Perak Crisis And Mahathirism

Video footage ban marks return of Mahathirism May 14, 09 6:45pm The ban by media conglomerate Media Prima on the airing the video footage showing the Perak speaker being forcibly dragged out of the May 7 state assembly sitting has been described as the

“latest sign of the return of Mahathirism”. MCPX

Veteran opposition leader Lim Kit Siang said he expects the suppression of information will increasingly become the order of the day. “We are only coming to the sixth week of the Najib (Abdul Razak) premiership, but already there is a long list of ghosts and taboos which the new prime minister and his administration are in mortal fear and which are being banned from permissible public discourse...,” he lamented. Malaysiakini has yesterday reported that Media Prime ordered the footage not to be aired in all its television stations. Media Prima, which is said to be linked to ruling party Umno, controls the country’s four free-to-air private TV stations - TV3, NTV7, TV8 and TV9. According to a source who requested anonymity, Media Prima staff received ‘directives’ from senior managers on the evening of May 7 not to screen the controversial footage despite one of its stations had captured the whole incident on tape. “We have the entire visuals of Sivakumar being dragged out of the chair. However, we received instructions from the top not to screen it,” the source told Malaysiakini. These ‘goons’ should be punished Meanwhile, Lim argued that if the act against Perak speaker V Sivakumar is deemed so abhorrent that it should not be shown to Malaysians, then the police officers and the “goons” who were responsible for it should be punished.

“The physical violence of dragging out the speaker should be even more reprehensible – but why has no action been taken against them although they can be openly identified in photographs and videos?” The ban by Media Prima is not new as Malaysiakini had reported last month that a TV station under its stable were given similar instructions not to name political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda when reporting on the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case. “The Najib administration can ban the disgraceful footage from being aired on television stations but can they ban the playing of the footage in Malaysian homes or being viewed by millions of people worldwide?” asked Lim. “Just as the book-banning of tyrants and repressive regimes of olden ages had failed, the banning of video footages, snatching of laptops, video players and mobile phones are also destined to failure – as truth can never be suppressed.” The silver lining in Perak crisis Ong Kian Ming | May 15, 09 6:06am Much ink, most of it negative, has been spilled over the events that transpired in the Perak state assembly last Thursday. But the optimist in me always tries to see the silver lining shining through the dark clouds. MCPX And the silver lining is this – the current political crisis in Perak is good for Malaysia because it emphasises the importance of the role of (1) procedures (2) institutions (3) people in our political system. Firstly, the manner in which Barisan Nasional attempted to topple the Pakatan Rakyat state government in Perak raised all sorts of procedural questions as to whether something like that can be undertaken ‘constitutionally’. Is it sufficient for BN to demonstrate to the sultan that they have the ‘support’ of a few Pakatan crossovers without calling for a motion of no confidence in the state legislature? Should the sultan have acceded to Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin’s request for the state assembly to be dissolved given that he not been ‘replaced’ in his capacity as menteri besar? Could a motion of no confidence be tabled at the state assembly if the speaker of the legislature is from Pakatan? The manner in which the BN state government was ‘installed’ and the manner in which Nizar was ‘replaced’ by rival MB Zambry Abd Kadir resulted in the current political crisis in Perak. It sets a stark precedent for both BN as well as Pakatan that such ‘takeover’ attempts, be it at the state or federal level, is bound to end in political gridlock.

Anwar was fortunate in that his Sept 16 attempt to take over the federal government did not materialise. Even if he had the numbers to form a majority in Parliament, including gaining the support of Pakatan ‘friendly’ independent MPs who may have left BN, the same kind of political gridlock may well have ensued. In this case, Anwar Ibrahim and Pakatan would probably have faced the public ire of causing such a political crisis. Instead, by successfully switching the allegiance of three Pakatan assemblypersons in Perak, BN finds that the public opinion is firmly on the side of Pakatan, or at least in favour of dissolving the state legislature and for fresh elections to be held. After Perak, any coalition will have second thoughts before trying a similar maneuver to topple a government at the state or federal level. Similarly, any sultan of any state or the Agong, would also have serious reservations about not following the proper procedure in replacing one government with another. And these, in my humble opinion, are good precedents that have been set. Need for an anti-hopping law Secondly, the events in Perak have shown the need for the strengthening of institutional safeguards in the Malaysian political context. One such safeguard would be the introduction of an anti-hopping law which prevents a politician from switching from one political party to another after he or she has been elected. The arguments which have been put forth against such a law – that it is undemocratic, that is unnecessarily restricts the freedom of conscience of a politician, that such actions are common in other democracies such as the United Kingdom and United States, ring hollow, especially after Perak. Malaysia is nowhere near to being a democratic country by any stretch of the imagination and the fact that elected politicians, most of whom were elected based on their party affiliation, are ‘persuaded’ to switch sides so that democratically-elected governments can be toppled, either at the state or federal level, is surely more undemocratic than passing such an anti-hopping law. Another institutional safeguard, whose importance has been highlighted by the Perak situation, is the role which our courts need to play in clarifying procedural and constitutional issues in such instances of political gridlock and uncertainty. It is certainly heartening to see politicians on both sides use the institution of our courts to resolve these differences rather than resorting to other less peaceful ways of conflict resolution. But if the decisions which are made by our courts are not seen as impartial and not made without fear or favour, one could easily imagine politicians on either side

resorting to extrajudicial means to gain control of the state government in Perak. The public scrutiny which the courts are facing as a result of this political crisis, in my humble opinion, is also a good thing. An explosion of online activity The final silver lining that shines brightly through the darkness of this political crisis is the political awareness which it has raised among the average Malaysian citizen. Almost overnight, the person on the street is much more aware of the role in which the sultans, the courts, the constitutions (at the state and federal levels) and the speaker of the House play in our political system. Interest in politics in Malaysia among the average citizen has probably never been higher. The arrest of academic/activist Wong Chin Huat has also made people more aware of the cause of Bersih, to reform the electoral system in Malaysia, and increased the debate on how different people interpret the slogan of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak 1Malaysia. The explosion of online activity – forums, letters, Facebook and Twitter updates, photos, blogposts, podcasts, articles, reports – in the aftermath of the May 7 assembly clearly shows a Malaysian public that is politically aware, interested and engaged in the events in Perak and beyond. This kind of public interest coupled with the ability to engage in a manner which demonstrates political maturity, are good signs for the future of democracy in Malaysia. The political crisis in Perak shows no sign of ending anytime soon. But we should take heart in the silver linings that shines through amidst the dark clouds. And in the long term, the health of the Malaysian democracy will benefit from this experience. ONG KIAN MING is a PhD candidate in political science at Duke University. He can be reached at [email protected].

“See who is talking!” Friday May 15, 2009 PM Najis: Perak crisis can be resolved if PR follows the rules By DHARMENDER SINGH PUTRAJAYA: Barisan Nasional is open to talks with Pakatan Rakyat to resolve the ongoing Perak government crisis as long as the Opposition does not set any preconditions to having such a dialogue.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said whether there would be a dialogue over the crisis depended on whether the Opposition was willing to show mutual respect and adhere to rules inside and outside the state assembly. “There should not be any preconditions, we should be quite focused and explore all possibilities (if one was held),” he told a press conference after attending the public service’s Labour Day gathering here yesterday. Barisan, Najib said, did not fear fresh elections in Perak and would face the rakyat when the time came. Fresh state elections was one of the options available in settling the political stalemate, he said. Najib said, however, only the Sultan of Perak had the jurisdiction to call for a state election. “Barisan is not afraid to face fresh elections. We know we have to face the rakyat and we will face the rakyat when the time comes.” On PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat’s opposition to any plans to set up a unity government with Barisan, the Prime Minister said there was “nothing to reject” because no proposal was made to PAS on the matter. On PPP supreme council member Datuk T. Murugiah, who has been accused of money politics, Najib said he had not made any decision and would wait to see developments. Murugiah had said on Monday that he would meet Najib to relate his side of the story after the party supreme council removed him following accusations of money politics. Related Stories: We’re ready for talks, says Anwar BN reps lodge 31 police reports