How Will Different Communities Vote

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Caretaker prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob has called for a general election. The opposition and even PAS opposed holding the polls now. The Covid-19 pandemic is still ongoing and we are in flood season. The opposition is not ready.
Many among the electorate have become disillusioned and cynical of politicians. Whom to trust? Who are the leaders they can rely on to carry out their pledges and the mandate given? How do they make sure corruption stops?
It is impossible for the opposition to come in without a high voter turnout. It is also impossible for the opposition to win without substantial Malay support. So how do we get a high voter turnout?
And how do we get the Malays to vote for non-Malays or for Pakatan Harapan Malays?
There are overseas voters and there are voters who are not living or working in their constituencies. How do we get them to vote and how do we get them to travel back to their constituencies?
The opposition is not as strong or as cohesive as they were in the last election.
For starters, former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad is not a member of Harapan. He wants to be in Harapan but his condition is that he becomes prime minister again for a year.
Former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin is also not in Harapan. Both have their own parties and will be contesting many seats in the election. Both lead parties that are exclusively Malay parties.
Malay suspicions
The Malays are very suspicious of the DAP as it has consistently fought for the abolition of the New Economic Policy (NEP). The NEP was the policy responsible for bringing up the Malay community.
During the Harapan reign, attempts were made to make Malaysia a signatory to two human rights conventions. The Malay reacted furiously.
They saw it as an attempt to put an end to the NEP. They were demonstrations opposing these moves and the government backed off. Some DAP politicians antagonised civil servants with their behaviour. The allegation was that they were insensitive to Malay feelings.
Umno said that Malays must always be the dominant power in the government because, without that power, the government will not be able to continue undertaking projects and schemes exclusively for the benefit of the Malays.
PAS' position is simpler. They want an Islamic state and Syariah law. They don’t want non-Muslims to be in leadership positions or occupy high offices.
Do non-Muslims matter?
Non-Muslims are about 42 percent of the population. The indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak are about 12 percent of the population. There is a large Christian community among them.
They entered the Malaysia Agreement on several promises. These promises are contained in the Federal Constitution and additionally the 1963 Malaysia Agreement and the 20-point and 18-point agreements between these territories and the federal government.
The Federal Constitution was also the result of agreements between the rulers and the leaders of the Chinese, Indian and Malay communities in the country.
With the formation of Malaysia, the Constitution was amended to include Sabah and Sarawak. Under the Constitution, all Malaysians are equal before the law and enjoy equal protection of the law. Freedom of worship is guaranteed as are other fundamental liberties.
In essence, we are a constitutional democracy that adheres to the rule of law.
Are we going to go back on those promises made? Are we going to abandon the Constitution? Are we going to take the position that the majority can do whatever they want and the minority can do nothing about it?
Our courts are independent and can be relied on to hold the balance between the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government. The Constitution is our supreme law and all legislation is measured against the provisions of the Constitution.
The Federal Court has also accepted the doctrine that the basic scheme or structure of the government as set out in the Constitution cannot be amended.
In other words, you cannot make Malaysia an autocracy or create “two classes of citizens”, one with more rights than the other, remove free speech or the right to peaceful assembly or make judges subservient to the legislature or executive.
Any attempt to alter the basic structure of the Constitution will be unlawful and will be struck down by the courts.
Does majority rule mean that minorities have lesser rights?
The majority of Malays could do so if they desire to ignore the Constitution and run the country on ketuanan (supremacy) principles. But that would be wrong and the consequences of that will be hard to imagine.
Already many are leaving the country or want to leave because they have lost hope and find our politics of pitting one race against another quite difficult to cope with.
The number of non-Malays in the civil service, police and armed forces is now less than 10 percent. That, to a large extent, removes from non-Malays their sense of being an integral part of Malaysian society.
Add to that the many exclusively Malay institutions or schemes -and the fact that over 90 percent of Chinese children go to Chinese vernacular primary schools and 50 percent of Indian children go to Tamil schools.
Most non-Malay students now go to private universities. The conclusion must be drawn that we have become a very polarised society.
Gerrymandering has ruled our elections completely diluting the effect of the Chinese vote. Malay majority constituencies vote only for Malay candidates. There is weightage given to rural Malay constituencies.
The Chinese are packed into Chinese majority constituencies. These will go to Chinese candidates and there are no Indian majority constituencies. Non-Malay numbers continue to decline.
Does this mean that non-Malay rights will also diminish? Does it mean that their participation in government will be lesser? Should they simply resign themselves to their inevitable fate?
Should all of us including Malays not be concerned about this? Will the majority of Malays accept our multiracial, multi-religious and multicultural character and pursue an inclusive path?
Malaysia took a very strong stance on discrimination in South Africa, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Palestine and the Philippines. There are Muslim minorities in many countries. Should our own policies and practices reflect what we desire for Muslim minorities wherever they are?
Difficult election
This will be a difficult election. Difficult mainly because the opposition appears to be in disarray. Opposition leaders have let us down badly after GE14. The electorate is disillusioned and does not appear to have much choice.
Harapan is made up mainly of PKR, DAP and Amanah. PKR is a multiracial party led by Anwar Ibrahim. It is not an exclusively Malay party. For many Malays that is not acceptable.
How does Harapan deal with that point of view? Anwar is seen as an old and tired leader. Does he have the support of the ground? Does he have the energy for this battle of battles?
Can he convince the Malays that a multiracial party is the best way forward for all Malaysians? Can he convince them that the DAP is not a party to be feared?
The DAP is a multiracial party but there have always been rumblings and complaints about overt racism in the party. Their position on the NEP also worries the Malays. How can the DAP reassure the Malays that their participation in a government within Harapan will not jeopardise the interests of the Malays?
It is time that the DAP reviewed its policies and rebrand itself.
And there is Amanah. Amanah is a breakaway group from PAS. They were the moderates. They did well under the protection of the late PAS leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat but were forced out when Abdul Hadi Awang took the party.
Theirs is the task of reassuring the Malay ground that a moderate government operating under our Constitution is best for the country and for the Malays. This is a big task.
There is Muda. It is a new party led by Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman. As the name suggests it is a party for the young. Syed Saddiq himself is very young and relatively inexperienced.
Does he have the courage, resilience and consistency to lead a multiracial party? They have asked to be with the Harapan coalition. Harapan has invited them in but no agreement has been reached as to how many seats they will be given. That will be a difficult negotiation.
There is PSM. We understand that negotiations are ongoing with the Harapan leadership as to their contesting under the Harapan flag. PSM is a socialist party led by its iconic leader Dr. Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj. This party works hard on the ground trying to help the poorest of the poor. They have formulated proposals and taken initiatives that highlight and provide practical solutions for the poor. Harapan should look closely at some of their proposals. Poverty is a big issue in the country,
Should you vote for BN?
BN is really Umno, period. MCA and MIC really do not have any real influence within BN and therefore do not represent the Chinese or Indians in the country.
Within Umno itself there are many factions. There is the “court cluster” who are being prosecuted for breaches of the law. There are also decent people in Umno. Umno traditionally took on the role of protector of the Malay community.
Unfortunately, some within the party lost their way. Enriching oneself became the overriding priority. Ketuanan Melayu became the ruling principle. That led to the exclusion of Malays and Chinese from the government and armed forces.
Umno needs reforms. There is little sign of that process taking place within the party. They first denied that 1MDB ever took place and now they maintain that the prosecution of Umno leaders for 1MDB crimes is politically motivated.
The BN has been the ruling party since independence. We have had good leaders from BN. They took us through independence (as the Alliance), through Malaysia and now through the pandemic.
Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, they deviated from being a moderate party for all races to become a party that promoted the ketuanan Melayu policy and joined PAS in its push for hudud law.
And more recently, the party has been in the middle of so many scandals involving billions. It was during their watch that poverty levels have become so high affecting about 15 percent of the population.
Bank Negara also said that about 40 percent of Malaysians earn less than a living wage - an amount sufficient to meet their daily expenses.
What about PAS? PAS under Nik Aziz was a different party altogether. Nik Aziz reassured everybody with his deep spirituality and his integrity.
PAS’ Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat and Abdul Hadi AwangPAS has never been good at administration as the lack of development in the PAS-controlled states will show. But few would have questioned the integrity of their administration under Nik Aziz.
Nik Aziz was also inclusive in his approach to other races and religions. When some churches were attacked, Nik Aziz rushed to one of the churches to reassure the congregation that he was with them.
But PAS under Hadi is a different “creature” altogether. He said that non-Muslims cannot be leaders in government or hold high office. A dishonest Muslim leader is better than an honest non-Muslim leader.
He wants an Islamic state and hudud Law. PAS under Hadi could never be a party acceptable to non-Muslims.
Sabah and Sarawak
Sabah and Sarawak joined Malaya to form the Federation of Malaysia. They came with high expectations. Today the indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak constitute 12 percent of our population.
They have become the poorest of the poor. They have been let down by their own state leaders as well as the federal government.
Together, they have 57 seats in Parliament and theoretically could be kingmakers. Unfortunately, their leaders are less concerned about their people and more concerned about themselves. Who should they vote for?
Whom to vote?
Clearly, non-Muslims cannot support PAS and their exclusionary policies or even Umno if the ruling philosophy or ideology is going to be Ketuanan Melayu. They must vote for parties that are multiracial, believe in the Constitution and are committed to the welfare of all our people.
Malays also should think carefully about a system of government that excludes non-Malays from government or actively pursues policies and programmes that exclude non-Malays. Is that right? Is that lawful?
Malays are the majority and non-Malays including the bumiputras of Sabah and Sarawak are totally dependent on the Malays pursuing a moderate inclusive path giving life and meaning to the Federal Constitution and to the other agreements made with everyone.
There is a place for us all. We have all contributed to nation-building. Together we can make our country a great country and be an example to others. All Malaysians must be given opportunities to become what they want to be - achieve their full potential.
No community should be left behind. The poor must be the priority of the government.
Good governance is a major issue. Our national debt exceeds one trillion ringgit. Seventy percent of our budget goes to operational expenditure and debt servicing. Thirty percent of our revenue comes from oil and gas which is a depleting asset. The auditor-general has warned that debt servicing from borrowed money is not sustainable. The Chinese community contributes a significant amount of tax revenue. Their industriousness and their enterprise are good for the nation.
All races contribute to the well-being and to the advancement of the nation. And therefore, our government should be inclusive and pursue inclusive policies. There should be no place for racial discrimination or exclusion in Malaysia – whether in the public or private sector.
GE15 should be about honest leaders, good governance, and a united Malaysia. - Mkini
DAVID DASS is a lawyer, Malaysiakini subscriber and commentator.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT/

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