SOMEONE, please put Abdul Hadi Awang out of his misery. 

He should be allowed to say what he truly believes. He should be allowed to take his political enemies to the cleaners without worrying about political correctness.

He must be free to slag off DAP as chauvinists and dismiss Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia as political nobodies.

Hadi must be allowed to be himself. He mustn’t feel the need to try and sound like a statesman or the Malaysian version of Barack Obama with talk of inclusiveness and moderation.

Why?

Because a good number of Malaysians have tracked the political rise of the PAS president and they know the real Hadi. They know that he stewed uncomfortably for years as Tok Guru Nik Aziz steered PAS onto the middle path, a path that saw the Islamic party join forces with Anwar Ibrahim’s PKR and Lim Kit Siang’s DAP to loosen Barisan Nasional’s vice-like grip on power in Malaysia.

Tok Guru didn’t see all things through race or religious lenses. He wanted a better Malaysia and was willing to share the same platform with others who were like-minded in this pursuit of justice and integrity. 

Hadi has always been his own man. With Tok Guru Nik Aziz no more, he set about to mould PAS in his image. Those who have spoken to him recently say that more than anything else, he is concerned about the loss of political power by the Malays. 

He is not interested in taking advantage of a weak Umno, believing that without strong political power in the hands of Malays (read: Umno/PAS), the primacy of Islam in Malaysia will be challenged.   ‎

In short, Hadi is not interested in being part of any coalition to take down Umno and form the next government if that move results in a dilution of Malay political power.

In his world, a truce with Umno (not an electoral pact) is more desirable than working with PKR, Amanah, DAP and Bersatu because it will give him the best path to secure Malay political power in Malaysia. 

He is entitled to do whatever he wants to achieve his political objective. As PAS president, he is entitled to lead his party down any path. 

But he is not entitled to dream big dreams. – April 29, 2017.