Dr. Dzukefly Ahmad, the secretary of Gerakan Harapan Baru, expects a new Islamist party to be formed by Merdeka Day on August 31.
If a new Islamist party is formed by Merdeka Day, hopefully a new Pakatan Baru, whether called Pakatan Rakyat 2.0, Harapan Rakyat or any other name, would be formed by Malaysia Day and be the rallying point of Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region for fundamental political changes in Malaysia to save Malaysia from the disasters of a rogue and failed state.
The seven-year Pakatan Rakyat from 2008 to 2015 had been a seminal period in the political life of Malaysia, arousing anew the hopes and aspirations of Malaysians, cutting across race, religion, region, gender and age, for the fulfillment of the Malaysian Dream where every Malaysian can achieve his or her potential in the country, and to be treated as an equal citizen with political freedom, human rights, economic justice and enjoying all the human dignity and basic socio-economic rights which every human being in a modern society in the 21st century is entitled to.
Unfortunately, the Pakatan Rakyat died after fighting one general election in 2013, breaking the hearts of all Malaysians who had vested such high hopes and trust in PR.
I am most saddened by the demise of Pakatan Rakyat (PR), at the hopes unfulfilled, but as a political realist, it is clear that there is no way to avoid the death of Pakatan Rakyat when one of the three component parties refused to abide by the PR Common Policy Framework on the principles and policies to be pursued in common by PR.
There were already signs of trouble in PR when in the 2013 general election, PAS President Datuk Seri Hadi Awang approved PAS candidates to provoke three-cornered fights in six State Assembly seats, benefitting the UMNO candidates concerned.
Then a year later, Hadi insisted on overruling the PR Leadership Council unanimous decision and even the PAS Central Committee on the appointment of PKR President Datuk Seri Dr. Azizah Wan Ismail as the Selangor Mentri Besar in place on Khalid Ibrahim, and early this year, violated his personal commitment at the PR Leadership Council to first refer proposed amendments to the Kelantan hudud bill and any PAS private member’s bill in Parliament for discussion by the PR Leadership Council.
Looking back, it may be a blessing in disguise that PR failed to win the majority of the parliamentary seats in the 13th General Election, for if the majority had been a slim one, PR would be at the mercy of the PAS President, who had never accepted Anwar Ibrahim as the PR candidate to be the Prime Minister of Malaysia.
In such circumstances, if Hadi had persisted in his opposition to Anwar as the PR Prime Minister of Malaysia, he may decide to swing his parliamentary numbers in support of the UMNO nominee, creating the first major crisis for Pakatan Rakyat even before a PR government in Putrajaya could get going.
We must learn from these mistakes in PR and ensure that the new Pakatan Rakyat to be formed with the formation of the new Islamist party by Merdeka Day will have more unity of purpose, more cohesive and united in effecting far-reaching political changes in Malaysia.
[Speech (2) at the DAP forum “Ke Mana Halatuju Malaysia” at Tropical Inn, Johor Baru on Monday, 17th August 2015 at 9 pm]