Pakatan Harapan puts out the fire of reform
(Malaysian Chinese News) – Recently there are many articles talking about “Spoilt vote movement” and “Young people’s waning enthusiasm for politics”, in which both involved the remark on how to choose between two rotten apples.
Some people opined that Barisan Nasional is corrupted and Pakatan Harapan has also taken in an earliest ancestor of corruption, hence it would be better to cast an invalid vote, some have even adopted an attitude of “can’t bear to see” on the current political situation.
Two months before the 12th general election ten years ago, Malaysia’s “political fever” appeared unprecedentedly in the internet world with young netizens talking about politics, and since then the “keyboard political warrior era” emerged.
Looking back today, the so called “keyboard politics” are confining to the social circle of both side of the political divides, some netizens began to show symptoms of “political information fatigue”. Relatively a decade ago, the political fever began to recede, indicating that politics was about to enter a new era.
The so called “political information fatigue” reflects people are deeply helpless about the current political situation and because of this, the “unofficial voice” of “Spoilt vote movement” has gained unprecedented attention since the founding of Malaysia. Political parties from across the divide worried that the silent group would bring another political tsunami against them with the opposition parties most worried about it; one can imagine that majority of these people are the opposition’s fundamental supporters.
Opposition supporters siege “Spoilt vote movement”
The waning of the political fever coupled with the “Spoilt vote movement” began to emerge after Mahathir was elected as the leader of Pakatan Harapan and it was even worst when Mahathir was nominated as the candidate for prime minister. Obviously, this is the sign in which the opposition supporters are disappointed. However, the oppositions not only failed to make self-examination but had instead pointing the finger at these silent groups, accusing them of aiding torture, and even for complicity in the upcoming general election causing the power rotation plan unable to realize.
After the statements made by the opposition leaders, their staunch supporters began to siege the “Spoilt vote movement”, a sign that political reasoning is out of control.
Instead of exercising self-examination, the oppositions have messed up the situation with the objective to try to stabilize their basic votes by all means possible.
The political struggle at this moment is no longer the sense of mission shown by the upsurge a decade ago. Today’s political struggle is purely to win.
The political craze is gone? Who put this fire out? Who cooled the boom? It was the opposition party itself that kept the fire in a sealed refrigerator.
In any region, in any time, the political craze has always been the best political environment for reformers or opposition parties. In modern history, Sun Yat-sen awakened the Chinese political ideology and rolled up the wave of political reform to save the country; Lenin awakened the revolutionary spirit of the Russians and set up a revolutionary craze. Reformers and revolutionaries in both the East and the West needed the fire to sustain the boom before winning.
If Pakatan is unwillingly to accept the reality, and also do not want to seriously reflect but pointing finger at others, in the end hope will become disappointment.
Mahathir put out the 20-year raging flames
The Reformasi at the end of 90s unleashed a new wave of political thinking, many new faces of politicians were born. Today, the Reformasi movement which is about to enter 20 years, not only its blaze did not continue to burn but also the fire is likely to extinguish at any time.
The flames which have been raging for 20 years will be putting out just because of one person – Mahathir, such situation can no longer be viewed from a general perspective. There’s not much time left for Pakatan, whether or not the flames can be rekindled before the general election is a key turning point in the victory or defeat of the next general election.
I would like to advice Pakatan supporters to stop criticizing “Spoilt vote movement” as such action will only bring more repugnance. Instead of wasting time attacking others, take more time to think about how to rekindle that fire.
The most embarrassing fact is that the previous joint enemy of Pakatan in which the fire of Reformasi started is now their joint leader. Whether or not the fire will be rekindled depends on the next efforts of Pakatan.
The upcoming general election is just around the corner, Pakatan should study seriously how to make sure that the fire of Reformasi does not extinguish, if it hopes to realize the power rotation of political parties, then please pick up the torch of the year and arouse the sense of mission of reformation.