WHEN Parliament was dissolved a decade ago this month to pave the way for Malaysia’s 2008 general election, I was a journalist with a national newspaper.

Even then, I was no longer a young and naïve reporter. Nevertheless I was hoping for some change despite my seasonal pessimism.

A year or so before that, I’d made friends with some politically-inclined young minds. They became my regular contacts, some of them as resource persons, some as political observers and analysts. I preferred them to certain “rent-a-quote” professors because those young minds provided me with fresh insights, most of the time.

One of them was Liew Chin Tong, a nerdy, fresh-faced political activist with the DAP. At the time he was working for Seputeh MP Teresa Kok.

The years between 2004 and 2008 were a strange political period. After the retirement of Dr Mahathir Mohamad, his successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Barisan Nasional won a landslide victory in GE11. Many believed in his promises of reforms. The opposition was almost wiped out. DAP got 12 seats, PAS seven, and PKR only one.

Yet a couple of years later, Abdullah was so unpopular that the opposition actually had a chance to gain something. The first Bersih and Hindraf rallies brought tens of thousands angry people to the streets of Kuala Lumpur in November 20007.

However, for the opposition to channel such rage against the government into votes was a different matter. In late 2007, there was neither an opposition coalition nor any form of electoral pact. It was only after the people’s demonstrations that the fragmented Opposition began to discuss seat allocation.

At the time, for most mainstream media journalists – including me – there was a sense of cynicism. We knew the people were angry but electoral history has proven that BN would always win with two-thirds majority.

It’s not that BN was strong. It’s simply that it uses and abuses government machineries. Rules and regulations were also enacted and amended over the years to ensure BN’s victory.

For GE12, Liew would contest in Bukit Bendera. I had my doubts about this 30-year-old young man making any impact. After all, the parliamentary seat was a BN stronghold held by Gerakan secretary-general Chia Kwang Chye, who was also a contact of mine.

I was in Penang a couple times during the campaign. I even followed Liew when he was doing his walkabouts and ceramahs in the constituency. A few days before the nomination day on February 24, 2008, I was not impressed. I even told him: “Even if you lose, don’t be despaired. Consider it a glorious defeat.”

I was wrong, however, because on March 8, 2008, BN lost its two-two thirds parliamentary majority while five states including Kelantan fell to the opposition.

It was virtually BN’s worst defeat ever. And Liew won Bukit Bendera.

Five years later, I had similar doubts about him vying for a seat in Johor. By that time I was already working with him. A few months before GE13, we went to Kluang town to check out the place.

I noticed the mood was not there. It was as if Johor missed out on the 2008 political tsunami, and was still unprepared for change in 2013. A few shopkeepers and property owners were polite enough to tell us that they were happy with BN.

Yet, the moment Parliament was dissolved, the election mood in Johor’s urban areas, like most cities and towns in Malaysia, changed immediately. The atmosphere was jubilant. On May 5, 2013, Liew won Kluang.

A decade later today, as Johor DAP chairman, he is speculated to be vying for the Ayer Hitam parliamentary seat. If it’s true, I have to admit that I still have my doubts, again.

Since the seat was created in 1974, it has always been an MCA-BN seat. The current MP is Wee Ka Siong, MCA’s deputy president and minister in the Prime Minister’s Department. He is the incumbent since 2004.

If Liew is to contest in Ayer Hitam, it’ll be his toughest political challenge ever. Besides being BN’s fortress, it’s also a Malay-majority seat – where MCA always depends for votes.

It will be a do-or-die battle for Liew, for Pakatan Harapan and for Malaysia. The 14th general election will not be fun and games for political parties. It will be about survival. It will be a decisive moment for Malaysians.

For me, it would be a great joy if my pessimism is proven to be wrong, again. For many of us, it’s time for a real change, for a new government to usher us into a new era of fairness, prosperity and dignity. – February 23, 2018.

* Wan Hamidi Hamid is a veteran journalist with a deep love and knowledge of rock music

* 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.