BN must prepare new deal for Malaysia

The recently concluded annual general meeting of the Malaysian Indian

Congress (MIC) demonstrated that despite the clamour for change in

wider Malaysian society, MIC's delegates felt that their president and

his men are best suited to continue steering BN's oldest political

party.

Garlands of slippers aside, the victory of Samy Vellu's team shows how

entrenched the MIC president is in his party. Despite all sorts of

allegations and revelations, even after the BN chairman said that

leaders who are popular in the party may not win elections, the

delegates decided to stick to the tried and tested.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), BN's second

largest party and another pillar of Tunku Abdul Rahman's Alliance

Party, is headed for a split.

The upcoming EGM will be a contest between MCA president Ong Tee Keat and deposed deputy president, Dr Chua Soi Lek.

Like Samy Vellu ( right ), a lot of water has gone under the bridge and these

leaders are now synonymous with all sorts of negative allegations and

scandals. For those of us outside these parties, the impression is

that, at its core, the BN is rotten.

Things are not rosy either for Umno. The recently concluded party

elections yielded up accusations of money politics, with some

prominent leaders forbidden to run as candidates yet retained in their

governmental positions.

This created an impression that there are indeed two sets of rules, one for Umno and another for the rest of us. In Permatang Pasir, that impression became reality when a disbarred lawyer became Umno's candidate.

Promise of development not enough

Coming back to the MIC and MCA, both these parties will have to

seriously learn how to close ranks. The days of winner takes all are

over because there is an alternative coalition that can offer them a

platform.

Chua Jui Meng's recent public confession that he finally

feels free to be himself is a terrible indictment against the ossified

BN. For the MIC and the MCA, their inability to remain cohesive and

attract voters, makes them liabilities in the ruling coalition.

Samy Vellu said that Malaysians are unhappy because the BN is failing

to deliver as a team. This is partly true and what is at stake now is

whether the BN is still cohesive enough to lead the country.

Dr Mahathir himself said in his blog recently that if the BN does not wake up to how serious things have become, it might go the way of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

How can the BN change its image when it is now common knowledge that Umno is perceived by its own partners as a party suffering from

terminal cancer; and that the cancer is caused by corruption.

Malaysians remember that the BN emerged from the last general

election promising to reform. Instead, we see the same tired faces

and the same tired ideology being bandied about.

Only Dr Mahathir ( right ) has been sharp enough to recognise that the promise of development is no longer enough to sway voters. Malaysians must want to vote BN again not because of threats, money or patronage.

That is why Samy Vellu's victory has put such strain on the BN. The

coalition needs to go into the Bagan Pinang by-election with renewed

confidence. It needs to win back the Indian and Chinese voters.

Without the non-Malay votes, the BN cannot hope to win the next

general election. Neither would their scare-mongering amongst the

Malays be effective for much longer. Like everything else, the law of

diminishing returns soon kicks in.

The cow head protest in Shah Alam during Ramadan affected Muslims more than non-Muslims, and is a turning point creating doubt in the mind of all Malaysians about an Umno-dominated BN.

So, can Umno actually go it alone and abandon its multi-ethnic

platform? Should it junk its ‘1Malaysia' concept and throw its lot

with a clearly-defined ethno-nationalist state?

Time for Umno to cut losses

After all, with the MIC and the MCA no longer able to win non-Malay votes, it might be time for Umno to cut its losses and invite PAS to form a Malay-Muslim government.

The reality on the ground is that Umno cannot do that without tearing the country apart. Furthermore, PAS will have to risk breaking itself into two factions before it can join Umno.

In fact, the BN needs to do the opposite. It needs to manage voter

expectations and win back the middle-ground. Only by governing well

for the next three years will the BN be able to regain lost ground.

More importantly, the BN's policies must form a new deal for Malaysia.

We need big ideas that will help us become more productive and

competitive. In fact, the next three years will determine whether

Malaysia can continue to prosper as a nation.

The BN must therefore plan and execute polices that will leave enough room to redeem itself and win the next general elections, or if it loses, resurrect itself from the ruins.

The BN must also start treating the opposition not as enemies but as

elected representatives who are as loyal to the nation as BN's elected

representatives are loyal to the states where they are on the

opposition benches.

Here is a chance to lay the foundations for the institution of "loyal opposition and responsible opposition"; something this country so badly needs.

In the final analysis, we may be witnessing the crumbling away of the

old BN as component parties undergo their reform agenda. If change

does not happen within the next year, the BN's future as a political

coalition will come under tremendous strain.

Winning Bagan Pinang will be imperative to boost morale but more than that, it should serve as a wake-up call for the BN to start getting their act together and show Malaysia it can lead by offering us a new deal.