Is the ISA repeal another whitewash, a vote buying exercise for the upcoming general elections or a ploy to boost flagging ratings for our beleaguered Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak? Perhaps it is all of the above.

azlan In the past few days, there have been serious allegations about Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia being offered secure employment and citizenship, in exchange for voting rights; provided they vote for the current ruling party.

If the allegations are proven true, then the interest of all Malaysians is being compromised and our national security threatened.

The Tourism Malaysia slogan, ‘Malaysia, Truly Asia' will then be most apt. That is when 1Malaysia encompasses Malays, Chinese, Indians, Indonesians, Filipinos and also Bangladeshis.

To the Ketuanan Melayu brigade, the non-Malays and non-Muslims need not be part of this new 1Malaysia equation.

Not long ago, Malaysians were incensed by similar allegations of citizenship and voting rights, being granted to around three million Indonesians and Filipinos. This means that roughly 10 percent of our population is not legitimate; they have just been shipped in to prop up Umno.

But if this were to be adjusted to apply to the section of the population who are eligible to vote, the percentage of ‘illegal voters', would be considerably higher.

Is Najib worth listening to? Haven't we experienced several ‘U'-turns and broken pledges?

The PM reneged on his promises to the Bersih 2.0 organisers. Najib also said he would ‘leave no stone unturned' when he promised Teoh Beng Hock's parents that their son's mysterious death would be investigated.

 No reflection

Najib is an international thrill-seeker. Take for instance his rhetoric at the 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, when he declared: "We must choose negotiations over confrontation. We must choose to work together and not against each other. And we must give this effort utmost priority for time is not on our side."

najib abdul razak maybank 090911 front profile story image What he says overseas is no reflection of the extremist acts he perpetuates at home.

Nevertheless, Najib ( left) is right. Time is not on his side: GE-13 is imminent, his popularity has dipped from 72 percent to 59 percent in fifteen months and the power-struggle within the ranks of Umno may unseat him from power.

Najib heaped praise on the British for coming to the aid of the Malaysian student injured in the London riots, but omitted to tell them how his police did not exercise restraint when they attacked the peaceful Bersih 2.0 protestors.

Meanwhile, Malaysians are told to tighten their belts and yet the self-styled ‘First Family' flit around the world at the taxpayers' expense, ostensibly on official business. Far too many of these trips include private family functions.

We struggle with rising inflation but Najib doesn't flinch when his residence is renovated at a staggering RM65 million and the "First Lady" is allegedly bedecked in fine gemstones and carries handbags that would rival Margaret Thatcher, Victoria Beckham and Paris Hilton combined.

In May last year, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina attended the 66th World Islamic Economic Forum in Kuala Lumpur and subsequently met Najib to discuss issues which included legalising Bangladeshis working in Malaysia.

A few days ago, the NGO Affairs Bureau of the Bangladesh Prime minister's Office website, stated that Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia had been granted citizenship from the Malaysian Government and given the right to vote in any upcoming general election.

NONE The link to the website , which has since been deleted, reported Sheikh Hasina ( left ) urging her people to grab the opportunity to "lower the national poverty in line with government's initiative and numerous measures to solve all major problems, including power and gas crises".

What with these allegations about the EC's incompetence and BN's manipulation of the electoral register, Najib knows he is fighting a losing battle for public support.

Recently we have been entertained with side shows to distract us, such as the claim that Malaya was never colonised.

Whilst we deliberated on whether the Brits were ‘invited' to govern us or not, the true scandal about the legal status of our foreign workers was ignored.

The latest shock announcement of the ISA repeal is another distraction. Our euphoria meant we neglected the serious issue of the citizenship-for-votes scandal.

If Najib is sincere, why did he not elaborate on the new laws which he said would replace the ISA? Why did his deputy appear to be just as surprised as we were? Why only now?

 Buying time

Najib is aware he would need an act of Parliament to abolish the ISA. He is just buying time and knows that most of us will have forgotten about the ISA repeal, when the time comes to cast our votes.

Despite this, Najib had the audacity to declare that the credit to abolish the ISA is BN's, for listening to the rakyat. He stressed that from the time he started his premiership, his intention had always been to end the ISA, because Malaysia would be a ‘more progressive democracy'.

He said, "We wish to see a balance between openness and individual rights while at the same time preserving peace and harmony. We will also build a nation that looks after both the interests of the public and the individual because Malaysian society now is a knowledge society which demands renewal to assure the people's future as well as civil liberties."

So what happened to the rakyat's other wishes? Like the one for clean, free and fair elections? Or transparency in governance? Or ridding the nation of money politics?

anwar ibrahim and wan azizah sodomy trial Will our children receive a decent education or will they flip-flop from English to Bahasa and back? Can Najib steer us away from academics intent on erasing our history? When will corruption be tackled properly rather than enlisting taxi-drivers to be the MACC's informers?

Days after Najib's ISA news, he stressed that Malaysia was a parliamentary democracy where parties were more important than individuals and that he was undaunted by a presidential-style debate with Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim ( right ).

He boasted, "I'm not afraid of Anwar Ibrahim."

As always, Najib's infantile jibe is so redolent of Malaysian politics. He has also underestimated the Malaysian people.

Any half-witted people's representative should have known that it is the rakyat that any politician should fear most.

 

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.