Sept 16th- Hello change ! Good bye morality?

Since economics and politics are intimately connected and with the growing perception that the government is struggling to manage the economy, there is an increasing number of critics pushing for unprecedented political change by means of getting elected representatives of the ruling party to cross over to the opposition. Realpolitik aside, this has resulted in a great debate which has engaged Malaysians to ponder the morality of it all, a debate that will now reach the apex on Sept 16th.

Selecting Sept 16th was no doubt brilliant for the significance of the date to the targetted MPs of Sabah and Sarawak .

Many Malaysians are still in a dilemma as to what position to take on this defection issue and on larger issues of whether democracy would wither with a change of government through drastic means or should Pakatan Rakyat wait till the next general election to secure a convincing mandate to form the next government. For one reason or another, the issue of crossing over is a bad precedent and has hit our conscience like a one ton flying rock. However on the same token, many right minded Malaysians, are terribly upset by the never ending political manoeuvrings centered around the sodomy allegations against Anwar that they are now prepared to look the "other way" on the defection stance.

On one side of the fence there are Malaysians who strongly believe that party-hopping ignores the decision of the majority of the people and causes political instability. They believe that cross overs are synonymous with the BN when it successfully enticed MPs from the PBS to cross over to the BN in the 1994 Sabah state elections and ironically against the purpose and existence of the Pakatan Rakyat coalition which are guided by noble democratic principles to serve the people.

These are Malaysians who genuinely fear that with the political instability, the people will be neglected since those who matter will all be absorbed in either maintaining the status quo or enticing a cross over. With the rest of the world, in the midst of an economic crisis, Malaysia should be focusing on improving the economic situation especially since foreign investors are moving their money out of the country at an alarming rate due to domestic political uncertainties and record inflation rate.

Then there are the true blue BN voting Malaysians, especially in the rural constituencies who were held sway by politics of developmentalism and traditionally voted along ethnic lines. So for these voters who entrusted this administration with their lives in the March elections of 2008, will they not feel 'jilted"if the crossover takes place?

But yet how is it that there are Malaysians that still do not have a sense of indignation or outrage against the cross overs?

It is probably due to the countless, nameless and idealistic Malaysians who stood on the front lines heroically braving the charges of the FRU and water cannons, FOR their resolute belief that Malaysia under Anwar was capable of better things. The NGOs and human rights group who had campaigned valiantly for Anwar and the Pakatan Rakyat , in earnest faith, that PR stands for combating corruption and promises of good governance. For them, will the Sept 16 crossovers be the best way forward for Malaysia? And would it really reflect the will of the people?

The Malaysians who are for the crossovers have argued that the past general elections in Malaysia have always been tainted with the specter of money politics, phantom votes, use of government machinery, media bias which made the act of polling so tarnished as to bring the question the validity of the elections hence the crossover of BN MPs is merely to readdress an anomaly.

Given their past experience with the elected political leadership, these Malaysians have witness many democratic rights sacrificed on the altar of rapid economic growth to satisfy the cravings of a group of ruling party elites who continue to eat the fat off the land.

The question is if there is a change in the Prime Ministership, and Anwar Ibrahim is in power, would everything would be smooth sailing?

There is no doubt many Malaysians have embraced Anwar and his brand of politics. They sincerely want him to become the Malaysia’s next prime minister as he has the intelligence, the interest of the people at heart and the kind of inspiration to spur the people on to heights of glory as a nation. If he does become the PM, it will be one of the world’s most remarkable political comeback tale of Mandela porpotions and Anwar owes it to all Malaysians to stand true to his ideals.

After 51 years of independence, Malaysians in general are self confident, mature and form a psychologically liberated and secure society to accept any sudden change of government .

However the underlying principle is that change should be by high moral standards and never shrugged off as collateral damage.