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Will the Barisan Nasional cooperate with the opposition in Malaysia? |
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Thursday, 24 April 2008 15:05 |
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Is it the people’s interest first or the party’s interest first? I think the issue now is that at the moment, it is wise for the BN to take it as the people’s interest first, not the party’s interest first. And then later, when you are in the central government, then you can change your position. Radio Singapore International
Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi has said that the ruling Barisan Nasional may open ‘a new era’ of cooperation with opposition parties.
This is a policy shift as the BN has previously shunned cooperating with its rivals.
It comes after a party member from Gerakan, one of the component parties in the BN coalition, accepted an offer to head two organizations run by the opposition Democratic Alliance party or DAP in Penang.
Lee Kah Choon was the former deputy secretary-general of Gerakan who resigned after the party’s loss in Penang after nearly 30 years in power.
This has sparked much controversy in Malaysia’s political circles. Professor Shamsul Baharuddin from University Kebangsaan Malaysia tells Loretta Foo why.
SB: In the last couple of years between the opposition and the ruling party has been rather intense because a lot of the people who were from the opposition were actually formerly with the ruling party so you can imagine the split within the party created splinter groups. Those relationships were not conducted very well so it’s very rarely that someone from the opposition would be appointed to a position of importance within the realm of the BN and vice-versa. So I think what has happened now is a real surprise, more so to the Barisan who was in power, who should’ve been more magnanimous during their hey-day rather than the opposition who is not a real big power.
If that has been the established practice so far, why would the DAP welcome Mr Lee into Penang?
SB: I think the DAP has a couple of agendas that one has to bear in mind. Number one, I think they really want to prove that something is working and probably Mr Lee has been observed and they must’ve done homework to find out that he’s a honest person, he’s well-known for his fierceness in the way that he does his job. So there’s nothing wrong in having this kind of person, it is only to the advantage of the DAP. But more so, because he is already in the network so it is much easier for him to come back and serve. So there are two advantages there.
Is it significant that it is the DAP and not any of the other two opposition parties, Keadilan and PAS that have set up this partnership?
SB: I think there is a lot of pragmatism here in Penang. It is not an unproblematic state so I think the leadership of Penang have to know that they really need some good people from Penang. The Chief Minister is from Malacca, Ramasamy – the Deputy is from Selangor as the DAP is basically a parachutist party. They do not have the idea that ‘I live here, therefore I contest here…I will contest where I can win’ so you have to understand that. So by nature, DAP is not rooted locally so Mr Lee needs to there to help them. And they may also use this as a way of trying to get support from people from Gerakan, telling them, ‘Why don’t you move and join us? We are good.’ This is probably the worry that people in Gerakan have.
It seems that Mr Lee accepted the positions without notifying his political party of Gerakan and the larger Barisan Nasional alliance. Has he flouted party rules by doing so?
SB: In some ways, he has. But I don’t think they can really punish him. If they are clever enough, I think they would see this as an advantage to Gerakan, turn around and say, ‘Ok. We welcome what the DAP is doing. We know our expertise is needed by the DAP as it is not local. However, we accept the fact that DAP wants to learn.’ This is how you should turn it around, but I think they are becoming bitter rather better.
PM Abdullah however did say that this could perhaps open a way for cooperation between both sides, do you see this case as setting a precedent for the future?
SB: Is it the people’s interest first or the party’s interest first? I think the issue now is that at the moment, it is wise for the BN to take it as the people’s interest first, not the party’s interest first. And then later, when you are in the central government, then you can change your position and say, ‘If you want to continue to play this game, then I want to participate more, rather than you just inviting me.’ So you can dictate it too.
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If BN doen't adjust to the changing situation, they would be left behind and perceived as a primitive political party. Generations from now they will be judged and the verdict would be that of a party that did not have the vision to adjust to changes. This was the downfall of many regimes, e.g. the French revolution. If only Louise XVI had the vision to see what the people wanted and given it to them, as well as identify their grouses, France would propably still be a monarchy today. Long live DAP. Well done Guan Eng.