After the 2008 General Election which saw the UMNO/Barisan Nasional coalition losing power in five states, namely Penang, Selangor, Perak, Kedah and Kelantan, the idea of the toppling of UMNO/BN from Putrajaya became possible, achievable and dream-able in the nation’s history.
Before the 2008 General Election, nobody would have seriously entertained the notion that it was possible and achievable to bring about a transition of power through the democratic process.
But if you ask me during the 14th General Elections campaign whether the Pakatan Harapan would defeat the UMNO/Barisan Nasional coalition and oust Datuk Seri Najib Razak as the Prime Minister of Malaysia, I would not dare to answer in the affirmative, although I dedicated all my energies and efforts to this purpose – to the extent that I was campaigning outside my parliamentary constituency of Iskandar Puteri most of the campaign period, visiting 35 parliamentary constituencies in ten states during the 11-day 14th General Election campaign period.
I was only in Iskandar Puteri constituency during the beginning and end of the general election campaign, as for me in the 14GE, it was more important how the DAP and Pakatan Harapan performed in the polls than in Iskandar Puteri itself.
On the night of 9th May 2018, when I flew up from Iskandar Puteri parliamentary constituency to Sheraton Hotel in Petaling Jaya, where Pakatan Harapan leaders have decided to gather on the night of the 14GE polling, it seemed quite clear that UMNO/BN had lost the mandate of the people to rule, and had been rejected by the majority of the voters losing the simple majority of at least 112 out of the total of 222 parliamentary seats.
But it was not clear whether Pakatan Harapan had won the simple majority of 112 seats and capable of forming the Federal Government in Putrajaya, as the Election Commission had downed tools when it found that UMNO/BN candidates were on a losing streak and refused to announce the results of the rest of the parliamentary constituencies.
My greatest concern and worry that night in Sheraton Hotel on 9th May which dragged on into the early hours of 10th May was that there would be a hung Parliament, with neither Barisan Nasional nor Pakatan Harapan gaining a simple majority of 112 parliamentary seats, as it would then allow the PAS President, Datuk Seri Hadi Awang to be “kingmaker” – which Hadi had announced was the objective of PAS to win 40 parliamentary seats in the 14GE!
Imagine what would have happened to Malaysia if on that historic day of May 9, 2018, there has a hung Parliament and Hadi was able to play the role of “kingmaker” – as there was no doubt even before the 14GE of the secret Najib-PAS and UMNO-PAS understanding, as Hadi’s first choice would be to throw the support of the PAS MPs to enable Najib to continue as Prime Minister, regardless of the 1MDB scandal and Malaysia’s infamy of being regarded by the whole world as a global kleptocracy. We would then be seeing not only a global kleptocracy, but also Islamic kleptocracyl
Fortunately, the country was spared the disaster of such a UMNO/BN/PAS coalition government in Putrajaya as Pakatan Harapan won more than a simple parliamentary majority and with WARISAN had a most comfortable margin to form the new Malaysian Government in Putrajaya.
I will like to take this opportunity to share with Malaysians in Perth – and I must say that I am overawed by such a great number of Malaysians who have turned up tonight, many white-haired indicative that they have left Malaysian shores for many years and even decades, but their hearts are still with Malaysia – the idea that a new civil movement in the country and worldwide Malaysian Diaspora should be formed to chart the building of a New Malaysia 2030.
On May 9, 2018, for the first time in many years, Malaysians in the country and the worldwide Diaspora, felt proud to be Malaysians, for we shocked ourselves and the world that we can peacefully and democratically change the government through the ballot box at a time democracy worldwide is undergoing a crisis about its relevance as a system of governance in the 21st century.
For the first time, we are doing what Bapa Malaysia Tunku Abdul Rahman had envisioned during the birth of the nation for Malaysia to be “a beacon of light in a disturbed and distracted world” instead of being a “black hole” of rogue democracy, kakistocracy where Ministers could not differentiate a turtle egg from an ordinary egg, and a global kleptocracy.
Malaysia dare to hope and dream again for Malaysia to become a world-class top nation in every field of human endeavor, where we can leverage on the best of the diverse races, languages, cultures and civilisations that meet in confluence in Malaysia.
A New Malaysia is struggling to be born, which will take not 100 days or even five months but 10 to 20 years.
Let the New Malaysia movement which I propose that Malaysians in the country and the worldwide Diaspora can spearhead work on the building of a New Malaysia, starting with the following objectives:
1. Establish Malaysia as a model democracy starting with the restoration of the doctrine of separation of power – where Parliament and Judiciary are not creatures of the Executive and the Prime Minister.
2. Transform Malaysia from global kleptocracy into a leading nation of integrity.
3. Restore Malaysia’s economic prowess to ensure economic justice, progress and prosperity for all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region.
4 Aim for Malaysia to a world-class top nation in every field of human endeavor; and
5. Build an united Malaysian nation where all Malaysians regard themselves not only as Malays, Chinese, Indians, Kadazans and Ibans, but also as Malaysians first and foremost.
There is no guarantee that the vision of a New Malaysia will succeed as there are many in Opposition working for the implosion of Pakatan Harapan, as evidenced by the just-concluded PAS Muktamar heralding a new PAS-UMNO alliance to take the extremist politics of race, religion, fear, hate and lies to an unprecedented level.
I have just received news that one of the most respected UMNO leaders and long-time UMNO Minister, Datuk Mustapha Mohamad, has just resigned from UMNO as he had wanted Umno to be more inclusive and moderate, but this did not seem to be the path the party was taking.
This is latest evidence that Malaysian politics is in uncharted waters and that those who plotted for the implosion of Pakatan Harapan government may implode first if they proceed with unprecedented extremism in exploiting the politics of race, religion, hate, fear and lies.
The building of a New Malaysia must go on undeterred by the machinations of the political opportunists and extremists and this is where a New Malaysia civil movement for Malaysians in the country and the worldwide Diaspora can play an important and rightful role.
(Speech by DAP MP for Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang on “An Insight into a New Malaysia” at Murdoch University, Perth on Tuesday 18th September 2018 at 6 pm)