Getting to know the Madani government
By their deeds you will know them
The Anwar Ibrahim administration aka the Madani government has been in power for more than nine months now. As a commentator trying to tell the people the reflections I am seeing, these have met push back with a number of standard criticisms.
The most common one has been that Anwar is better than the alternative. This argument was recently used by Anwar himself when replying to a question by a student on the issue of student race quotas, a couple of weeks ago.
Others say, give Anwar a chance, while still more say that Anwar’s government is not a ‘reformasi’ government, and is a ‘unity’ government, sharing power with other political parties. And so, the one liners go on.
However, under these veils of hope, there is great disappointment shared by a large number of Pakatan Harapan supporters. The results of the recent state elections were blamed on the ‘brainwashing’ of the young within the education system, not the performance of the Madani government, which incidentally is not a government the Rakyat asked for.
What we have is a government in power that is not much different from any other government before. In Malaysia, governments can change, where the policies remain the same.
Early into the new government tenure, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (SOSMA) wouldn’t be reviewed. Quotas on education would remain, most business monopolies would remain, and budget preferences to Bumiputeras would remain in place. Politicians continued to be appointed to GLC boards, and so on.
However, it has taken none months for many to realize the ‘spirit of reformasi’ was totally absent within the Madani government.
We have to see what the Madani government has done over the last nine months to actually know it stands for.
Perhaps the most needed reforms are in the education system. So much work needs to be undertaken upon the curriculum, pedagogy, to raise the motivation of teachers, and improve infrastructure.
However, the only initiative we have seen is the introduction of the Iman Al-Nawawi 40 Hadiths module into schools. PAS never thought of this.
During the pandemic many weaknesses were exposed in the health system. Nothing has been done to improve the physical hardware and infrastructure of the health system.
Instead, the Ministry of Health seems intent of expanding the MySejahtera app into a digital monitoring system. The MOH is preparing for a new Covid-19 vaccine drive, while dengue is at a high, and cardiovascular health and obesity are at extreme levels. Why is the MOH following global WHO policies, when there is a different set of problems here in Malaysia?
It’s become obvious the Madani government’s economic policies are very much the same as previous government policies. The new national Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP) resembles previous plans, with no out of the box initiatives.
This is perhaps because the plans rely upon the civil service, in this case the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) to develop. The NIMP looks like an International Monetary Fund and World Bank template. This is too simplistic for the complex economy Malaysia has.
Malaysia still has the GLCs as the anchor of the economy. This is national socialist economics, which aims to distribute wealth towards the corporations, and away from the rest. Monopolies are being maintained, as are APs that favour those who possess them.
The Madani government has created the strongest censorship bubble seen in any government this century. Online news portals are being blocked arbitrarily, without following formal due processes.
The 3Rs have been weaponized as a censorship tool, just as they were in the 1970s, after May 13. People as beginning to fear speaking up, with the risk of being investigated by the police for potential sedition.
Corruption is still rampant with GLCs and crony companies able to make landgrabs without following proper procedures. The integrity of the legal system is under question of being political, where Muhyiddin Yassin saw the court dismiss charges of abuse of power against him, and the public prosecutor withdrew the corruption case against deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, after it had been going on in court for months.
JAKIM’s responsibilities have been expanded to include a media censorship role with the MCMC, and its new role in national economic planning.
As the argument goes, the Madani government is better than the alternative. But wait a minute, wasn’t PAS part of the federal government between 2020-2022?
Some people are now rethinking the premise that Madani is better than Perikatan Nasional. PN didn’t confiscate Swatches. PN didn’t utilize the legal system as a political tool. PN didn’t use censorship to silence its critics. Sometimes the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t know.
Its always best to look at deeds and not propaganda.
However, the bottom line is there is not much difference in any government. The Malaysian government is like a restaurant where you can order whatever you like, but everyone will receive the same dish.
Originally published in My Sin Chew 6th September 2023
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Lets compare to what tun m did when he became pm in july 1981 the first 10 mths.
He immediately ask six army generals to resign.
The very next week implemented a time card to ensure civil servants come to work on time.
He planned and start construction of dayabumi seven months into his job.
Raiided the london stock exchange and took back control of guthrie.
Announce buy british last and look east policy.
Anwar? All he does is lie. A true deceiver. In islam, there is a name for it.👁️
Malaysians (of the Chinese Indian non Malaay variety) can't have their cake and eat it too. They have become so accustomed to complaining and using race as a means of justifying every criticism they have against anyone and everyone who is Malay to justify their bitterness and anger at not being able to use government to suppress the aspration of Malays. The race baiting of the Malays by the Chinese liberally used Anwar as their battering ram to destablize the Barisan and divide the Malays. Till they found out that Anwar would likely emergee as the nations leader. Then they moved out of the Barisan en masse to the Chinese DAP in a demonstration of unadluterated Chinese chaivanism.
There is a parallell fight going on in Australia over the "Voice". This is a plebisicte/ referendum that will decide by a 75% majority if full recognition is to be given in a proposed amendment to Australia's constitution to include mention of Australia's Aboriginals (something that was never considered till the High Court decision in Mabo) and establish their position in their country giving them special rights and permanent representation in Parliament (just as India has done in its constitution permanently establishing rights for tribals and the Anglo Indian communities) constitution of Australia, something that was never done before since settlement in the 1700's.
A similar ugly opposition has emerged vociferously from the white settler groups in the foulest and vilest of terms resisting the Voice. Their language is red neck in every respect and similar to that employed by Malaysia's non Malay population (read Chinese).
Anwar was the choice for leader for the shrill cacophonic chorus of more than 2 decades wwhich comprised all of the 88 Regime Change groups from the Malaysian Bar to C4 to Bersih and the churches. All of these groups the beneficiaries of the National Endowment for Democracy, ME2 and the US government. Sedition is too soft a word to desccribe what they engaged in.
Today they have the of prime minister of their own chosing and making. But he appears not to be able to do anything right in their view. It is the Chinese Communist method of undermining a government and dominating its people. Nothing it seems has changed since Mao except for the way they dress.
In fairness to Anwar (not a man of my chosing) he needs some time to clean up the mess thats accumulated since her joined forces with Paul Wolfowitz and the Neo Cons to damage his county and get it to do their bidding. It was at a time when tthe US was the only super power in the world and was prepared to use brute force on anyone who would not comply with their demands and views of the world.
Thankfully the US today is a woundeed beast without the military or leadership clout it once enjoyed unchallenged. The world is a different place. Anwar can't rely on US, British or Australian military intervention if the Chinese or any other invader attacks Malaysia. ( see Aghanistan)
Anwar has to find a middle path that is suitable to all, Malays first and can't deal piece meal with the perenniel complaints of Chinese who seem to believe they have an ascriptive right to rule Malaysia with their Indian baggage boys in tow. He needs time.
The Chinese like the Malays are Pendatang. Migrant guests witth citizenship. They have to live up to their creed and their obligations as citizens instead of engaging in sedition inside and outside of parliament.
He has to start someone where and that would be uniting the Malays undere Islam and their Raja Raja Melayu and not appeasing the Chinese whose have enjoyed patronage and rights way beyond their entitlements since and prior to formation of the federation. Much of this through the gun (either the Triads or the MCP) and corruption of the civil service and traditional rulers.
Johan's comments reflect an observation fom a time gone by in which Anwar was part of government. The country thrived till the US intervened. It can work under Anwar. He need not be inclusive. It is time the Chinese and other non Malaysia become more inclusive in their thought and approach to the country thaats housed them forr centuries for which they show no gratitude.