A recent study which claimed that youth voters were politically disenchanted appeared to be reaffirmed by their conspicuous absence at Pakatan Harapan's anti-kleptocracy rally last night.

With two hours left before the end of Pakatan Harapan’s anti-kleptocracy rally at 11pm, a t-shirt seller was already preparing to pack and leave. 

“Just selling 25 t-shirts is as tough as pulling a cow!" grumbled the man who first introduced himself as ‘Ali Baba’. 

“My name is Lee. (I'm a) Baba Melaka, muka macam Melayu (my face is like a Malay),” he quipped when met by Malaysiakini. 

From the few rally t-shirts that he sold in four hours, Lee noted how all his customers were middle-aged or older. 

“I only sold L size, XL size…orang perut buncit (for pot-bellied people). Where are the young people?” he asked.

 

This same question was asked by other observers of the “Sayang Malaysia, Hapuskan Kleptokrasi” (Love Malaysia, Eliminate Kleptocracy) rally at Padang Timur, Petaling Jaya.

An older crowd had dominated the rally, which Malaysiakini estimated to be over 8,000 strong at its peak. 

The notable absence of young blood at the rally has raised more pressing concerns on whether they would support a growing call to abstain from voting in the upcoming 14th general elections.

Analyst Wong Chin Huat said this was something that Harapan should be worried about.

“Voters are fatigued because they don’t feel ownership in the future. 

“Fatigue is good for BN but bad for Pakatan Harapan,” Wong told Malaysiakini.

“BN tries to convince young voters that all politicians are the same, just mudslinging, ‘so why should you be bothered to vote?’,” he claimed, adding that Harapan should take steps to prove BN wrong. 

Wong said Harapan should work to engage voters as partners to rebuild the nation, rather than merely rallying them as soldiers to reclaim the nation.

Among others, he said Harapan’s election manifesto should not contain a long list of vague promises, but rather be presented as a roadmap or plan of action for its first 100 days, first 12 months, 24 months and so on. 

 

It is such a roadmap of policies that the youth want to hear according to student activist Asheeq Ali Sethi Alivi, and not recycled issues surrounding the 1MDB scandal and Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

“Yesterday in the crowd, people were more excited and they applauded when (Penang chief minister) Lim Guan Eng mentioned about repealing the GST, and when (former premier Dr) Mahathir (Mohamad) talked about increasing job opportunities and scholarships. 

“These are the issues that resonate more with Malaysians, not how much does Najib have in his account,” he said.

He stressed that it is a fact which must be accepted by the federal opposition pact. 

 

The UKM law student, who was among organiser’s of last year’s Tangkap Malaysian Official 1 rally in Kuala Lumpur, also noted that the carnival-like atmosphere yesterday had turned away a segment of “disappointed” youths.  

“Bersih 4 was much more impactful because it was confrontational. But after Bersih 4, all rallies became just like a celebration with songs and speeches. 

“It’s no longer a (protest) rally and this is also one of the reason,” he said. 

Concurring with Asheeq, human rights group Suaram activist Amir Abdul Hadi said a growing number of youths no longer view the opposition as being a worthy alternative to BN. 

“The opposition is now part of mainstream politics, with two state-governments. They no longer offer a counter-culture. 

“It used to be different when they are smaller and oppressed. The fighting spirit is different,” said Amir (right, in photo) who added that he was also initially in two minds about attending the rally. 

 

For the youths who did attend the rally, Amir noted that they were part of a newer group of supporters and largely mobilised by Bersatu’s Youth Wing, Armada. 

However, he was optimistic that the turnout figure at a rally or ceramah session would not be an accurate representation of voting trends among youths. 

‘Youths losing faith’ 

On the other hand, PSM Youth chief Khalid Ismath claimed that both Harapan and BN should be worried of losing youth support in GE14. 

“Youths are beginning to see that there is not much difference between governments led by Harapan or BN. 

“In Selangor itself, there are so many issues,” said Khalid who cited, among others, the latest case of housing demolitions in Subang which saw Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali trading barbs with Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Noh Omar. 

Khalid also claimed that youths who are politically aware would never acknowledge Harapan chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad as the leader of the “anti-kleptocracy” movement, due to alleged transgressions during his 22-year reign as prime minister. 

 

Similarly, Federal Territories Umno Youth chief Razlan Rafii said that youths will not be fooled by Harapan leaders who are allegedly only out to gain power at all cost. 

As such, Razlan told Malaysiakini he believes that the lower turnout would, in turn, translate into a higher number of youth support towards BN. 

In the weeks leading up to the rally, Harapan had set an initial target of 100,000 participants, before later revising it down to about 30,000.

At the end of the rally, Harapan had claimed a turnout of 25,000, while police capped the figure at around 4,000.