Malaysia’s Leadership A Trinket

M. Bakri Musa

The latest UMNO shenanigans effectively reduced the party’s (and thus the country’s) leadership to a Sunday market trinket, to be haggled between a desperate discredited seller trying to get the best possible deal, and a bankrupt buyer who has only his incumbency to offer as currency.

Tengku Razaleigh, in referring to the tussle between Abdullah Badawi and Najib Razak, said, “… [W]e are embarrassed at the sight of two grown men playing this endless children’s game of ‘yours and mine’ with the most important responsibility in the land, oblivious of the law, oblivious to the damage they are doing to the nation.” The Prince’s observation on the damage wrecked on Malaysia is spot on, declaring that Malaysia had been reduced to a banana republic and a laughing stock

What Abdullah and Najib do not realize is that the value of the trinket they are frantically bargaining over keeps dropping. While the two are consumed with striking a deal between them, they fail to notice that Anwar Ibrahim is on the sideline, ready and willing to take over, thus effectively reducing the two protagonists and their trinket to irrelevance.

Meanwhile the important business of running the country is neglected. They have been consumed with lobbying their followers, as well as engaging in hours of “four eyes only” meetings, haggling over when, how, and at what price the trinket would be handed over. They are oblivious to the nation’s compounding problems, from the massive public health hazard of contaminated milk products imported from China to the American credit crunch that will soon spread around the world.

It is time to make these two characters irrelevant. It is time to let this desperate drowning duo strangle each other and sink to the bottom of the cesspool they have created for themselves.

Our priority is to make sure that they do not drag the nation down with them. This responsibility falls heavily on those leaders of the opposition, in particular Anwar Ibrahim. He has to be ready to take over and make the necessary preparations now, especially with regards to policies and personnel.

The Price Keeps Dropping

Right after the March 8, 2008 electoral debacle, Abdullah declared that he still had the people’s trust. Then with confidence borne out of ignorance a la the village idiot, he asserted that he would serve his full second term. He even intimated that he might lead his coalition to its third electoral victory in 2013!

Such detachment from reality! It was merely out of courtesy (that is the trademark of our culture), and respect for the highest office of the land that Abdullah was not laughed off the stage. Unfortunately he mistook that as acceptance, if not rousing endorsement, aided by his cronies, advisers, and family members feeding his fantasy. The world knew better.

On the surface Abdullah did seem to have a mandate. After all, his coalition secured a comfortable though not the usual two-third majority in Parliament. On closer scrutiny however, his Barisan coalition barely scrapped through the popular vote, while many of the seats won were only with the slimmest of majority. That election also saw five states, including some of the most developed, repudiating Abdullah’s leadership.

When the rumblings of discontent over his leadership became louder, especially after his coalition’s thumping at the Permatang Pauh by-election, Abdullah was forced to lower his bid, but just a tad. He now thought he could satisfy his detractors by agreeing to hand over power by June 2010. He set it far enough ahead such that should circumstances shift, he could conveniently change his mind. Abdullah was counting that people would not see through his not-so-sly scheming.

Again, he misjudged the public, and his party’s mood.

Following a ruckus September 2008 UMNO Supreme Council meeting in which a few finally caught on to the reality and spoke up, albeit tentatively and a little belatedly, Abdullah lowered further his asking price. Now he did not rule out on an earlier transfer, clarifying that the June 2010 date was meant to be the latest when he would quit.

That pacified the dissidents, including the outspoken Muhyiddin Yassin and the hitherto “Iron Lady” Rafidah Aziz. They were an easily-mollified bunch.

Then following the gathering of his clan, and undoubtedly convinced once again by them, Abdullah backtracked. They prevailed upon him that his leadership was worth more and that he should hold out for a better price. That triggered yet another volley of dissatisfaction.

At a special meeting of the Supreme Council last week, presumably to discuss specifically the leadership transition, Abdullah was given an ultimatum. He must decide by October 9, 2008 on whether to defend his leadership. The alternative presumably would be to quit.

To an average observer with a modicum of commonsense, that was just another nice way for the council to say, in the grand Asian tradition of “saving face,” that it no longer had confidence in Abdullah. Abdullah however is thick-skulled and a tad slow on the uptake. Besides, another round of meetings with his clan and they would convince him that indeed was not the intent of the council. “Flip-flop” Abdullah listens to whoever has his ear last.

More to the point, that council’s decision was meaningless. If Abdullah were to decide not to defend his position at the now-postponed UMNO convention, the country would still be faced with a leadership crisis and uncertainty for the next six months. Everyone would be consumed with positioning themselves. No effective government work would be done as every UMNO politician would be busy politicking.

On the other hand, if he decided to cling on, it would still create a leadership uncertainty, and there would still be heavy intrigue and campaigning. Nothing would have changed. Our nation’s business would still be unattended.

Abdullah has again abused our traditional Malay culture of halus, the subtle way. The gullible Muhyiddin went so far as to describe Abdullah’s latest “decision” as “magnanimous!” No word from the “Iron Lady.” As I said, they are easily satisfied. I wonder how long before UMNO Supreme Council members realize that they had once again been had by him.

As for Najib, he is burdened with his own considerable baggage. He would like that trinket be handed over to him as if it were his due, and without contest, all in the name of party unity of course. Contest means having to scrutinize his record, which is not pretty. In fact it is sordid.

If only there were some jantans in UMNO Supreme Council, they would have long ago given Abdullah an ultimatum. Resign or we push for a “no confidence” vote! That is the only language Abdullah understands: direct and brutal. There cannot be any subtlety or he will pretend to miss it.

It does not take a jantan to do that, only some responsible adults concerned about the lack of leadership and the country being left adrift. Absent that, rest assured that come October 9, Abdullah will again waffle, and UMNO Supreme Council will have to find yet another face-saving device to spare some modicum of respect to someone who clearly no longer deserves any.

I could not care less about those UMNO Supreme Council members except that they are also the leaders of our country. That is the scary part. If they cannot stand up to a limp Abdullah Badawi, how can we expect them to face up to a President Bush, China’s Hu, or even Singapore’s Lee. That is what terrifies the heck out of me, as it should all Malaysians.

Meanwhile Malaysians are reduced to watching the bizarre haggling over an increasingly worthless trinket between their two top but desperate leaders. We all should be embarrassed by that, not just Tengku Razaleigh.

Guest Commentary:

Eid in Jogjakarta

Farish A. Noor

It has been many years, more than two decades in fact, since I last enjoyed celebrating Eidul Fitri anywhere in the world. Over the past decade Eid has always been a poignant moment for me, as I reflect on how badly things have deteriorated for Muslims the world over. It is sad, to say the least, that despite all the efforts of legions of progressive Muslim academics, activists and leaders the world over, the image of Islam and Muslims worldwide has taken such a battering in the wake of 11 September 2001.

During my long stay in Europe, Ramadan was often a testing time when academic-activists like myself would be drawn into public debates about how Islam constituted a “threat” to European identity (while of course the fact that the capitals of Western Europe have been colonized by scores of McDonalds and KFC outlets is seen as something perfectly normal, as if Chicken fried ala’ Kentucky state was as European as croissants, bratwurst or fish and chips…).

After 21 years of living in Europe and watching the slide to the extreme right in the politics of countries like Holland, Austria and Germany, it makes a huge difference to be back in Asia and in Java in particular, the home of my ancestors. The past two months however have been laborious as I was trekking across all of Java as part of my research project. Finally, after eight weeks of non-stop travel and fieldwork, I found myself tired, smelly, dirty but contented as I nestled back in my adopted hometown of Jogjakarta, just in time to catch the takbir that announced the end of Ramadan and the coming of Eid.

What followed can only be described as spectacular in the most over-stated way: Within an hour of the maghrib azan, the streets of Jogja were crammed and overflowing with thousands of motorbikes as the student body of this campus-based town spilled onto the streets. Boys and girls from Jogja’s many universities and colleges took to their bikes, claiming the city as the urban landscape turned into a riot of colors. Spontaneous street parades popped up from nowhere, neighborhood street bands and school bands marched up and down every street and alley, fireworks popped and fizzed in the sky, and every home was lit with a plethora of colors. The atmosphere was gay and electric, and in the main square a pop concert was held as rock musicians and religious preachers took to the microphone singing songs of God and Love. God and Love: this is the Islam that seldom, if ever, gets coverage in the international media that seems more obsessed with the image of Islam as a religion of hate and violence.

For outsiders, including Malaysians who live next door to Indonesia yet know little about their own neighbors, this would have been a revelation. How could Ramadan and Eid be celebrated with such gusto and abandon? Could Islam really be as colorful and happy as this?

Yet I was there watching as hundred of kids ran about carrying lanterns and dragon and lion dance masks. Yes, dragon and lion dance masks that in neighboring Malaysia or Singapore would be immediately identified as Chinese, and consequently non-Muslim. Yet here there were hundreds of Muslim kids playing around, laughing, cheering, and smiling with dragon and lion dance masks without even thinking for a second that they could be signifiers of an alien culture. What after all, is alien about Chinese culture? Have not the Chinese in Indonesia been here for half a millennium already? To the everlasting credit of Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur), President of the Nahdatul Ulama, he will forever be remembered as the Indonesian President who with a stroke of his pen immediately classified all the Chinese of Indonesia as natural citizens and pribumis, in recognition of their immense contribution to Indonesian history, politics and culture. This is what happens when you have a progressive, open, pluralist Muslim leader in power.

The Churches were lit in Jogja and the citizens of all faiths and communities came out to celebrate Eid together, as one big family (keluarga besar) that lived, worked, loved and suffered together. Jogjakarta’s sense of identity is as strong as its neighboring city of Surakarta – where I am also based as Professor at Muhamadiyah University Solo – and in both cities we see how Indonesians have managed to build a sense of common identity and solidarity on the basis of a shared Indonesian citizenship where race and ethnicity have become secondary. It is to the credit of my Indonesia activist-academic friends and comrades that in both Jogja and Solo we have set up a common alliance between Muslim, Christian, Hindu and Buddhist groups to counter all forms of fascist, racist, communitarian and sectarian politics be it in the corridors of power, the media or even academia. These are my friends, brave souls every one of them, who work hard despite the pittance they earn as academics and activists; all for the love of knowledge and the hope that the reformasi movement in Indonesia will eventually reach its appointed destination of creating a country that is free, fair and equal for all.

In the midst of this, Islam and activism go hand in hand, and it is for that reason that the Islamic culture we see in places like Jogja and Solo – despite the emergence of right-wing extremists in our midst – remains open, plural and democratic. Indonesia’s progressive Muslim intellectuals realize that piety cannot be reduced to empty slogans or stale formalism only, but needs to be put to practice. You cannot call yourself a Muslim if you stand passively by and watch the rise of fascist, racist politics before your very eyes, any more than a pious Muslim can stand by and watch a child be molested and raped while doing nothing.

The result of the combined efforts to keep Indonesian Islam alive, vibrant and dynamic were demonstrated last night as I watched this city celebrate Eid in a manner unmatched anywhere else on this planet. The laughter, humor, joy and spirit of celebration that was so tangible that you could taste it in the air is something that Muslims in many other parts of the world have lost or forgotten. For that reason alone, we should take time to ponder the many roads not taken in the development of a democratic, progressive, activist-oriented Islam elsewhere in the world.

For now however, I am left with the happy prospect of relaxing for a few days in Jogja before returning to my humdrum labors back at the university. And while doing so, I thank Jogjakarta and Surakarta for giving me a glimpse to the past, and helping me recover the many Eids that I have lost over the years.

Dr. Farish A. Noor is affiliated professor at Universitas Muhamadiyah Surakarta and Sunan Kalijaga Islamic University, Jogjakarta.

Towards A Competitive Malaysia #74

Chapter 11: Learning From Our Successes

Peaceful Merdeka

Many nations endlessly glorify their battles for independence, with the citizens incessantly lionizing their fallen heroes. Malaysia is thankfully spared such a fate; we negotiated our freedom. If there were any liquid spilled on the occasion, it would have been the splashing of champagne as the Malaysian delegation celebrated its successful mission. The Tunku who led the team was a Muslim, butnot of the fundamentalist variety; he was not above such occasional indulgences.

As he so often readily and humbly admitted, he had his weaknesses! Malaysians have no epic tales of titanic battles and heroic exploits against the colonialists to delight and inspire the young. Thus it would be easy to belittle our achievement. The Indonesians are particularly fond of doing that to us. They mock us for our lack of heroes like their fiery and charismatic Sukarno. I much prefer heroes the likes of Tunku to the Sukarnos and Ho Chin Minhs. Conveniently forgotten in their adulation of these “freedom fighters” are the thousands of innocent lives killed or maimed in the pursuit of the dreams of these heroes. I am glad that my parents, brothers and uncles were not killed in unnecessary battles fighting the British. If that were the price for Malaysia lacking heroes and freedom fighters, I accept it gladly.

It is appropriate to ask why Malaysia was successful in negotiating its way to independence while others were not. It could not simply be the tide of history, with being an imperial power no longer chic and that Britain would have given up its colonies anyway. Britain is still holding tight to Northern Ireland, and stayed right to the very last day of its lease over Hong Kong. The Russians still think that having colonies is cool; they brutally suppress the independence movement in Chechnya. The Chinese think that colonizing Tibet is their divine right.

The Tunku successfully sweet-talked the British into granting Malaysia its independence. He was smart enough to recognize that Britain would never have granted independence until it was assured that our multiracial Malaysians would not massacre one another once we were on our own. The British did not want to repeat the tragic Indian catastrophe. There was a foretaste of what a racial conflict in Malaysia would be like during the brief period of lawlessness between the Japanese surrendering and Britain taking over right after World War II.

It was the genius of the Tunku that he was able to convince the British that we Malaysians (or Malayans as were then called) could live together peacefully without the British being around to keep us calm and civilized. He demonstrated that admirably and convincingly by forming a coalition of the political parties of the three major races.

Achieving independence peacefully is one thing; doing something positive with it is another. Under the Tunku, Malaysia’s independence was a transforming event. He saw it not as an opportunity for personal or national aggrandizement but for developing his people. Unlike Sukarno who splurged on expensive and useless military hardware, the Tunku built schools and trained teachers.

It was not simply a matter of one leader making a wise choice and the other a foolish one. It was more fundamental. Sukarno felt that he was sent by God specifically to lead the Indonesian people; it was his manifest destiny. His fate was foretold in some old Javanese legend, and retold many times over by obscure village séances and fortunetellers. He knew what to do; God had given him special powers, so he believed. Those who disagreed with him, like his able deputy Dr. Mohammad Hatta, would suffer the terrible consequences.

The modest Tunku on the other hand did not have that fatal conceit, to use von Hayek’s memorable phrase. He knew he was not destined for greatness. He stumbled upon the leadership of UMNO accidentally, when its towering leader and the man who founded the organization, Datuk Onn, walked out in a huff, sulking when his followers would not do his bidding. To be sure, the Tunku was no dummy; he had his Cambridge degree to prove that. When as a District Officer in some nondescript rural area of Kedah, he met an Indian soothsayer who predicted that the Tunku would one day be the country’s leader, he could hardly contain his mirth.

The Tunku recognized his limitations, a rare trait among leaders. Consequently he was not averse to seeking counsel and relying on others far smarter than he was. Intuitively and by extension he also recognized the limitations of his nation. He knew Malaysia could not afford an expensive military to face external threats as well as internal ones like the then still very active communist insurgency. Thus he signed a defense treaty with Britain. He saw no shame in doing that, nor did he perceive it as being in any way a slight on the new nation’s sovereignty. Spared a hefty military budget, he was able to concentrate on investments on his people.

Malaysia was lucky to be led at its birth by the Tunku. For too many nations,

independence meant nothing but endless disasters. India’s independence brought misery and massacre to millions. The continuing strife in Kashmir is a deadly reminder of the tragedy that was the Indian independence.

For much of the Arab world and the African continent, independence is but a cruel hoax on their citizens. Many undertake desperate measures to escape their country and enter the world of their previous colonizers.

Malaysians have a lot to thank the Tunku. Apart from sparing the nation from the dubious glories of the battles of independence, he also firmly committed Malaysia towards free enterprise. The Tunku must have been exposed to von Hayek at Cambridge, for the Tunku, like Hayek, saw through the falsity of socialism long before the rest of the world. Malaysia’s subsequent economic development owes much to that early commitment to free enterprise.

Next: Defeat of Communist Terrorists