opinion

Barisan Nasional, perhaps the most successful political coalition in this region, is ironically facing serious challenges as it undergoes a new spurt of growth. This is particularly true with Umno, the largest party in the coalition.

It now faces new members that are increasingly better educated and assertive, and do not like to be constantly told that the government knows best of what is good for them.

Unlike older Umno members, who needed no persuading that they owed the improvement in their lives to the party, some of the younger members increasingly regard the good life as their due.

And the result of the last few elections and by-elections suggest that voters are now quick to punish the government for unpopular measures, and are less inclined to reward the party for the things that go right.

Even as Umno is growing apace, it faces internal tensions. Part of the cost of growth will undoubtedly be somewhat of a leadership succession process.

The way around this process is not to waste too much energy on making it more difficult for younger Umno leaders to contest party posts: That only encourages people to flout the law anyway.

Fine-tune

Umno will, with the expansion of its membership, have to rethink and fine-tune some of its existing processes of the leadership succession - at the divisional and higher level.

The second-generation leaders have tried to appease younger members by adopting a more accommodating style.

But the voting record since the last few elections, where the ruling party lost many seats - show that it is not enough - even with the booming economy. Chances are that Umno votes will continue to slide.

This has sent Umno leaders scurrying for their crystal balls, searching for a possible political realignment. They appear to be extremely nervous about the opposition growing more powerful day by day. The ruling party is watching the opposition's rise warily.

A tougher posture towards party leadership was not the only manifestation of a changed political climate in Umno. An equally important issue for the party is corruption among officials.

The issue was sensationally highlighted by the allegation of money politics. The incident greatly embarrassed the top leaders. It serves as one more forceful reminder that graft remains a deeply-rooted scourge in politics.

"If the contenders can't control their own behaviour, how can they expect to control others and require them to be honest? It is one of the most important aspects of building the party, especially in this new era," says a political observer.

Free meals

The moral appears to be this: Don't look for immediate benefits. The party's over. No more free meals, lavish trips and almost all other gifts from contenders to members of the party. Many observers say it could break the cycle of 'influence buying' in Umno.

"There is far too much money flowing from far too many interest groups," said a party member who wished to remain anonymous.

Member dissatisfaction has risen in the last decade, resulting in growing complaints and an influx of fresh leaders during the last party elections.

Those worries appear to have been temporarily swept aside, when an independent committee investigating complaints on money politics in Umno announced its first finding on May 5.

So far, six Umno leaders, including division chiefs, have been found guilty of breaching party rules and ethics, mostly involving money politics.

In standard morality tales, good is always rewarded and wrongdoing punished. The risk of applying pressure, however, is that defiant members will decide to play by their own rules.

True enough, 114 Umno branch leaders in Baling protested against the party supreme council's decision to reinstate Raja Ariffin Raja Sulaiman as the division head, after Zainol Md Isa was disqualified.

Other factors

It is easy to criticise the elections as being undemocratic when such anomalies occur. Whether they are actually guilty or not, and whether all this is good for the party, we leave it for higher authorities to judge. But the numbers tell only part of the story, and perhaps not the most important part.

There are other factors at work here too. Worse still, it is a problem which has yet to be redressed.

The incident laid bare the inadequacies in Umno's selection procedures and measures to curb money politics. And party leaders found the finger of responsibility pointed straight at them.

With the media providing extensive coverage of the case, the leaders too were clearly anxious to identify who and what went wrong.

Indeed, some of the finger-pointing was taking place within the top leadership. Critics say that accountability should begin at the top, regardless of where formal bureaucracy may fall.

And this leads us to the obvious solution: What Umno needs most now is to ensure that the party continues to grow faster than its problems.

That is a small step forward, but nowhere near what is required. Hopefully, someone would accidently discover an ideal solution in the near future.

The real question, however, is whether politicians will strengthen their fledgling democracy by using it to tear down the business dependency on the government, that made money politics possible.

Midnight knock

It seems the public wants its pound of flesh. Senior party members claim that in an atmosphere of deep public disgust, almost every allegation is believable, no matter how spurious or politically motivated.

Fallen politicians are the most convenient targets for such retribution. They are also worried at the way a broader interpretation is being applied to the problem.

With the involvement of the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA), whoever emerges victorious from an election may now have to worry about the midnight knock on their doors.

Deputy president Abdullah Ahmad Badawi pledged not to interfere, saying the law would take its own course. But some concerned party members believe that it shouldn't be used as a legal instrument to limit members' political rights. As such they believe that the conditions are still not conclusive for free and fair election.

While most recent changes have been routine, some have been politically sensitive. By all the signs in Umno, the leadership has executed a drastic change of course in its handling of the party election.

No campaign, no roadshows, and it will not budge an inch on this. The Umno supreme council is working overtime to diffuse the potential tension.

Sceptics have suggested that the ban is simply a bid by the party's leadership to eliminate potentially powerful opponents. And other accusations blew about like ashes.

Dangerous brew

But, it is obvious that the move was a principled bid to keep money politics out of Umno. Throughout history, different societies, including Umno, have learnt - often at great cost - that mixing money with politics produces a heady, dangerous brew.

Umno was de-registered in 1987. And for Umno members, the lesson remains as valid as ever. That fear of coming down to earth from the privileged heights of political office is clearly a driving force in the rough-and-tumble world of politics today.

A senior political observer recalls a Japanese saying: "When a monkey falls from a tree, he's still a monkey, but when a politician falls from a seat in Parliament, he becomes a mere man."

Recent months have also seen Umno asserting considerable political muscle to control the situation.

Re-tightening the bolts on party election procedures would also apparently involve political vetting of members.

Umno president Dr Mahathir Mohamad is a medical doctor by training, but these days he sounds more like a stern schoolteacher.

At least it will teach certain leaders and members to mend their sleazy ways. And he is on a nationwide visit for a high-profile canvassing of public views on the party.

Perhaps this is the clearest sign that Umno is going to chastise leaders who are not setting a good example for young people.

The Umno leadership, said another observer, is faced with a problem akin to squaring the circle: How to preserve the party unity without giving the impression that the party has an offensive attitude against upcoming leaders.

NASH RAHMAN is former chief news editor of Berita Harian , former editor of the now defunct daily Watan and former associate editor of The Sun .