YOURSAY | ‘But will it have the will and stamina to stay on track and ignore the ferocious racial and religious rhetoric?’
'It's official, we're married' - Umno and PAS formalise ties
David Dass: Does this marriage make Umno and PAS formidable challengers to Pakatan Harapan?
Going by the last two by-elections, the answer would be yes. All constituencies where the Malays comprise more than 70 percent of voters are at risk.
Is that a bad thing? It should not be. After all, the Malays are a majority in the country, and non-Malay numbers continue to decline. It is simply a fact of life.
Then why is that a problem? Well, Harapan defeated the previous government in GE14 after a hard-fought election.
The key issues were corruption, harsh and oppressive laws, the destruction of democratic institutions, the loss of checks and balances, the erosion of democratic freedom, racism and religious extremism.
Harapan has not done much to restore our democratic freedoms and institutions yet.
Is the Umno-PAS coalition opposed to such reforms, given the fact that the parties and some of their leaders are either being investigated or prosecuted? Are they opposed to a more inclusive government?
Are they opposed to the reform agenda in its entirety? Are they opposed to the government targeting the hardcore poor of all races for special assistance? Do they really think that the Chinese and Indians pose a threat to them? At the moment, it would seem to be so.
So what should the strategy of Harapan be to meet this challenge? The government cannot simply echo the Umno-PAS rhetoric. They would never be as authentically racist and extreme as Umno-PAS.
Surely the better way would be to continue on the path of righteousness. To do what is right and just and fair. To uphold the Federal Constitution.
To continue with previous policies would be to disappoint and disillusion the Chinese, the Indians and the indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak. That would encourage those who can leave the country to leave. The country would continue to bleed talent and money.
Umno is a discredited party. And PAS has nothing to offer which would strengthen the economy and modernise the Malays to meet the challenges of the present and the future.
Harapan should stay the course. Reform is essential. Especially educational reform.
GMOD: So imagine the spectrum of voters from zero to 100, with zero being the die-hard DAP fanatic and 100 being the Taliban equivalent.
With Umno having probably sat at 40 in their ideological/political beliefs and PAS at about 90, Umno and PAS combined will need to find a middle ground of, say, 65 to be able to co-exist. If PAS insists on hudud and Umno agrees, then the needle moves nearer to 70.
So this means Harapan only needs to set its ideology at around 50. This means pushing for equality, reducing corruption, looking after the poor, enacting laws on separation of power to Parliament, sacking people who lie, uphold integrity and meritocracy regardless of race, whilst still maintaining most Malay rights, respecting Islam and leaving the royalty be.
This way they’ll get every vote between 0-50, as well as start to lure in and make believers of the fence-sitters who sit between the 50-65 range. It’s pretty simple, really.
But will Harapan have the will and the stamina to stay on track and ignore the ferocious racial and religious rhetoric and demonstrations that will come from Umno/PAS? Let’s hope they do.
Kangkung: Congratulations to Umno and PAS. It must be a marriage made in heaven and, more importantly, it is syariah-compliant.
Former PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat would be rolling over in his grave at this shameful union.
MCA, MIC and Gerakan must now follow suit and formalise their union with PAS as the second, third and fourth wives.
Anonymous: This is very bad for Malaysia. Race and religion will be used as a weapon by these instigators to continuously hammer others.
As good citizens, we should all be worried. Come GE15, a new government led by kleptocrats may re-emerge. Run for the hills!
Kawak: What a sad day for Malaysia. While we have good and rational Malay friends who would not back corrupt and bigot political parties, the majority – even the young ones – are influenced by racism and religious sentiments.
They prefer a government wholly consist of Malay Muslims, even if they are kleptocrats and religious bigots, as long as they can get handouts from such a government.
Even when such government fails, the kafir will be made scapegoats again. The future will be bleak for Malaysia going forward.
Panorama123: This is a no-brainer. Of course, Umno will choose PAS, which has 17 parliamentary seats, against MIC and MCA, which only has three parliamentary seats.
Basically, Umno is telling MIC and MCA that they can go fly kite. Get your popcorn, murukku and kacang putih ready.
One Humanity: "(Acting Umno president) Mohamad Hasan insisted that the cooperation between Umno and PAS will uphold the spirit of ethnic and religious diversity, and not leave any sidelined."
This is the biggest nonsense ever uttered for a long time. It's precisely the reason for this unholy "marriage" – to push the Malay/bumiputera agenda at whatever cost.
Fair Malaysian: Umno has to watch its back. It is no match for PAS. Semangat 46 and Pakatan Rakyat learnt this the hard way. This is not PAS' first agreement, and it will not be the last.
Just a Malaysian: The rakyat are left with two choices.
Harapan represents a multiracial Malaysia. Umno-PAS represents a Malay-Muslim core carrying other races as secondary partners.
The Malay masses will be the ones to decide which Malaysia they want the country to be. The non-Malays can only watch and pray.
The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.
These comments are compiled to reflect the views of Malaysiakini subscribers on matters of public interest. Malaysiakini does not intend to represent these views as fact.
