theSun | FRIDAY JULY 17 2009
speak up!
Is all politics
federal?
ANOTHER by-election with lots
of money and promises thrown
around, and 65 votes resulted in
another win – six out of seven –
for Pakatan Rakyat in post-March
8 by-elections. I can imagine my
old politics teacher thumping on
the whiteboard and insisting that
this was an excellent result for
the people of this particular con-
stituency: money and promises
are invoked with special gusto in
the marginal constituencies, and
thus it follows that the thosai-thin
majority is fantastic for the peo-
ple of Manek Urai. Conversely,
people living in safe or no-hope
constituencies (where there are
large majorities) lose out. It is a
major criticism of the first-past-
the-post system which explic-
itly links single representatives
to single constituencies, because
in general elections, it gives vot-
ers living in marginal seats much
more power than those living in
safe seats.
However, my teacher would
be speaking in the British con-
text, where the main parties have
rather more equal resources
between them than the two coali-
tions in Malaysia, and where the
advantages of incumbency are
arguably less potent – whether
because of differences in the
observance of electoral laws and
customs or simply as a result of
a long tradition of two-and-a-
half-party politics (a term used
to encompass the Liberal Demo-
crats in addition to Labour and
the Conservatives).
Still another important
dynamic in Malaysia is the divi-
sion between federal and state,
though it is difficult to see to what
extent this is appreciated by the
campaigns themselves. Although
local issues were raised in the
campaign – the impact of rub-
ber prices on the constituency’s
population, for example – these
by-elections have still been seen
by the parties and the public at
large as indications of popularity
at the national level, not about
how the candidates will perform
in relation to their duties in the
assembly according to the powers
given to it in the Ninth Schedule
of Federal Constitution.
“All politics is local,” said a
former Speaker of the US House
of Representatives, but in Malay-
sia, one might wonder whether
“all politics is federal”. Certainly,
there’s evidence that the different
heads of government have been
doing things differently – par-
ticularly the Pakatan ones since
they are drawn from parties in a
coalition of more or less equals
competing against one another.
The push for local councils in
Penang is another interesting
Use crash-proof guardrails
I REFER to “28 hurt as bus plunges into m-cycle lane” (July 15). From
the photos, it is clear that there was no crash-proof guardrail separating
the pedestrian walkway from the traffic.
The guardrail shown is merely a pedestrian railing that will not
prevent even a compact car from plunging towards the motorcycle
lane. Wire rope safety barriers that can withstand the impact of heavy
vehicles should be installed to protect pedestrians and motorcyclists.
Bus lanes must also be marked out along the Federal Highway.
11
Abiding
Times
by Tunku ‘Abidin
Muhriz
development which may help
advance the decentralisation
debate.
But in terms of by-elections,
it is encouraging nonetheless
to note that the indigenousness
of the candidate has become a
prominent point of discussion
in the campaigns, in addition to
the usual highlighting of other
qualifications or lack thereof.
Though the accentuation of
candidates’ individual qualities
may be a useful device in steer-
ing the debate away from federal
obsession, the fact remains that
without democratisation of the
candidate selection process, the
individuals chosen are likely to
feel disproportionately beholden
to their parties over their con-
stituents.
Nonetheless, we are where
we are, and the spin machines
have been set to dizzy: “A win is
still a win” versus “it’s our moral
victory”. PAS was punished, for
sure, but already there’s debate
over whether this was because
of perceived over-enthusiasm for
the Pakatan or conversely dissat-
isfaction with the “Malay unity”
episode. The party’s internal
debate over its future direction
will surely continue to rumble.
This column has always been
a proponent of competition and
choice over ideas and issues: if
the two parties are indistinguish-
able then elections cease to be
instruments for the general good.
Seven by-elections after March 8,
2008, and yet sometimes it feels
like we haven’t fully deserted
our pre-renaissance state, where
the genuine puppet masters of
Malaysian politics are the sturdy
strings of patronage, controlling
characters to cast shadows for
the mere amusement, rather
than full participation, of the
audience.
Speaking of audience partici-
pation, there’s nothing quite like
a vigorous dance fest to get the
body moving, and The Merchants
of Bollywood (Istana Budaya,
July 14-26), fits the bill perfectly.
The storyline is greasier than roti
canai but the dancing is exqui-
site, and certainly educational in
terms of the styles exhibited. The
solo dances, particularly those of
the lead character, Ayesha, are
mesmerising. You’d have to be a
stolid bore to not join the chants
of “more!” after the closing hit
It’s the time to disco from Kal Ho
Naa Ho.
(My apologies to Col Lim
Thuan Hu of RMAF whose name
I got wrong last week.)
Tunku ’Abidin Muhriz is director
of the Malaysia Think Tank. Com-
ments: letters@thesundaily.com
M. Zulkarnain Hamzah
Shah Alam