IF there is something that I would like to wish for in this month of Merdeka, it is a political truce. As the sad and protracted saga comes to an end (hopefully!), I wish we can dial down the politics, rhetoric and careless, endless mongering.
We deserve a break. Whether the new prime minister rocks your boat or joint, we need to give it a rest. It has been a long, energy-sapping year compounded by the pandemic and a general disruption of our lives.
The politicking achieved what it intended to do – bring down the administration of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin. However, the consequences are not what everyone involved wanted.
Like the song says, you cannot always get what you want, but if you try, sometimes you may get what you need.
So please, no more running around with sworn statements or telling everyone of having “strong, credible numbers” in possession, no more selective righteousness with political opportunists aka frogs, and no more straight-faced politicos claiming to be fighting for us.
Of course, I know that my wish matters little in the greater political scheme of things. We can only hope for politicians to give it a rest and accord the newly minted prime minister space and time. Yet, there are already murmurs of cabinet appointments or whose government Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob is leading.
It is the nature of coalition governments that, while difficult to form, they can be easily compromised. We have seen how a disaffected lot can bring down a government, in fact, twice in as many years.
Ismail Sabri was the Johnny-on-the-spot when contenders like Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, et alia did not get the desired number of MPs to support them.
His name was seldom in the grapevine in the days leading to the Muhyiddin putsch. Still, he came from the outside, unnoticed from behind the bend, racing to the front just days before Muhyiddin stepped down.
Despite being a member of a deposed administration – with enough wit and perseverance – he offered himself as a compromise candidate, a common denominator for the anti-Pakatan Harapan-Anwar coalition.
PH reps, who have been constant thorns on the former prime minister’s side from the day their government imploded in February last year, must be wondering what hit them. Were they not in control of the narratives?
Umno, whose pride was hurt when it was sat at the kid’s table in the previous administration, broke into factions – some stayed with Muhyiddin, while others pulled their support. However, the party came together almost immediately – must be its inherent instinct to survive – and backed vice-president Ismail Sabri.
If I did not know any better, I would have thought it was a sneaky work-around to have everyone get at Muhyiddin, and when they did, a blind side by Umno put their man in charge of the country yet again, after an absence of three years.
Now, PH is licking its wounds. Soon, there will be a blame game, and after that, likely a resolute commitment to go after the government. We know you are angry and hurt, but can we be spared yet another round of politicking?
Can we have a truce and keep the new administration till the end of this current term, till 2023? No snap polls, please, not only because of Covid-19 or whether we like the current government, but keep a lid on all things politics because we are tired.
I know some people are talking of having an election in six months or so after the mass vaccination drive reaches a desired level. You know what? Give us a break. Instead, prepare for an election scheduled in 2023. Also, we cannot be trusted to behave ourselves in a pandemic.
Talking about being tired, can we discuss civility in the House, too? Elected MPs must take note that rowdiness, even in the classrooms, is seldom tolerated.
We know you are meeting soon to verify support for the prime minister. Please behave. No shouting and screaming. No talking over one another. Listen when someone is talking and learn to resist interrupting. You know, the common courtesies that we expect when we see each other. Stuff like that.
We know you have a point to make, or a smart retort or a dig – touché! – that you want us, who are watching, to see. I get that you want to impress us and all, but let me tell you something, we are seldom impressed by boorish behaviour. In fact, we are tired of it.
We know we cannot do much if you decide to get us into yet another political imbroglio. If you persist, however, we will remember you.
We are sick of the endless politicking. There I said it. – The Vibes, August 25, 2021
Datuk Zainul Arifin Mohammed Isa is a veteran newsman with more than 35 years in the business. He is executive director of operations at PETRA News
