LAST week, Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) Badrul Hisham Shaharin aka Chegubard organised a street protest, or as the organisers called it, a “preview” of a street protest, demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Its failure to get the numbers aside, the whole event was just incredibly out of place. 

Chegubard and his undergraduate movements are no strangers to street demonstrations. The subject matter:  Anwar Ibrahim – usually the rouser, not the cause, of people going down to the streets. 

It is indeed a peculiar time for Malaysian politics.

If Hindraf broke Barisan Nasional’s (BN) hegemonic stranglehold on power, the Sheraton Move completely blurred the lines between allegiances, causing permanent alliances to be a thing of the past. 

The rough-and-tumble politics style of the stereotypical Malaysian opposition does not gel well with Bersatu.

Although it boasts many “street fighters” like Chegubard and Mohamed Azmin Ali, the reality is the bulk of the party’s supporters, or at least those who would mobilise for them, remained with PKR post-Sheraton. 

This style of politics is quite alien to the large majority of Bersatu members – either disgruntled newer DAP and PKR members, in which the concept of street should be as a last approach – or former Umno grassroots types, whose street activism was largely the provocative rather than evocative sort. 

The desperation that pushes people to the street, too, is missing – the helpless feeling when elections are unfair, or corrupt excesses go unpunished, or the wealth of the nation is plundered, and so on. 

Also, Bersatu has not tasted being in opposition for prolonged periods, unlike their counterpart, PAS.

After a short campaign, Bersatu, then Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) youngest member, was swept into power after the 2018 general election, obtaining the choicest ministerial and GLC portfolios due to Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s venerable status.

This was followed by even more power wrestled out of its allies’ hands. The party’s vulnerability was only matched by its obstinate arrogance.

PH now is facing its new awkward partner. Having been unreservedly harsh against Umno in the past, finding equal footing with a new and rather vulnerable partner that also finding its own stability is a daunting task. 

Take for instance, Najib’s royal pardon bid. 

BN’s insistence on this could be misplaced.

PH, in its previous incarnation, only saw the disgraced ex-prime minister indicted in court after his ousting.

BN, however, was part of the government that exhausted its appeals, sent Najib to prison and allowed the hearing of former leader’s criminal cases to continue.

Later, it launched its manifesto, which contained nothing about getting Najib released.

Similarly, PN and PH, like GPS, also contested the elections as separate alliances, eventually forming a loose coalition with three other coalitions comprising 20 parties; 17 of whom have not stated any wish to score Najib a pardon.

In this case, it would appear, the party disrespectful to its partners is not Amanah, but Umno itself, who is disrupting a fragile status quo of its own creation, of their own volition! 

This square peg situation should only get better as Malaysia familiarises itself to more mature politics, which ultimately bodes well for its people – without any one party having a monopoly on policymaking and constructive criticism.  

The plus side of it is the civil service will march on quicker feet, hatch leaner ideas and make projects shorter, with a focus on closure and ROI. Corruption and complacency should lessen dramatically. – May 3, 2023.

* Emmanuel Joseph firmly believes that Klang is the best place on Earth, and that motivated people can do far more good than any leader with motive.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.