DPM/MY’s remarks are hardly surprising. It is question of how our BN ruling elites interpret – and respond to the challenge of this phenomenon of 8th March 08 Anwar/Opposition/ PR’s resurgence & UMNO/BN eclipse/loss of 2/3 majority, and reverse it. Which of course depends on what appeals to electorate, esp majority sector ? Is it communal/race as before based on which the BN communal political parties (UMNO/MCA/MIC) have been successful for 50 yrs to maintain political hegemony or has there been a quiet but fundamental shift in electoral psyche, esp amongst the young, and majority groups from traditional anxieties based on race differences to that conflicts based on class? Put another way, did 8th March political tsunamy signify – could it be explained as – traditional race antagonisms being superseded by class antagonisms?

MY brought TDM back to UMNO’s fold. Quid pro quo – he, after all, tapped on TDM’s criticsms/antagonisms against previous premier to coalesce power brokers to pressure the latter’s exit, opening the way of ascendency to the top by those waiting in line below, with him next after NTR. It is hoped that the still feisty octogenarian ex premier and his Mahathiristic Ideology would stem the tide against BN since 08/03/08 & put a brake on his nemesis (Anwar)’s political progress!

The distinctive ideological pancea of Malaysian ills prescribed under Mahathrism is ‘Ketuanan’ – ie. a multi racial society becomes stable when elites maintain political hegemony via mediating, mitigating & resolving inherent racial schisms by imposing the ‘benevolent’ will/dominance of majority racial group over the rest in exchange for support.

Anwar/PR/PKR prescribe a contrasting formula – that present society is torned by class schisms more than racial schisms; that ruling coalition has used the latter to camouflage the real – class- schisms, and that society will move to higher organisation only when the privileges, interest of and abuse by the ruling few/elites & cronies are dismantled to the benefit of the majority/rest irrespective of race and in their place is (ideally) superseded by good governance and accountability to benefit of the many!

Nah, Mahathirism derides that as naive idealism at best and Anwar’s hypocrisy at worse. It espouses the position that we’re (as society) not ready; that there is no such thing an egalitarian society, and ultimately it is always the few strong imposing a stable structure down the pecking order for the relative good of of the majority.

Mahathirism argues that notwithstanding Meritocracy in the red dot in the South, political stability (important for investors’ confidence) there depends on the strong elites imposing its will effectively on rest via a rigid class structure; that it is people who do not know their place, and who in name of democracy take to the streets, that forment chaos and chase away investors and undermine economic confidence: case in point – Thailand, Thaksin, then Abhisit Vejjajiva, and now Thaksin again? How do outsiders do business when government change every now & then by street democracy? See Phillippines decline after various changes of government after street demos , corruptuion has not abated….

The implicit thinking amongst UMNO elites led by MY is that Anwar’s pro democracy/reformasi approach, his leveraging on message of class antagonisms and how corruption has infused the higher reaches of political heirarchy will threaten not only vested interest but also lead to social/economic chaos – that the main way to put a brake on Opposition advance since March last year is to return and leverage more on traditional divide and rule TDM’s formula of communal sentiments/politics (now given greater edge by religious factors as well), something that Pak Lah, with his relative liberalism and “PM for all Malaysian” rhetoric had undermined, and hence caused last year March electoral debacle for BN but which now could and has to be redressed by the triumphant return of TDM and further fine tuning of precepts of Mahathirism structured upon cornerstone of communal politics/sentiments.