Malaysia is now at its dawn moment.
It was observed that the people have no more trust for the government and government institution where corruption is so rampant that it is almost the norm rather than exception.
Economy is stagnant, despite the rosy figures. Inflation is so high that even our roads are not as congested as before, bearing in mind that Malaysians like to drive. Foreign investments are not coming in. Stock market is down.
Leaders of both ruling and opposition parties are at each others’ throats.
As opposition leader, Anwar will prompt the BN’s fall because there are still many unresolved grouses from the BN component parties within a coalition dominated by Umno.
It also showed that voters were disappointed in the BN and continued to reject the ruling coalition after the 8 March elections because there were no changes.
The point is, the votes were not Opposition votes. They were votes aimed at bringing in fresh ideas, new blood and the political energy to overcome the inertia.
The problem is, the Opposition is still a minority, and a divided one at that. It is unlikely that a shared coherent approach to the challenges facing Malaysia today will emerge from this side of the fence. But when people go to the ballot box, they may not be so rational. Some get carried away by emotion.
Anwar would not only be able to sway Sabah and Sarawak Members of Parliament, he might even be able to convince the BN’s peninsula-based component parties, such as the MCA and Gerakan, to cross over.
After Pak Lah came into power, he promised to fight against corruption and reform the police but until now, there are no obvious signs that show that his objectives have been realised.
There is no follow up and there’s a lack of political will. All we hear are just slogans. The Chinese community is very practical. They will judge (him) based on what they see is being done. The Chinese are starting to miss (former premier) Dr Mahathir Mohamad because he had the force to push for economic activities. Compared to him, the current economy under Pak Lah is sluggish and slow.
Although we don’t see the effect (of PM’s promises) immediately, one is still able to gauge the trend of his policies whether it is progressive, stagnant or regressive. If it’s so hard to hold an inter-religious dialogue, there were worried how much more time is needed to be given to him.
It is not possible to demand for something to be done immediately but it is also not fair to give unlimited time for him to prove himself. If there are no obvious improvements in his one term tenure as PM, this reflects the lack of political will and administrative force.
