Malaysia post-Najib

Mariam Mokhtar
Malaysiakini
29 Feb 2016

It is the great Malaysian apathy which holds Malaysia back. Najib Abdul Razak will eventually leave office, voluntarily or otherwise. You can play an important role in post-Najib Malaysia. You are needed to shake-up the entire establishment.

Will you choose your present life which you believe is bearable? Or will you be brave and leap into the unknown, and entrust your future to a handful of people who are under pressure, and who feel your pain?

Those who lived through Merdeka were idealists. Honour, trust, respect and principle, meant something then. These things mean nothing in 21st Century Malaysia.

Over the past four decades, Malaysian life has become intolerable. You know things are bad when the theft of a mobile phone was politicised into a racial issue. Instead of living life to the full, we have become cynics and our beliefs have become corrupted. Others simply allow themselves to be corrupted.

Everyone, even former ministers and at least one former PM would like to say “Good riddance” to Najib.

A few people want Najib to remain, but even they cannot claim to be pleased with his track record, although they have been amply rewarded for their loyalty. They close one eye to the RM2.6 billion ‘donation’, and the fact that foreign money was used to influence GE13.

The opposition appears to be in disarray, but the alternative is to hand over power to another bunch of power-crazed Umno Baruputras.

Former PM Mahathir Mohamad wants Najib removed, but refuses to admit that Umno Baru is a big part of the problem.

If the RM2.6 billion ‘donation’ had been deposited into Umno Baru’s bank account, instead of Najib’s personal bank account, do you think this donation would have attracted this much publicity?

It is good that PAS’ true colours were discovered sooner, rather than later. The latest statement from PAS president, Hadi Awang is significant.

Hadi has refused to join the anti-Najib rally on March 27 and said, “I am anti-Umno… but not (anti-) Umno people. We (PAS) want to be good with Umno people even though Umno as a party has made many mistakes.”

He is still as wishy-washy as ever.

The rakyat will not forget

In post-Najib Malaysia, the rakyat will not forget who fought for them. The people who maintain that Najib is innocent, will also be made to join him in political exile, or gaol.

If Hadi can see nothing wrong with the billion ringgit ‘donation’ to influence GE13, how can he be entrusted to ensure that proper law enforcement is carried-out under hudud? Will he cherry-pick those whose limbs will be lobbed-off under hudud law?

Najib claims that his administration is not a dictatorship and that his is an elected government.

Few people believe him, especially as the Election Commission has been accused of electoral abuses, ranging from gerrymandering to the use of non-indelible ink.

MCA president Liow Tiong Lai still does not get it. He claimed that Najib has been “working hard to bring transformation and boost the economy”.

What transformation? Is the concept of a transparent and accountable government too difficult for Liow, to grasp?

Former attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail lost his nerve and failed to support former deputy PM Muhyiddin Yassin, when he claimed that Abdul Gani had enough evidence to implicate Najib for corruption.

Abdul Gani’s silence speaks volumes about his character and integrity. He could only mutter, “I do not want to comment anything.” (sic)

Perhaps, the ex-AG remembers the fate of Kevin Morais. Perhaps, Abdul Gani has more to lose than Muhyiddin.

With enough momentum, Malaysians may yet see change, but some people are too selfish to think of their children’s futures.

Initially, post-Najib Malaysia is in for a bumpy ride.

Do not expect that the Umno Baru-paid thugs and cybertroopers will remain quiet. With the loss of their benefactors, and an easy method of making money, they will try to create chaos and havoc. Wouldn’t you be upset if you had to emerge in the real world and do real work?

In post-Najib Malaysia, which institution should be rehabilitated first? The police, the judiciary, the civil service, the Election Commission, the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission, the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission? Which ones should be disbanded? The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) and other religious bodies? Which new institution should be formed? Definitely, a police watchdog.

These institutions cannot be disbanded all at once. Malaysia needs a semblance of law and order. Who can we trust? Who should be sent to prison immediately to await trial for corruption and abuses of power?

The opposition coalition has a plan for a complete overhaul of our public institutions, but won’t tell us the details, because they know that Umno Baru will try to sabotage them.

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO).