To cross or not to cross?

Anwar said he has the numbers to effect a change of government. Pak Lah said he was bluffing. 916 which the Chinese dubbed as 'change of sky' came and gone. Nothing happened but the probability and uncertainty remain. Meanwhile Pak Lah gave up Finance Ministry for Defence Ministry in exchange with Najib. Some people see it as pre-emption for just in case.

What the people in general would like is a test to see if there was indeed a loss of confidence in BN under Pak Lah. What better way than to promise no emergency rule and let Anwar show what he has, in a mature manner?

Dr. Lim Mah Hui is of the opinion that Pakatan should show good governance in their 5 states instead of challenging the government of the day:

"It is appropriate to heed a couple of wise sayings: Rome was not built in a day; A house built on shifting sand will not last.

The PAKATAN should not be in too much of a hurry to “capture” power. The rakyat did not vote them to capture power. The rakyat voted them to provide checks and balances to the arrogant Barisan government, but the momentum was so huge that it toppled five state governments. Few expected that; not even the opposition parties who suddenly found themselves at the seat of government. They frantically have to transform themselves and their mental framework from being a critic of government to become the government itself. This is not an easy task but is not an impossible task.

We have many intelligent leaders in PAKATAN and the good thing is many do not have experience of corruption and money politics. The state governments of Penang and some other states have taken a pro-active stance in involving ordinary citizens and civic groups in their deliberations. Many professionals and civic groups have volunteered their services to these governments.

This is the real new dawn of mature participatory democracy in Malaysia.

The PAKATAN should focus on nurturing this rather than seeking to grab federal power. Once the PAKATAN can show that these 5 new state governments offer a new and clean political system to the rakyat, rest assured the corrupt and decadent political system of Barisan Nasional will be consigned to the dustbin of history. Power will naturally devolve to the PAKATAN. So be patient and build your own base and do not depend on defections to become the federal government. "

-Dr. Lim Mah Hui is currently a Senior Fellow of the Asian Public Intellectuals Program of the Nippon Foundation. He worked previously with various international banks and taught Political Economy and Sociology in universities in Malaysia and the U.S.

While Yeo Yong Poh, a Past President of Bar Council of Malaysia, wrote a detailed letter in Malaysiakini on:

The moral dilemma of political crossovers

"As the law stands today, there is no legal impediment to elected members of parliament crossing over to a different political party or platform. Attention is therefore switched to whether or not such crossovers are morally permissible."

Just this morning, Lim Kit Siang posted his reason for calling a fresh general election for a more definitive solution to the present dilemma:

Lim Kit Siang - Call for fresh general election now

"By all standards and logic, wouldn’t it be better to go back to the people than to impose an emergency rule for instance, to arrest the slide to political chaos and instability. Wouldn’t it be a better choice to ask the people to decide anew instead of allowing Pakatan Rakyat to frustrate the mandate given earlier to BN? Political democracy is about the wishes of the people — certainly not Anwar’s or the BN’s. Even if the people have had enough of the BN’s “misuse and abuse” of power, they can respond to this through the ballot box which is legal and democratic.

No parties, no politicians, and no quarters should be afraid to face the people. Malaysian democracy after all is by the people, of the people and for the people and this political system has been in place for decades.
With a new round of elections, parliament when it reconvenes — it does not matter if neither the ruling nor the opposition commands a two-thirds majority — should enact an Anti-Hop or Anti-Defection Law to make it illegal to defect from a platform on which a lawmaker is elected.

If a lawmaker so wishes to resign for whatever reasons, it shall be bounden on him or her to first vacate the seat and allow a by-election to take place. Again, it is all about going back to the people who must decide. Fair enough if some of those in our midst are talking about giving Pakatan Rakyat and Anwar a try at power, but they must give the opposition the mandate through a properly held election.

Let the electorate decide if they want to continue the political revolt of March 8. Allow the people alone to tell through the ballot box if they want BN to continue ruling and not through any party or political machinations that are not in tandem with the democratic and electoral processes."

Meanwhile, the spate of arrests under ISA (I call it 'Instant Stardom Arrest') for the slightest of reasons does not augur well for people who deal with political problems in a rational and gentlemanly manner.