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Few images could match the pathos of a man struggling to keep
his head above water as he is drowning. A more tragic scene
would be seeing a Mongoloid child quietly slipping underwater,
oblivious of the mortal danger he is in as he sinks down,
grinning. No intimations of fear or helplessness; a few moments
later he would be found lifeless at the bottom of the pond.
This is the image Prime Minister Abdullah currently projects,
and it is not far from the reality. He is way above his head,
and is blissfully unaware of it. He still maintains the “elegant
silence” of a Pak Bisu (the lovable deaf-mute uncle), and a
“What? Me Worry?” grin of Mad Magazine’s Alfred Neuman.
He is sinking fast, and he does not know it. He is also taking
his party and the nation down with him. Unfortunately, it is not
within our culture for those closest to him to warn him of the
impending disaster, much less to rescue the poor soul. On the
contrary, they would continue to shield him from the harsh
reality, all the way down to the bottom of the pond. They are
more interested in protecting their own interests rather than in
saving the man or the nation.
Undur lah, Pak Lah! Step down, Pak Lah! Spare your party, race
and the nation you love needless grief.
It would be presumptuous of me to suggest that you might also be
sparing yourself, your loved ones, and those closest to you.
That is not for me to say.
Right Decision; Right Timing; Right Reason
By stepping down now, Abdullah would be making the one right
decision at the right time and for all the right reasons,
something that has sorely eluded him since becoming Prime
Minister.
This would be an appropriate time for him to announce his
resignation, to be effective following the election of a new
leader at UMNO’s forthcoming annual convention in November.
Doing so now would spare his party and the nation the endless
distractions of a leadership tussle. With Ramadan coming up,
there will be only a few weeks for the members to focus on
electing their leader. The restraining influence of that holy
month would curtail the more blatant “money politics” that has
plagued UMNO. That would help ensure a clean election; at least
I hope so.
Were Abdullah to reveal his stubborn streak and hang on however
tenuously, rest assured that the party and nation would be
consumed by the leadership brawl. Forget about the Ninth
Malaysia Plan, economic growth, or even plain normalcy. Even if
Abdullah were to survive (a very big “if”), it would be a hollow
victory. He, the party, Malays, and Malaysia would have been
senselessly and irreparably battered in the process.
Clinging on would only make him look even more pathetic and
helpless than he is already now. Please spare us the sorry
sight!
I trust the collective wisdom of UMNO members to select
Abdullah’s worthy successor. They have been through the exercise
many times before. When Datuk Onn left the party in a huff,
sulking because the members would not do his bidding, they
demonstrated great judgment in picking the hitherto unknown and
colorless civil servant, Tunku Abdul Rahman. It was a prescient
choice for later he would lead the nation to Merdeka. In
contrast, the daring, brilliant and charismatic Datuk Onn was
content to remain in the false security of the colonial cocoon.
Similarly later when the Tunku was enjoying himself too much in
being the “world’s happiest Prime Minister” while the nation was
fracturing, UMNO members again asserted themselves. That famous
genuflecting letter to Tunku from Dr. Mahathir may be from one
person, but not its sentiment.
Granted, the UMNO of today is a far cry from its earlier being;
it is now corrupted to its core. The rot accelerated when Anwar
Ibrahim introduced the party and its members to “modern” forms
of campaigning, as with “money politics.” It was only through
outright corruption and blatant bribery, condoned by the party’s
senior leaders, was Anwar successful in dislodging Ghaffar Baba
as Deputy President and thus, Deputy Prime Minister. However, as
we Muslims would observe, Allah has His Ways; nothing happens
without His Will.
Today money politics is entrenched; it seems futile to have
faith in UMNO’s ability to make wise decisions, uncorrupted by
money and influence peddling. Examine the last leadership
convention, and that was with the two top positions not
contested. Imagine the ugly tussles and ensuing gross
corruptions had both positions been vacant.
There is some reason to hope that this time it would be
different, if Abdullah were to resign now. With the restraining
influence of Ramadan and Hari Raya, as well as the short notice,
there would not be a prolonged disruptive and acrimonious
campaign. There would be corresponding less time for intrigue
and bribery. It takes time to form alliances and to engage in
backstabbing.
This may well be the only opportunity for the party to have a
relatively honest election, and for its members to express
freely their collective wisdom. This may also be the only chance
the party has to cleanse its leadership, and thus itself.
If Abdullah does not seize this rare opportunity and instead
succumb to the flatteries of his courtiers, rest assured that
the party and nation would needlessly be distracted until he is
out. Not a pretty prospect, for him, the party, and the nation.
Contrary to Abdullah’s perception, Mahathir is not the problem;
silencing him would not be the solution. Mahathir is getting
wide hearing not because he is the former Prime Minister
(although that is a factor), rather the issues he raises
resonate with the citizens.
Undoing Mahathir’s Legacy
If Abdullah were intent on undoing Mahathir’s legacy, as
Abdullah’s many interlocutors seemed to convey, then stepping
down now would do it. He would have effectively broken UMNO’s
ill-advised “tradition” of not contesting the two top positions.
This presumes that Najib would contest the top slot with
Abdullah’s withdrawal, and thus automatically vacate his Deputy
President post. There is nothing to indicate that he would not
do so.
It was just over two years ago that Abdullah received an
overwhelming mandate from the people. He has not committed any
egregious deeds, which would be the usual reason in calling for
a resignation. On the contrary, he has done a few things right;
that is to say, I agree with those decisions.
That is precisely Abdullah’s problem. Even when he did the rare
right thing, as with trimming the budget deficit, canceling that
silly crooked bridge, and reducing the petroleum subsidy, his
timing was off and or his reasoning flawed.
It was pathetic and painful to see his ministers and other
defenders going through contortions to justify canceling that
bridge. As for the timing, the penalty payments may yet exceed
the cost had the boondoggle been built!
As for Abdullah’s overwhelming mandate of 2004, do not read too
much into it. Malaysians are by nature generous and forgiving of
our leaders, at least the first time around. When Tunku took
over from the towering Datuk Onn, Tunku’s Alliance Party won all
but one of the 52 seats. Datuk Onn scrapped through with the
only one seat.
This was not because Malaysians were mudah lupa (easily
forgetting) or being ungrateful to Datuk Onn for his great
service in establishing UMNO and saving the nation from becoming
a dominion. Rather, Malaysians prefer giving their new leaders a
rousing start and a generous chance.
Resigning the prime ministership is quite the tradition in
Malaysia. Chalk one up for the nation! Tunku did it temporarily
to concentrate running his campaign in1959. A decade later the
Tunku missed the subtle Malay signals and was more or less
forced out, albeit civilly and with decorum in 1970. Hussein did
it gracefully in 1981, without prompting, when he found himself
overwhelmed.
Fast-forward to today, Hussein Onn is fondly remembered despite
his forgettable tenure. In contrast, during the recent
celebration of Merdeka’s 49th anniversary, few recalled the
Tunku’s pivotal leadership in that fateful event.
Mahathir made it clear that he now deeply regrets anointing
Abdullah as his successor. That point is irrelevant. By
resigning now and simultaneously opening up the nomination
process by letting anyone to participate by doing away with the
onerous branch nomination requirements, Abdullah would reduce
the corrupting influence of money politics and help ensure
getting the best candidates. Let the membership decide who are
serious and who are frivolous candidates. By resigning now,
Abdullah would also ensure that the next generation of leaders
would truly be the choice of the membership. That is a legacy
that even Mahathir could not match. That is also the one
enduring legacy worth leaving.
Undur lah, Pak Lah!
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