Much is expected of new Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. His elevation as the country's 5th premier came after a political career of much turmoil and tribulation.

His ascension to take over from record holder and Malaysia Boleh proponent Dr Mahathir Mohamad is seen by many as a stabilizer after his predecessor's high-profile politics. The fact that Pak Lah or Mr Nice Guy made it while others fell by the wayside says so much the high premium on loyalty placed by Dr Mahathir.

In fact it was loyalty that enabled Pak Lah to return to the fold after a short stint out in the cold for supporting what was then famously called Team B led by former finance minister Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. History has it that Razaleigh and Mahathir's first deputy premier Musa Hitam joined forces in a failed attempt to unseat the incumbent.

The 1987 Umno battle saw Dr M scraping with a razor-thin win. Razaleigh's men took the matter to court and Umno was declared an illegal party in 1988. The political demise of Dr M's strongest challengers Musa and Razaleigh left the road open to other leaders to move up the ranks - the main beneficiaries being Tun Ghafar Baba, a stop-gap deputy, and rising star Anwar Ibrahim.

Anwar went to challenge Ghafar for the deputy presidency of Umno and won handsomely. He was later rewarded with the number two post. Of course we all know what happened to Anwar after that, although what was revealed in court may be far from the truth!

Which brings me back to the Pak Lah equation. To talk about his political rise, one cannot help but mention his relationship with Anwar, a fellow son of Penang. Although Pak Lah comes from a religious background and was active in Umno a lot earlier than Anwar, Dr M has always seen the latter as the one person capable of leading the nation to greater heights and more importantly take PAS by the horns!

It was a big coup for Dr M when he managed to persuade the PAS-inclined Anwar to join Umno. Anwar's rise in Umno and the government was nothing short of meteoric. The rise of this charismatic young man put Pak Lah in the shade, leaving him to take the logical step of joining Team B.

This was a mistake by Pak Lah as it opened up the way for Anwar to strengthen his political grassroots. With it came that all important position of Penang Umno chief. But luck was on his side as years later, Anwar turned out to be a much bigger threat to Dr M and was dealt with severely. The dice again came Pak Lah's way and when he was given a second bite to prove his loyalty, the Penangite took it with both hands and waited patiently for his turn.

A new era has dawned on Malaysians with Pak Lah as the new PM and much is expected of the man many believe cannot last beyond one term. If there is one lesson that he can learn from Dr M, it is that he must never abandon his grassroots.

Many may argue that Dr M did not abandon his grassroots but this was what actually happened as PAS took a foothold while he was away on the world stage, taking on global leaders on issues not close to the heart of the ordinary Malaysians.

Grassroots politics is about Umno and the strong votes of the Penang Malays. At the rate things are going, Umno will be hard-pressed to deliver the Malays votes to BN as the Malays are disillusioned with their poor standard of living.

It is evident that the BN Government under Gerakan has done little to address the Malay problem driving the Malays to the arms of PAS. This is because Gerakan and MCA has nothing much better to do than fight each other 24 hours a day although they may try to portray a united image on the surface.

What made things worse is that the Penang Umno leaders too did not help as they only go for material gains from projects while the poor Umno members are left unattended.

Let us hope that with a Penangite as prime minister, Penang Malays will see a better future. Leaving the plight of the Penang Malays in the hands of a State government led by Gerakan or MCA will the worst thing that can happen as both parties are not sincere in helping.

Penang Malays are sick of political slogans and they want action fast. Slow reaction from the top will only push the Malays to the arms of PAS who are waiting their arrival with glee.

This is one mistake Pak Lah cannot afford to make. The ball is in your court. Pak Lah, this is your call!