now that the Malacca chief minister is out of the race.
In the end, says party supreme council member Datuk Shahrir Samad, whatever the delegates decide, the real power is with the people.
"If Umno chooses a president or deputy president, and by extension a prime minister and deputy prime minister, whom the rakyat don't like, the rakyat will kick out Umno at the next general election."
By SHERIDAN MAHAVERA, The New Straits Times
Some 2,500 people will converge on the Putra World Trade Centre from Wednesday to choose, among others, Malaysia's next deputy prime minister. SHERIDAN MAHAVERA argues that the unwise use of such power can have tragic consequences for Umno.
A POLITICAL scientist once said that the real Malaysian election was not that nationwide exercise that we go through every five years but the triennial Umno polls.
This pre-2008 perception assumed that Barisan Nasional's monopoly of the Federal Government would continue unchallenged after every general election, and the top cabinet posts would be held by Umno leaders.
The posts of not just the prime minister but the ministers of education, finance, defence, foreign affairs, international trade and home affairs, for instance, will be determined by the delegates at Umno's electoral assembly.
This has been "how things are done in Malaysia" since Umno's first assembly in 1946. But since the 12th general election, the nation's altered political landscape is demanding that this arrangement be challenged.
A gulf is emerging between what the public and BN components want to see emerge from the assembly, and what Umno delegates want.
BN and some senior Umno leaders themselves worry that, if left to their own devices, delegates would vote in "likeable" leaders who do not necessarily inspire confidence in public.
Worse still would be for meritorious and substantial leaders to be overlooked because they lack pubic relations skills, in favour of those who are personable and who "take care" of the delegates.
The public has heard Umno presidents talk about how the party must represent all Malaysians, and cringed the very next day as other party seniors tell critical non-Malays to shut up.
The New Sunday Times asked several leaders of BN component parties what they thought of the race for Umno's top posts. While they were prepared to reveal their preferences for candidates, they were adamant about not being identified. Component parties are not supposed to interfere with the internal affairs of their partners.
In a Merdeka Centre survey, 79 per cent of voters felt that the opinions of ordinary Malaysians should be taken into consideration by Umno delegates.
Said one BN component leader: "The speeches in the assembly and who gets chosen is important because at the end of the day, we have to go down to the ground and explain to our members and community about what went on."
The 2006 assembly, for instance, with its fiery, chauvinistic speeches about how non-Malays should accept their lot, would only be popular with delegates and no one else.
The unsheathing of the kris at Umno Youth's assembly that year left such a foul impression on the minds of the non-Malay public, whose votes were crucial to the BN components, that many of these parties lost support in the 12th general election.
The stakes are even higher this year, as the BN is contesting three by-elections a week after the assembly.
Although much of the focus in the Umno assembly is on the candidates, another BN leader says what mattered most was the party's ideological bent as a whole. "What these leaders say after they get elected is crucial. If they continue to shout about 'ketuanan Melayu' (Malay supremacy) rather than stress multiracialism, we will suffer in the 13th general election."
Jingoism is not new in Umno assemblies, where delegates make little effort to tone down their Malays-first rhetoric, even when it rankles their BN partners. The 12th general election -- and Pakatan Rakyat's more attractive ethnic integration message -- put a stop to that.
Another BN leader opined that an ideology is only as good as the leaders who espouse it. The public has heard Umno presidents talk about how the party must represent all Malaysians, and cringed the very next day as other party seniors tell critical non-Malays to shut up.
Also, not all candidates are equal in image and public perception. In the Merdeka Centre poll, respondents said they wanted Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as the new deputy and chose Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim as the party's three vice-presidents.
They also chose Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir and Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil to head the Umno Youth and Wanita wings respectively.
However, ground reports suggest that at this time of writing, only two of these individuals are leading in their races.
There is a very real possibility that Malaysians will be getting a cabinet of leaders who do not inspire much confidence in them.
A Kedah Umno delegate, however, cautions against prejudging outcomes this early in the race -- and of underestimating delegates' ability to assess the candidates.
"I have been all over the country and spoken to delegates from many states about how they are voting," he says. "Just because a supreme council candidate is very friendly with us does not mean that we will be swayed by him. We know how to look beyond such things and we do consider factors like how a candidate is accepted by the public."
As the days wind down to the assembly, who will eventually win is still an open question. The dynamics of these elections can shift among candidates in the last moments, such as in 2004.
There is also the question of how Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam's supporters will vote now that the Malacca chief minister is out of the race.
In the end, says party supreme council member Datuk Shahrir Samad, whatever the delegates decide, the real power is with the people.
"If Umno chooses a president or deputy president, and by extension a prime minister and deputy prime minister, whom the rakyat don't like, the rakyat will kick out Umno at the next general election."
No comments:
Post a Comment