Marching Forward After March

by Cikgu Pencen

March is the important to Najib. Coincidentally, his father, the late Tun Abdul Razak Hussien was born in Pulau Keladi, Pekan on 11 March 1922.

If Tun Razak is still alive, he will be 87 years old in March 2009.

As the eldest son of the second Prime Minister that is very much respected by the Malays and non-Malays alike, it is an advantage for him in politics.

When the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announcing that he will be retired from UMNO leadership, BN and the government in March, Najib is signalled as the one who is going to replace him.

Before eligible to become a Prime Minister, Najib has to undergo a democracy process first and has to be nominated as the President of UMNO.

The road that is paved for him is wide enough. If God permits, he will write a history to be in the place where his father was earlier.

The process power shifting that witnessing Abdullah not contesting for the post of President in the next UMNO election will open a door for Najib to head the part and the government, also showing the uniqueness of Malays political culture.

In Malay politics, leaders would never, ever be overthrown by any coup de’tat. The leaders leave post respectfully. That what had happened earlier, without fail.

The top leader of UMNO leaving with a grand exit and celebrated honourably.
Abdullah knows that after bad performance of BN after the 12th General Election, he will not be long in his post as UMNO president. He leads on the “borrowed time”.

His ability to bring his government to lead until 2009 after this total chaos is also can be considered as astonishing.

The reason is, UMNO and BN never experienced before, the lost of majority of two-third in the Parliament. UMNO and BN also never ever ‘taste’ the intrigue of politics as crazy as the last seven months, with every week, the opposition playing with their propaganda, to form their own government, and to topple UMNO and BN hegemony.

Those experiences are haunting them; but, it is a forte to any politicians in other countries, that they are facing it everyday. Full of surprises and twists.
UMNO and BN believe whole-heartedly in the magnitude of political stability.

They just don’t have the might to face all these new challenges. These affecting us badly as the nation of multiracial like Malaysia.
Under Abdullah, UMNO and BN tasted both: the best winnings of 2004 and the worst lost in 2008.

Among the first questions asked by reporters during a press conference at PWTC, Kuala Lumpur after BN formed the government at night of 8 March; Will Abdullah resign as to be responsible of the bad results of the election?

That question is haunting him for months to come, becoming a public debate everywhere, spurring more gossips and sparkling the evil of segregation within UMNO and BN.

However, Abdullah finally put the party priority more than anything. He sped up the process of power transition, that was originally in June 2010 to March 2009.

The process that he has been through from March 2008 to March 2009 shows the quality of UMNO’s politics – it has a sheer tolerance and patience in decelerating the conflicts and problems in UMNO. The leaders are willing to sacrifice for the sake of country and party!

With Najib very close as the successor, UMNO will become one again.

The groups that are separating will be united again for the future of party and focussing on how to strengthened the government.

In months to come, UMNO has to win the hearts of Malays in no time, especially the young ones that are divided into either supporting the long life political tradition or the pressure of high cost living.

New, fresh faces should be introduced in the next UMNO division election. It will be the catalyst to produce a brand new and dynamic line of leaders.

The new generation of UMNO leaders are emerging in the political scenario, with Najib celebrating his 55th birthday, last July. Of course we are in dire needs to have the new leaders that are competent and capable, trustworthy, loyal and can get along with the voters.

If the grassroots at UMNO division exercise their rights well, they will give Najib a team of UMNO leaders that can propel UMNO and BN to a esteemed new level.

Based on the trend of voters in the last general election, UMNO with non-malay parties in BN have to work out for strategy to attract the non-malay voters to support BN.
Najib seems doesn’t has any problems to gain the trust of Chinese community. His father’s legacy helps him a lot.

The Chinese community in in this country could never forget Tun Razak’s valiant act of fostering a diplomatic tie with China in 1974, when there was still a negative notion of communism.

The courage of Tun Razak, that enabled the severe relationship, of Malaysian Chinese with the Chinese of mainland to be rekindled again, always be the talking point, of those old timers when they meet Najib.

Reformation in government is also need to be highlighted by UMNO that will get a new leadership. But, always set a limit to it.

The experience of falling of Soviet Union after the glasnost reform and perestroika in 1980s maybe can be used as guidance.

Not all reformation or change is good for the country, and it might be an adverse effect that we have to be careful of.

Abdullah might has his own judgment about transformation, so did Tun Dr. Mahathir. But, whatever they believe in, there should be a working mechanism to unite all the different thoughts and opinion in UMNO, and in the Malays community at large.

Najib has to be the icon or the symbol of the unison.

Measures to neutralize the opposition should be put into action. The Opposition Leader, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has already looked startled with Abdullah’s decision of not contesting for UMNO’s election, and to retire early.

Anwar knows that part of the opposition strength is related with the uncertainties in UMNO and BN, especially in this transition period.

UMNO, a 62 years old party that is holding a torch of independence and changing the destiny of the country, now is in the process of changing its leadership, at the time, ehrn the world economy is at its low and into the recession.

To a few, this time is inappropriate to have a drastic political transition. But, to many of the countrymen, whether they are UMNO members or not, this is the time to change for the betterment.

In the meantime, pray hard to God so that Malaysia can sail through this political turmoil and economic hurricane to the ‘beach of wellbeing and tranquillity…’