The Politics of Business in Malaysia.

Like the many marriages of UMNO leaders who takes two or even more wives, the marriage of UMNO and business has always been for reasons other then love. More often then not these marriages are driven by lust on the part of the men while their ‘trophy wives’ pursue their aged and senile quarry yearning for the spoils that would come their way after doing the horizontal mambo with these aging Lotharios!

 

The marriage of UMNO and business is also without love. It is a self serving marriage of convenience that involves the selling of the executive decision –making process at all levels of government to the highest bidder. Money and politics is the root of all political evil. It is corruption at its very worst.

And nothing accentuates this abuse then the lack of accountability in the private and corporate funding of UMNO and its BN components.

In most countries there are legislation and policies in place  to ensure that corporate and private funding of political parties are regulated through disclosures to ensure that there is no link to corrupt transactions that can be used by the political parties to increase their personal and party’s income. The public is able to monitor the disclosed funding and with this knowledge the public is empowered into active advocacy and monitoring of the political process.

In Malaysia State and Federal power are used to direct resources to support UMNO’s and its coalition partners in the pursuit of winning elections. This undermines the basis of the democratic process that our country professed to practice. It was during the time of Mahathir that this practice started in earnest, was perfected and even encouraged to prosper by no lesser person then the Prime Minister himself.

What is different today is this:  There is now the ability of the public and the alternative media (as opposed to the government media) to interrogate UMNO and its BN component on these matters – as I am now doing!

The growth of corporate power has also created opportunity for these same corporate entity to align themselves with emerging political alternatives to the Barisan Nasional which not only takes away said funding from BN but over time will be exploited by these emerging forces to cause the demise of UMNO and it’s Barisan Nasional component party

No sensible Malay would argue against the need of the NEP or Ketuanan Melayu. It was clear that legislation was needed to ensure its success because persuasion alone will not make it a reality. Ownership of business alone is not the ends of this Ketuanan Melayu – it includes management control, employment equity, skills development, enterprise  and corporate development – as it should. And so government and businesses are obligated by legislation to award tenders, contracts and business opportunities to Bumiputras individuals and entities.

Against this background has grown the plurality of government and business that is now being recklessly abused by UMNO. Also evident is the spectacle of Politicians pursuing wealth – great wealth!  It has also led to the common charge of cronyism, influence peddling and the creation of an UMNO aristocracy while the majority of Malays and other Malaysian bear the brunt of these abuses of political power.

These abuses are now institutionalised within UMNO’s and the government. These abuses has been promoted by polices that are protected and even encouraged to flourish by state and federal policies, state and federal protection and preferences and now operates extensively through the UMNO and Barsian Nasiona networks. 

Ketuanan Melayu has been misapplied for political or personal gain.

But that is not to say that this same Ketuanan Melayu policies have not benefited many Malays – it has! But the same policy is also open to abuse by the same politician that seeks to advance it.

But as we the public clamour for accountability, UMNO and its component parties stubbornly demanded for the status quo to remain as they have so much to hide.

Is transparency in political finance a Utopian dream in Malaysia?

The ketuanan Melayu issues has already been perverted by government officials, BN politicians and party officials wanting to make fast money on party connections and via sources that are potentially corrupting.

We know that the relationship between money and politics have been at the heart of every major scandal in Malaysia…and it involves the Prime Minister down.  Will the narrow mindedness of UMNO to focus simply on the acquisition of personal wealth and political power prove eventually to be self destructive to UMNO?

IN Malaysia money buys influence  politicians  and trophy wives – and not necessarily in that order. A culture of transparency and disclosure must start to take roots now within BN and Paktan Rakyat if our country is to survive .

Talking about transparency and good governance without legislation that can be implemented and enforceable seems to be the way to go for this Najib’s administration. What would it take for him to see that we the public has had enough of politicians making biased decision to advance the commercial interest of those to whom they are beholden? Let Pakatan Rakyat also be cognizance of this demand by the people from whom they will expect much of in the 13^th general election if they are to govern. Not to do so would be political suicide for Barsian Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat!    

Business as Usual:

Let me reiterate one important aspect of our struggle against UMNO….lest we forget! This struggle is not about Anwar and his years in Prison. Not about Lim Kit Siang or Lim Guan Eng’s time under ISA. Not about Tok Guru and UMNO’s anger at him for dismissing all hope of UMNO getting “together” with PAS for Ugama, Bangsa dan Negara” (as usual they conveniently forgot that they had intended at all times to put UMNO even before ‘UGAMA” in the equation). No my friends none of the above!

It is about taking back the country! It is about UMNO and beating them this time around! It is about the possibility of bringing Justice and decency back to our country within my lifetime – our lifetime!  

We want to close the book on the old politics of race against race. The rich against the poor. The powerful against the weak. The majority against the minority. The Police against the people they are sworn to protect. Against all that UMNO has stood for and encouraged in order that they will remain dominant against the people they are suppose to serve. This next election will see the responsibility of running this country passed to a new generation of Malaysian.

For Anwar and Pakatan Rakyat it is business as usual. He knows that the years of seeing UMNO  bringing our country down on its knees is coming to a close. He knows that we the people of this country have waited patiently for many years for UMNO to come to its senses. Have waited for UMNO to stop corruption within itself and stop corruption in the country. But even until last week there have been talk about Team 1Malaysia going into Formula 1 and needing massive sponsorship inputs from Petronas and Proton. Our Petronas, our Proton – our money! 

The people have given UMNO a chance to change for the better in the last General Election. They did not do so. But even though they have done nothing until now they are still promising they would do so …if we give them another chance! It would seem to me that UMNO is claiming that it is us that have not given them the opportunity and the time to do well. It is us that have prevented them from giving the Malays the “Ketuanan Melayu” that UMNO have wanted to do in the last fifty years. Politics, excused UMNO, is an expensive business requiring massive war chests, which needs to be replenished time and time again after use by their warlords in such battles as Bagan Pinang. After all was not their candidates victorious in that battle?

But UMNO failed to understand that the battle in Politics is also about just regard for human dignity as against the overwhelming use of money politics to win their battles. They fail to realize that just regard for human dignity also means freedom and justice  - values we would be prepared to fight for if need be against a tyrannical system perpetuated by UMNO.   

Years ago Anwar accepted favours – and did favours for this evil man call Mahathir – but only for as long as he could. When he realized that Mahatir’s action had begun to appall and horrify him he left. He has left all that behind and for as long as he lived he will not go back down that road again.

So now Anwar and Pakatan Rakyat are ready for battle. Lim Kit Siang will be with him. This grizzled old Lion still the Alpha Male in his Pride – in DAP with Lim Guan Eng patiently ready in his corner to assist or do whatever is required of him. Tok Guru integrity must be the envy of all in UMNO. If only they could have PAS in their Barisan Nasional regime and just have a bit of that integrity come BN’s way !!!)…But it will remain an impossible dream for UMNO.

For PAS the past few weeks have been intense but through it all one consideration was paramount. The need for Pakatan Rakyat to remain focus, committed and to maintain disciplined within its ranks. Within Pakatan Rakyats ranks. I am sure we can expect firm action against Dato Hassan Ali and Zulkifi Noordin – we will demand that they be disciplined!

This matter of the registration of Pakatan Rakyat as a coalition can continue to be done quietly but done it will be. It would be good if Zaid will do the task at hand with consideration for all parties involve and allow the public information of its progress only on a need to know basis. There is no need for Zaid to give public discourse of each step that he takes in doing the task at hand. No announcement on the registration of Pakatan Rakyat for now. Just do your work.    

  

As a Buddhist Proverb says,” If we are facing the right direction, all we have to do is to keep walking”.

Three hundred years ago a prisoner condemned to the Tower of London carved on the wall of his cell this sentiment to keep up his spirits during his long imprisonment:

'It is not adversity that kills, but the impatience with which we bear adversity”

So brothers and sisters let us be patience. Remember our task is to take back our country. Not about Anwar. Not about PKR or PR. Not about PAS. We must take back our country!