What now for Perak?
Feb 17, 2010 – Sun
PETALING JAYA (Feb 17, 2010) : The court may have decided that the Barisan Nasional (BN) can continue to rule in Perak after a year of legal battles following Pakatan Rakyat (PR)’s ouster but the war between them is far from over and it is unlikely to be until the next general election.
On Feb 9, the Federal Court ruled that BN’s Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir is the Perak Mentri Besar and by so doing rejected the claim of PR’s Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin that he is still the state’s chief executive.
Zambry came to power in February last year on claims that Nizar had lost his majority in the 59-seat state assembly after three PR — two from Parti Keadilan Rakyat and one from DAP — representatives quit their parties and declared themselves BN- friendly independents.
For exactly one year Perak was hardly off the national radar as all kinds of events were played out by those who were elected to serve the rakyat. There were sensational court cases, state assembly sitting under a tree, and capping it all was when former speaker Sivakumar was dragged out of his chair in the “august” chamber of the representatives of the rakyat.
Amidst all the drama and grandstanding voices demanding that the rakyat be the final arbiter were heard. But their angry voices went unheeded. And now the PR and Nizar are rekindling that anger while the BN and Zambry are hoping to win support with their benevolence.
When contacted to comment about the future of the state, political analyst Khoo Kay Peng told theSun that generally, the court ruling cannot help to solve the political impasse in the state.
“We need a solution which is acceptable to both coalitions. The only solution is to call for a fresh mandate. Hence, the state assembly will remain a war zone for both coalitions.
Politically legitimacy also means that the ‘victory’ is accepted and respected by the opposition,” he said.
Khoo speculated that BN will continue to spend its way into Perakians’ heart as it will continue to focus on providing grants and subsidies for a variety of social and community organisations and schools.
However, he said there is only so much the coalition can achieve through its developmental politics because what the people wanted is a respect of their democratic choice.
“This has been proven in a poll by Merdeka Centre where 70% of respondents wanted a fresh state election. Hence, the best way for BN to survive the next general election is to prove to the voters that it is pro-democracy.
“It should promise to respect the people’s mandate and ensure that it will not engineer another power grab in the future,” he said.
As for the opposition, Khoo opined that PR will continue to play a victim role to disrupt or not to respect the current government by boycotting the state assembly. However, he pointed out that there is only so much the people can tolerate continuous political bickering.
“PR needs to show that it is embarking on its own reform to enhance the quality of leadership, to prepare better candidates, to help mend the inter-ethnic and intra-ethnic tension in the state and to prepare itself as a viable alternative government in the next general election.
“A lack of cooperation amongst the DAP, Parti Keadilan Rakyat and PAS must be ironed out quickly. Most importantly their man, (former state Mentri Besar) Nizar, must not be seen as a marginalised minority leader. This is the issue manipulated quite effectively by the opponent,” he added.
With immediate effect, Zambry had on Feb 11 announced that BN would include PR into the state government’s action committees as a good gesture to work with the PR.
Zambry also ensured that BN would not do the same to PR by excluding the opposition in the action committees. Mohammad Nizar had also given his words that PR was willing to work with Zambry but on certain conditions.
“We want the five governing principles of the Pakatan state administration, which are transparency, integrity, welfare, justice and equality, to be made the core of Zambry’s administration.
“Based on this, we will work together with Zambry for the good of the people without discrimination or segregation of race and religion,” he said.
In a phone interview, state executive councillor Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon said BN was not having any problem in its administration since February last year and that it was a perception that was created by PR.
“We have been running smoothly and with the latest court decision, the havoc and politicking should stop now. Many PR leaders are lawyers and they should know the spirit of judiciary and there is no more reason for them to make noise.
“We are elected to serve the people and the Perakians are tired of the drama, it should be the end of the entire event,” he said.
Mah added that BN government had implemented a lot of policies in development as compared to the tenure of PR, especially in attracting foreign investments.
He said Merdeka polls had also shown a swing in support to the coalition not only in Malay and Indian votes but also from the Chinese.
“I am happy that we have a good working relationship with the elected representatives unlike the PR. I think the internal problem among the PR assemblymen was the cause of their fall,” he said.
Political scientist Wong Chin Huat, however, said fresh polls are needed for the state to clear the “legitimacy” of the mentri besar and it is what BN government should now do.
“BN government should declare a date for fresh polls and do preparation to meet the people. Without fresh polls, what policies being carried out by the state government will not yield a good result, especially in attracting investors.
“For PR, Nizar should now transform his former executive council into the shadow cabinet and play its role as proper opposition and government-in-waiting,” he said. — theSun
