DESPITE what many think, the Malaysian democratic crawl space has actually grown in the past two decades. The credit would have to be given to Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, or Pak Lah as he is known, for this. 

His administration’s open approach in dealing with civil disobedience was refreshing and allowed groups like Bersih, Hindraf and others to at least build a platform to speak, although a considerable amount of clampdown and detention without trial still occurred – once even leading to a cabinet resignation.

While the state apparatus was used to obscure, dilute or discourage dissent, it inched open the way to dialogue within and outside Abdullah’s political alliance. 

As a result of this, openness was created for some dissent, which previously was not really something of which we thought.

This relaxation of rigidness, so to speak, likely contributed to the 2008 unprecedented opposition “tsunami” in the elections, not seen since 1969. 

This tsunami paved the way to a two-party system and highlighted the dual federal/state nature of the previously largely monolithic state apparatus in many “richer” states, which previously was thought of as a mostly single, ubiquitous “civil service”.  

It also significantly modified palace-opposition party relationships.

If there was any doubt that the two-party system was temporary, in surviving the 2013 onslaught, Pakatan Rakyat as it was then known, sealed the two-party reality, cementing the opposition bloc as more than merely noisemakers, but administrators as well. 

In 2018, further complications dogged the selection process by introducing wild cards like bloc crossovers, shifting allegiances and broke down the giant pacts into smaller versions – Muafakat Nasional and Pakatan Harapan each contributed a portion of their ex-members into Perikatan Nasional and Gerakan Tanah Air, respectively.  

Having more options is, of course, almost always good, especially when some of the problems associated with it – like crossovers causing political instability, and money politics – have been addressed via legislation and reforms. 

This way, a greater myriad of ideas can be presented, and more people have the opportunity to volunteer their services, allowing for better representation of political philosophies and ideals.

This also translates to better representation on various demographics, racial and religious groups, social values and so on. In short, a better representation of Malaysia. 

However, there are a few downsides.

A first past the post system means the will of the majority may not necessarily be expressed in the electoral victors, if there are too many participants. 

For example, assume six candidates stand for an election, and the first candidate wins 20% of the vote, the others 16% each.  

That means 80% of the votes are against this particular candidate, yet he or she will represent the entire constituency.  

Imagine the same scenario, extrapolated state or nationwide. 

We might end up with a minority government, and in a parliamentary scenario, that means horse-trading and pacts, which aren’t prohibited by the new anti-party hopping law. 

Our political stability, the often-touted reason to hold an election in the middle of an economic downturn and floods, may end up worse than when we started. 

That being said, the presence of many parties may have one of two effects: everyone toeing the middle ground for fear of upsetting the status quo and losing mainstream voters; or parties radicalising to differentiate themselves and win strategic fringe votes.  

We could also see the states exert more autonomy in matters of development, policy or even administrative cohesion. 

As it is, we see the impact in states distancing themselves from federal elections, which would now likely result in multiple polls for various states. 

Democracy, like many concepts, is a two-pronged sword: we take the good with the bad, and just hope the pros outweigh the cons. – October 19, 2022.

* 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.