Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang's remark that PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is a 'political prisoner' of the established 'political system' is wrong. It could also be misleading.

The notion of 'prisoner' implies that one is forced to be kept inside the 'system'. This does not apply in the case of Abdullah.

Abdullah has been a witting and willing defender of the established political system for the last 30 years or so. That is why he was accepted by the system to be Dr Mahathir Mohamad's successor, while Anwar Ibrahim who challenged the system was kicked out.

In his 30 years or so in Umno and the government, Abdullah has never been known to be a committed reformer. He is just a survivor (or survivalist) who appears to be less confrontational and arrogant.

The problem of Abdullah is that he thought he could put a 'human face' to the system like what Gorbachev attempted to do in the 1980s to the Soviet Union. But the ultra-conservative forces in the system are stronger than even those of the conservative Abdullah.

The ultra-conservative forces just do not share Abdullah's idea that they need to put on a 'human face'.

Otherwise, all of them share the same authoritarian ideology and crony interests in the corrupt system of the Barisan Nasional.