Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) must ensure that the race for the deputy president's post goes right, as Malaysia cannot afford any more wasted time. The stakes are high which explains the innuendos and sub-plots. Despite the acerbic atmosphere created, the public airing is nevertheless being conducted in a democratic one-man-one-vote manner.

PKR members, including its higher echelons, have been upset by some of the recent comments. This is part of the journey towards improvement. However, all the gerrymandering and personal slights are counterproductive.

NONE Although Umno has overseen the deterioration of Malaysia, Malaysians won't allow the country to be held hostage any longer. As Umno has been negligent, then PKR must be voted in to create a two-party system.

If PKR is to become a trusted political party, big changes are necessary. A party should be about policies and not personalities.

Will members find this acceptable? Instead of being a setback, this internal crisis is really an opportunity in disguise: A crisitunity.

Never before, in PKR's short history, has the race for the deputy presidency assumed greater significance. However, it resembles a playground spat with lots of hissing, name calling and personal attacks. Is this what potential leaders aspire to?

Zaid Ibrahim's name is brandished as if he is anathema to PKR. His loyalty and contributions have been questioned. He is accused of acting on behalf of Umno and Chinese businessmen. He is allegedly backing the repulsive and opportunistic Rahimi Osman.

zaid azmin pkr party election 220910 Although we might want to exclude ex-Umno members from the senior ranks of PKR, we do not have that luxury.

It is pointless saying Zaid is untrustworthy because he is ex-Umno. So too, are Azmin Ali and Anwar Ibrahim. We are prepared to give Anwar the benefit of the doubt, and Azmin, by default as he supported Anwar through thick and thin. So, why not Zaid?

Hypocricy is nauseating

This is where the hypocrisy displayed by those who question Zaid's involvement in PKR is nauseating.

Azmin's character assassination of Zaid, calling him a ‘desperado' and a ‘Trojan horse' in interviews with Berita Harian , is wrong.

Much was made of Zaid and his interview with an Umno-controlled paper. Isn't getting the message across important? Every little bit helps. Moreover, ‘Umno people' are too pig-headed to read anything but an ‘Umno paper'.

Is Azmin being disingenuous or is he just showing the common lack of principle that is becoming more prevalent in modern politics? Why did Azmin ignore his special relationship with Anwar to challenge Zaid's suitability, after Anwar had welcomed Zaid into PKR?

There are further worrying aspects to Azmin's hypocrisy: The first is that as a veteran politician, he should not stoop to name-calling. A potential candidate should campaign along lines of policy and reform, not gutter politics. Azmin's stand on many issues remains vague.

The second and more depressing point is that we forget that Zaid is a man of integrity. He resigned his post as the law minister, in protest, when prominent individuals were arrested under the ISA. He was also frustrated at the lack of political will to institute reforms in the scandal-ridden judiciary. He was later sacked from Umno.

Last week, Senator Tunku Abdul Aziz Ibrahim, at a PKR dialogue in London, said those who chose not to support Umno were vilified and treated with contempt and had job opportunities withdrawn. By sticking to his principles, Zaid lost more than just his job.

Zaid expounded some of his policies in his proposal for change, to propel PKR to new political heights. At the launch of Friends of PKR in July, he warned about the rise of fascism in Malaysia.

It is Azmin who should stop carping about his loyalty to Anwar and his length of time in PKR. Important though they are, it is time we shifted into a higher gear and think about the common goal of driving Malaysia out of the abyss.

Experience of real life

People whose working life is spent in politics, lack experience of the real world. It is not healthy for politics to be dominated by an elite who started off their careers in political jobs.

Zaid may lack experience in PKR but in contrast, he has experience of real life when he built up his law firm.

Far too many MPs and ministers, including our Prime Minister, had little or no experience before entering politics. These people see their posts as a career move rather than an opportunity to serve the public.

malaysia parliament parlimen The political career starts from school, progresses through being a political activist at university, then becoming an MP's researcher, a special adviser, and finally MP.

We need someone who will govern the party, and country, with the wisdom of experience. We do not need so-called leaders who listen to the advice of their political advisers, who have no more experience than they do. It seems a case of the blind leading the blind.

Is there a link between the deteriorating state of our country and the manner in which politicians started off in politics, as young aspiring candidates with little worldly experience? Have these people sufficient enthusiasm for the job? Can their experience help with their work? Few have any outside interests.

A wealth of outside experience

Only those who have worked outside the political arena can honestly say they represent the people. They are the only people that Parliament really deserves.

We want politicians and MPs who don't consider their post as a sinecure. We want men and women of good standing and financial integrity who wish to serve their country.

Without being able to draw from a wealth of outside experience, we find ourselves electing career politicians who micro-manage and govern badly.

Image-conscious political buffoons are not wanted. In the selection process MPs must be drawn from a wider pool. Where are those who know hardship and struggle to make ends meet?

We cannot afford petty grievances and personal ambition to delay the implementation of reforms, for several more decades.

Azmin's loyalty is commendable, but it isn't on its own a suitable qualification for any political post, if he is not the right person for the job. We need the best man for the rôle and not someone who views the plum political posting as the means to an end.

 

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a non-conformist traditionalist from Perak, a bucket chemist and an armchair eco-warrior. In ‘real-speak', this translates into that she comes from Ipoh, values change but respects culture, is a petroleum chemist and also an environmental pollution-control scientist.