COMMENT | Hamzah will be an effective mouthpiece for Hadi

"At the time, I did not object as I thought this would strengthen my position and enable Bersatu to become a stronger member of Harapan.”

– Dr Mahathir Mohamad admitted complicity in Bersatu's efforts to court support from Umno and PAS prior to the Sheraton Move using Hamzah Zainudin.

COMMENT | Perikatan Nasional secretary-general Hamzah Zainudin as Malaysia's new opposition leader is the perfect frontman for Abdul Hadi Awang and PN, the theocratic state in waiting.

Not only has Hamzah (above) ably demonstrated that he was an efficient bagman for the Malay uber alles crowd as evidenced by the quote from the old maverick that opens this piece, but he has also demonstrated his willingness to be outspoken on issues that the Malay uber alles crowd uses to demonise the “other” in this country.

Let us not be politically correct and spout horse manure like giving the new opposition leader a chance.

Hamzah was picked because he is not as compromised as Muhyiddin Yassin (which is not saying much) or as toxic (for the non-Malay and foreign audience) as Hadi.

However, his main goal is to push the agenda of the PN base which merely means that he will use every opportunity to spook the Anwar Ibrahim regime when it comes to Malay and Islamic rights.

Of course, he has to actually show up in Parliament to do this, but as Hadi says, Parliament is not like school, so attendance is optional.

Which is no laughing matter because these folks understand not having much schooling is not an impediment to political success especially if your currency is race and religion.

Do not even think that corruption is an issue. Folks like to say that the Umno base abandoned Umno because of corruption but the reality is that who they voted for were all Umno people (Bersatu) and what the hardcore base wanted was a makeover.

And keep in mind, Bersatu is not even the biggest political power in PN, it is PAS, and what people who voted for PAS want is a theocratic state where Syariah law would trump everything.

Hamzah, like most theocratic state frontmen, is there to perform to the wider world in fancy suits and a modicum of articulation especially when it comes to foreign audiences.

They are there to say, either “nothing to look at” or “do not interfere in our customs and laws”.

Look, what has defined the opposition in this country for decades? The answer is simple. The opposition to the hegemonic rule, the primacy of good governance, egalitarian rights for all citizens, the end of oppressive laws and essentially the idea that this country was for everyone.

Now this agenda may have been compromised over the long Umno watch. You could accuse the opposition of hypocrisy or you may even claim that they sacrificed principles on the altar of political expediency.

Through all of this, you have to acknowledge that the opposition did not want a theocratic state where the religion of the state superseded democratic principles and norms.

What we have now is an opposition emboldened by the fact that the majority of the Malay voting polity chose them over any kind of progressive secular-leaning Malaysia.

Play up racial and religious issues

The people who voted for PAS, especially the young people, have no interest in living under democratic norms or even that their religious leaders are bigoted, xenophobic or racist.

Look at it this way. PAS leaders for instance make ridiculous statements as to their luxury lifestyles, including quotes from their holy book, and this has not swayed the base and potential base.

The reality is, that Bersatu leaders understand that they are just as suspect in terms of corruption because they were outcasts and frogs from Umno.

PAS political operatives on the other hand have a history of not only demonising Umno but have experience working in a federal bureaucracy thanks to the short-sightedness of the opposition at various times and the machinations of Umno.

All Hamzah will be doing - if he does this, he will be an effective opposition leader for the base - is to play up racial and religious issues.

His main goal is to demonstrate through his role as an opposition leader, the propaganda that Anwar and Pakatan Harapan do not represent mainstream Malay political thought as a government of non-Malays (which is Harapan’s base). That is it.

If he could point to collusion between Umno and Harapan when it comes to corruption, then this is icing on the cake.

Keep in mind that a majority of Malays voted for PN and the issue of corruption was not high on their lists merely because the years of indoctrination and propaganda have resulted in a certain section of the polity believing that corrupt Muslim leaders are better than honest non-Muslim leaders.

Will PN pay lip service to the non-Malay voting demographic? Maybe. But what would be the point?

Hamzah as a figurehead for the theocratic state in waiting understands that they do not need the non-Malays to assume power.

Of course, the urban centres still elude them but what they hope to do because they have the cajones, is to subvert the electoral process even further, when they get to federal power either through the front door or the back door.

As an opposition leader, all Hamzah has to do is create enough racial and religious instability, which could spell the end of Harapan.

In fact, who knows what kind of help Hamzah may get from elements within Umno who fear that the days of Umno may be coming to an end and the only way for self-preservation is to destabilise Harapan from within and hope to be rewarded by the theocratic state.

And keep in mind Hamzah is exactly the kind of political operative who embraces and has experience in such political skullduggery and his position as leader of the opposition allows him the leeway and access to carry out such malfeasances in broad daylight.

Through it all, the will of Hadi will be directed through Hamzah (even though I am starting to think that Bersatu does not truly comprehend what they have aligned with) to influence and shape Harapan policy in the creation of a nascent theocratic state.

Umno through PN has finally birthed an opposition leader that reflects its failed policies and decades of religious malfeasance.

S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. Fīat jūstitia ruat cælum - “Let justice be done though the heavens fall.”

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

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