“It is a no brainer that Sultan Sharafuddin would never allow a party led by Mahathir to ever lead the government of Selangor. Not, at least, if Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim is still around. It is an open secret that the ruler has a soft spot for Khalid and regrets that PKR and the DAP treated him the way they did during Langkah Kajang. And that is the reason Khalid needs to work with UMNO and PAS – given his popularity ratings and the likelihood he will win whichever seat he contests in Selangor, there is nothing stopping him from forming a unity government with UMNO and PAS right after GE14 concludes”
THE THIRD FORCE
Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim’s willingness to work with UMNO and PAS ahead of the 14th general election (GE14) is perhaps the most politically mature and wise decision ever made by a statesman to date. His decision has the very essence and spirit of nationalism that defined UMNO’s struggles since the party’s inception at the Palace of Johor in 1946. But the fact that he does not represent a political party has raised a lot of concern.
Questions have been raised as to what a single individual could offer PAS or UMNO, or why the two opposing parties found it absolutely necessary to work with the former Selangor Menteri Besar. But those asking these questions missed out entirely on the central thrust to the collaboration – Khalid’s alliance with PAS and UMNO isn’t solely to win GE14, but to tap into the political consciousness of the Malays which the DAP has since awakened.
Yes, so deeply has the DAP been stirring the anti-Islamic cauldron, the Malays have finally awakened to the reality that Islam is under threat. They are seeing – for the first time ever – that their accommodating nature and attitudes have been taken for granted by evangelist leaning factions within the DAP. As a result, they are revaluating their role in society and believe that they must now fulfil a necessary function within the Malaysian political order.
That function has to do with the conservation of Malay sensibilities and the need for Malays to claim their position at the vanguard of national politics. Thanks to the DAP, there is now a general acceptance among the Malays that because the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, their needs must take precedence and be protected at all cost, come what may. It has come to a point that the Malays are willing to cast aside the need for mutual tolerance and acceptance regardless what the Chinese and the Indians have to say about it.
In one sense, they’re not wrong to think this way.
The reason being, Malaysia is a Muslim majority nation. A clear majority of the Muslims are Malays, while a clear majority of those Malays are represented by UMNO. Going by democratic conventions and principles, the needs of the many do indeed outweigh the needs of the few, the few here being the Chinese and the Indians. But because the Malay majority is represented by UMNO, and considering that UMNO insists on working with the MCA and the MIC, the needs of the Malays are always taken in tandem with the aims and aspirations of multicultural Malaysia.
However, that in no way invalidates the right of the Malays to take a domineering role in shaping the Malaysian identity. They are beginning to see the need to take such a role considering that the DAP is working harder and harder each day to undermine Islam. Had the MCA stood firmly behind UMNO and refrained from supporting the DAP on Hudud and RUU 355, the Malays would have regarded GE14 to be just another contest between rival political factions with differing ideologies.
But because the MCA let UMNO down on many occasions, the Malays are not taking any more chances. The next general election is no longer about differences in political ideologies or beliefs, but a crusade by the Malays against the DAP Chinese to protect Islam and conserve the Malay identity. And this is where Khalid fits into the description.
The former PKR leader was robbed of his post as Selangor Menteri Besar following a botched attempt by Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the DAP Chinese to hand the state’s top job to his wife. When Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah refused to entertain the idea, Kit Siang literally told the ruler to butt out, warning him not to overstep his jurisdiction as the titular head of Selangor. Not only has the Sultan yet to forgive the senior Lim, he swore never to allow a non-Malay party to lead Selangor past the 14th general election (GE14).
And that leaves us with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM), a surrogate party for UMNO renegades led by a former Malaysian premier, Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Given that the party is Malay based, the only way Pakatan Harapan could ever hope to form government in Selangor is if PKR agrees to allow PPBM to contest some of its existing seats.
Now, let us assume for a moment that this happens, that PPBM wins at least one of the seats it contests. Let us further assume that Pakatan Harapan does manage a majority representation within the Selangor state assembly. Under the circumstances, do you actually think Sultan Sharafuddin would allow PPBM to lead a Pakatan Harapan government within the state?
If your answer is yes, you must be new to Malaysian politics.
Let me remind you, that the man leading PPBM is the very person who spent 22 years undermining the Monarchical institution. As a matter of fact, it was Mahathir who enacted laws that severely curtailed the powers of our rulers the minute his own position government was threatened. Given that such a man is now sharing a stage with Lim Kit Siang – a known anti-Islamist – what is stopping PPBM from enacting new laws to the detriment of Muslims in Selangor?
Tell me, do you think Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, being the head of Islam in Selangor, would ever allow such a thing to happen?
Not if Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim is still around, no.
It is an open secret that the ruler has a soft spot for Khalid and regrets that PKR and the DAP treated him the way they did during Langkah Kajang. Given the former Menteri Besar’s popularity ratings and the likelihood he will win whichever seat he chooses to contest in Selangor, there is nothing stopping him from forming a unity government with UMNO and PAS right after GE14 concludes.
Now, don’t you think Sultan Sharafuddin would do anything to have Khalid become the next Menteri Besar of Selangor? And assuming that Khalid does agree to reassume the post, would it not signify a victory of Malay nationalism over Chinese chauvinism given that the DAP played as important a role as PKR did in his ouster?
Most of all, would it not symbolise the return of a Malay conscience to the vanguard of Selangor politics, now bedevilled by the DAP and the anti-Islamic aura it personifies?
Isn’t that what the Malays want?
The final two paragraphs were edited at 9.33 am on 11/12/2017 for purposes of clarity
