Seeds of Reform

Seeds of Reform

(A version of this was published in theSun on 1st June 2012).

Politics creeps into our lives like a steady, stealthy creature, and before you know it, it envelops you. This is a matter of fact – it encompasses almost every aspect of daily living, since having decent public services, education, healthcare, a safe and clean environment, and an efficient public transportation system are dependent upon the policymakers at the different tiers of decision-making levels.

And so it is that all Malaysians concerned about their or their families’ livelihoods must inadvertently be interested in political development, if not necessarily playing an active or direct participatory role in it. To care about yourself and your loved ones means being alert as to the changes taking place in your surroundings.

Over the past four years, Malaysia has undergone significant changes, much of which one could possibly attribute to the general elections of 8th March 2008. In short, the event in which the Barisan Nasional lost two-thirds of its majority at the national Parliament, as well as ceding defeat to its Pakatan Rakyat opponents in five of the 13 states, was merely the catalyst which sprung about tremendous shifts in the way policies and politics run in this country.

Of course there were moments where politicians reacted violently to this sudden change in the air – one can count the number of incidents involving explicit videos or photos, playing dirty through all sorts of underhanded tactics, false accusations, innumerable court cases, civil suits, peaceful as well as ugly demonstrations, and the sum total of which probably reduced national productivity (in real terms) somewhat. The response of many Malaysians to these incidents is: “Too much politics these days.”

And yet, despite the frustration which many express, it has also been a period of great reflection. Oftentimes even the most basic of concepts, beliefs and ideas require some deconstruction before having them rebuilt again, and yet again. And to go back to square one in re-conceiving national identity, together with its hopes and fears, is not always a bad thing.

For example, the very idea of how government works has altered, where both sides of the political divide are now clamouring to ensure they obtain public participation as far as possible in their projects and programmes. Although not all of these may be effective for now, such attempts at reaching out to the public ought to be considered a direct effect of the political tsunami of 2008. If political competition is what is needed for society’s needs to be eventually met, then so be it – this is the marketplace of political ideas, thoughts, programmes and projects.

The future of the country rests with the ability to produce fresh, new ideas that are executed well. Easier said than done, one may imagine, but this is also true – that the new state governments under Pakatan Rakyat also offered an alternative way of running administrations. Malaysians were able to look at how the governments of Selangor, Penang, Kedah and Kelantan were running the show, to see a different way of doing things.

Selangor and Penang in particular have been interesting case studies to observe, since they are the two of the most urban states in the country, the combined economies of which contribute significantly to the country’s total GDP. In addition, Selangor, Penang, Kedah and Kelantan states accounted for 53 percent of all investment in Malaysia (domestic and foreign) in 2010.

The two states of Selangor and Penang introduced some good measures, such as the “No Plastic Bag Day Campaign”, Freedom of Information legislation, and have pushed for Local Government Elections, amongst others. It is curious to see if other state governments, or perhaps the federal government, might also follow suit in taking up such initiatives which are, ultimately, beneficial to the public.

Likewise, the federal government responded to the 2008 polls by (amongst others) setting up its special Pemandu (Performance Management and Delivery Unit) taskforce to tackle specific problems facing the country including public transport, corruption, crime and education. There is still much to be done, especially in terms of developing democracy, local empowerment, and of course electoral reforms (the topic of much debate today).

It may feel like things are messy, but this is how a democracy often works. We must be willing to speak about things that are not functioning in order to improve them. Opposition exists only because of the dissatisfaction that Malaysia has the potential to be a great country, and the deep desire for this to come to fruition.

It is my belief that the healthy competition between state governments, and between state and federal government (inter-coalition), must continue in order to present policy and governance alternatives to the voting public. Coupled with a growing public awareness, one hopes that a day will come where these seeds of reform will take full shape and people are conscious about the policies they want, vote for, and expect to obtain. Until then, we have to bear with petty and crass acts of bullying and buttocks alike.

Tricia Yeoh’s book, “States of Reform: Governing Selangor and Penang”, will be launched at 10am on Saturday, 9th June, at the Central Market Annexe. The launch will be officiated by the Selangor Menteri Besar, YAB Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim.

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