by Tunku Abdul Aziz
Malaysian Insider
April 6, 2009

Every head of government, whether elected or not that I know of, begins his or her term of office by making some dramatic gesture or other. In a repressive regime such as ours, releasing political prisoners and other prisoners of conscience from detention camps in which they have no business being incarcerated in the first place, is de rigueur.

For a leader such as Tun Mahathir Mohamad, adopting this practice as a public demonstration of his overflowing compassion for the people of Malaysia was certainly not out of character.

The resultant public euphoria went as fast as it came when hundreds were later detained under the ISA in the Operation Lalang crackdown. I am naturally disappointed that Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak has allowed himself to freefall into the pits of cynicism by announcing the release of the ISA detainees days before the by-elections; one each in Kedah, Perak and Sarawak.

You, Najib, have missed a great opportunity to show us that you are different!

It was a sinister, cruel and macabre joke that Mahathir played on unsuspecting Malaysians. Their only sin was to have allowed themselves to be taken in by barefaced lies by the leader of a corrupt and unrepentant oligarchy. It is quite clear that if a change of leadership such as we have just had is without the attendant change of values and value systems, the process amounts to nothing. In such a situation, the culture of Machiavellianism in politics merely means more of the same.

I am prepared to give Najib a fair crack of the whip, and to give him not the traditional 100 days, but a full 365 days before I judge him. I hope Malaysians will give him a sporting chance, and be fair to him. But Najib must not be too clever by half in his dealings with Malaysians of all backgrounds.

Once trust is lost, he will be treated with contempt, and once confidence in him is lost, he will not continue to enjoy their co-operation and then he will have to resort to unjust laws administered on his behalf by servants of the State whose own credentials cannot bear close public scrutiny.

We expect him to deliver not genuine fakes, however good they may look, but the real McCoy. Show us that his 1Malaysia is not just another slogan because he cannot propel the ship of state on slogans. Does he have what it takes to deal with racial, religious and economic issues in ways that will benefit ALL Malaysians?

I have been one of his harshest critics, and although I hold a position in an opposition political party, my views on social and other national issues have not changed because of my political affiliation. I am Malaysian first and last and fervently hope that his 1Malaysia will be implemented vigorously.

He cannot govern effectively without the support of a team of people who share his values and vision. Najib must choose his Cabinet colleagues carefully and wisely. Quite apart from their technical qualifications for the jobs on offer, they must be men and women of great moral substance who believe, as an article of faith, that public duty must always be in the public interest.

There can never be a substitute for this sacred trust and belief.

Corruption has been and will continue to be the Achilles heel of Umno, and the responsibility for its future as the country’s ruling party will be placed squarely upon his shoulder. We sweep a staircase from the top and never from the bottom up or end up with dirt and dust on the face. We will take our cue from him as the head of government.

Najib has to show us he is a clean Prime Minister, and I will be the first to say that the swirling allegations of impropriety against him are probably just coffeeshop rumours and gossips. Remember, we have give him a sporting chance because we want him to be Malaysia’s Bapa Reformasi. The three bits of advice I want to give Najib is one, reform, two, reform and three, reform.

So, as he assumes the leadership of this difficult nation with its tangle of races, languages and cultures and attempts to create 1Malaysia, I wish him well. Malaysian First has for a long time been the motto of the DAP, my party. I am sure on this Najib and we can all work together. There are no doctrinal differences on this score.