| What Now, Opposition? |  |  |  |
| Posted by Raja Petra | |
| Tuesday, 11 March 2008 | |
| The Malays were smart enough to dump UMNO when they saw it to be unable to deliver its promises so it’s not inconceivable for the Malays to join what they perceive to be a ‘Chinese’ party when they see that the party delivers what they promise. Farouk A. Peru The right to rejoice certainly belongs to the tireless workers and supporters of the opposition who, though their hard work and unshakeable faith, have managed to take no less than 5 states from Barisan National last Saturday. We must now ask the question: Where do we go from here? Is it possible that in 5 or so years, we will see another political tsunami that will wipe out BN completely from our political landscape or, pessimistically speaking, we will see a repeat of what happened in 1999, when PAS raised the spectre of the Islamic State. The Barisan Alternative of the day fell apart when the DAP pulled out, citing their opposition to the Islamic State. PAS has been uncharacteristically quiet about the Islamic State, although they haven’t renounced the idea overtly. They have also appointed a DAP man to the EXCO seat in Kedah, showing a magnanimity which has been sorely lacking thus far in the opposition’s internal politics. Does this mean however, that PAS has truly changed it’s position vis-à-vis the Islamic State? If this is the case then, the streams of thought which exist within PAS vary on a very basic level. The establishment or resurrection of the Islamic State is a concern which occupies the mind of most if not all Islamist parties and so, for an Islamic party like PAS to put that agenda on the back-burner, one must aspect a backlash from the more conservative elements within PAS itself. Then we have the PKR which has touted itself as a multiracial party and perhaps in due course, can be seen to be one. However, it’s de facto leader must show himself to be following through when it comes to his promise to rid Malaysia of the NEP. It will not be easy for him to do so without his supporters at least questioning his actions, if not leaving him altogether. He will have to really stay the course for this to succeed. As for the DAP, it remains the party which has struggled for a Malaysian Malaysia for decades. By this fact alone, all Malaysians should support it but because it has gained a reputation as a Chinese party, Malays have by far and large left it alone. Perhaps the DAP can kill off this reputation for good when they govern Penang in a such a way that the fruits of their socialist principles will speak for itself. The Malays were smart enough to dump UMNO when they saw it to be unable to deliver its promises so it’s not inconceivable for the Malays to join what they perceive to be a ‘Chinese’ party when they see that the party delivers what they promise. We Malaysians really should be happy at what our collective consciousness has brought forth in terms of election results. Perhaps never again can the ruling party get complacent and feel that they can do anything they choose to the rakyat. However, the point in history we’re on isn’t the end of the struggle but the beginning. Right now, we have a chance to see if the opposition whom we have entrusted to carry out the duty of governance will follow through or will become another Pak Lah type story… |
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