What an election it was. A majority of Malaysians clearly wanted change. We must not just look at the formal outcome of the election but view it as a continuing process of democratisation, says Johan Saravanamuttu in our cover story.
Certainly, the Malaysian people are already the winners – even if electoral victory for their preferred political party is usurped through a flawed electoral system, says M M Pereira. In fact, the rakyat can take comfort that the process of change is now firmly in place, asserts Henry Loh. There was no betrayal by Chinese Malaysians either as no one promised the BN their votes ahead of the polls, says P Ramakrishnan.
The electoral results show that a bold trend among young Malay voters – there is a break from the neo-feudal mindset of ‘hutang budi’ that once gripped the Malay community, says Azmil Tayeb. Jeyakumar Devaraj adds that if we want to bring about change, we also have to be sensitive to the anxieties of the Malay community regarding what ‘change’ would entail.
In another article, Jeyakumar lists his observations of the election campaign in Sungai Siput while Prema Devaraj explains some of the checks and forms used to reduce electoral fraud on polling day.
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Putting the spotlight on Sibu, Ngu Ik Tien finds that the politics of patronage and campaign propaganda have lost their hold on many urban voters.
The big question now is can the BN evolve to retain 47 per cent of the popular vote in the next round. But if it fails to come up with a clear and clean aspiration, then the BN could be on its last legs, says Haridas.
AGENDA RAKYAT - Lima perkara utama
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
Typical of Najib, just like when he was the chief of Umno youth he raised and waved the Keris … It was a sight and promise not to be forgotten by the Chinese in Malaysia. Yet, the saddest part of it all, MCA did nothing about it, not that it would have changed the situation even if they did, and the Umno lackeys have the audacity to ask why the Chinese have forsaken them. One does not threaten your ‘partners’ in that way, it only proves that Umno has never treated MCA and all the other coalition members as partners. Therefore it is save and sound to say there never was a coalition, to begin with it, it was a marriage of necessity and most important it was formed to justify and legalise all the atrocities Umno commit in the name of BN. Now, Najib is revealing his true self once again when he blames the ‘Chinese Tsunami’ that caused his downfall. How could that have been so when the Chinese in Malaysia are only the minority ? The truth is the urban Malays have awaken… Read more »