Malaysia's Election: Barisan Nasional's Paltry Win

The recent Malaysian election saw the ruling party Barisan Nasional (BN) retain its hold on power for another term after winning 133 out of 222 federal seats.

Malaysia’s first-past-the-post system sealed BN’s victory, despite the fact that Pakatan Rakyat (PR), the opposing coalition, won 54 per cent of the popular vote over BN’s 46 per cent.

PR’s de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim has since alleged that the election was tainted with countless irregularities such as erasable indelible ink, vote-buying, unregistered ballot boxes, and sabotage by officials from the Election Commission (EC). It seems that Anwar will not concede defeat easily. He has organised massive rallies that have attracted thousands of Malaysians to protest the election results. It remains to be seen how far Anwar can go. Not all members in PR support mass rallies to challenge the election results. The new government has also warned that it will not tolerate any attempt to overthrow the government through illegal street protests. And for many ordinary Malaysians, the election is over, and it is time to move on.

The real question is why, despite the groundswell of support for PR, did it still fail to win the election? The answer lies in BN’s entrenched influence in the system.

First, BN has complete control over the electronic media outlets TV1, TV2, TV3, and to some extent ASTRO. News reports on these outlets are one-sided and often appear to be a form of government propaganda. BN-controlled print media such as Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian are also often used to attack the opposition and not to report objective news. This has left the opposition with no choice but to depend on alternative media channels such as YouTube, blogs, and social networking sites to reach the public. But in rural areas without internet coverage, voters continue to depend on information disseminated by BN-controlled media organisations.

Additionally, unlike other Commonwealth countries with Westminster systems, Malaysia does not have clear guidelines to regulate the conduct of caretaker governments once parliament is dissolved. In the lead-up to the election, BN was accused of misusing government vehicles and staff during campaigning, and disbursing government funds to entice the voters. This is a fairly ‘normal’ practice for politicians from both sides of the political divide, given that the EC appears to lack the resolve to regulate the use of money in campaigning. In the 2013 election BN supporters were allegedly given between RM50 and RM100 to vote for BN. For rural voters, who form the large bulk of support for BN, RM50 is a lot of money. Some were even promised development aid such as roof zincs and water tanks if they could ‘prove’ that they had voted for BN.

Malaysia’s electoral system is also designed to help BN remain in power. The largest party in BN, UMNO (United Malays National Organisation), knows that most of its support comes from the rural Malay voters. Through a process of electoral re-delineation — or ‘gerrymandering’ — BN has created more rural Malay areas, even though the number of voters in these areas is disproportionately small compared to urban areas. This practice of skewing electoral boundaries in favour of BN is glaringly evident in Sabah — a ‘fixed deposit’ state for BN. UMNO needed to win more Malay seats to strengthen its grip on Sabah. Thus, more Malay seats were created at the expense of the non-Malay constituencies. All UMNO needed to do to form a government with a simple majority in the 60-seat Sabah Legislative Assembly was to win the 32 Malay-majority seats.

It is still possible for BN to win back the support of disgruntled voters who feel as though BN’s victory was improperly obtained.

First, BN has to address the alleged fraudulent practices in the electoral system. Asking the voters to leave the country if they are not happy with the way things are done in Malaysia is certainly not the way to improve the system’s weaknesses. Second, rather than attributing the major swing of Chinese support away from BN to ungratefulness and racism, BN should try and find out why Chinese voters are dissatisfied. In tackling this issue, BN must not neglect those who voted against it in Sabah and Sarawak. Cutting development funds and withdrawing infrastructural projects in areas where BN did not win — a practice of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s administration — is childish and runs counter to BN’s ‘People First’ pledge. Third, BN must act swiftly to initiate the various reforms in its election manifesto.

If BN can address all of these three issues boldly and effectively, it might be accepted by Malaysians as the ‘legitimate’ winner of the election. Otherwise, Malaysians have every reason to challenge the election results.

Source: http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2013/05/29/malaysias-election-barisan-nasionals-paltry-win/#more-35974

The "Rakyat Tsunami" in Sabah

BN (Barisan Nasional/National Front) won 133 out of 222 federal seats while PR (Pakatan Rakyat or People’s Pact) 89 seats to retain the Federal government. But in terms of popular votes, PR obtained more than BN by a margin of eight percent. On announcing BN’s win, its chairman Najib Razak attributed the electoral outcomes to a “Chinese tsunami”. The next day, the UMNO (United Malays National Organisation)-controlled Utusan Malaysia released a front-paged news with the title of “Apa Lagi Cina Mahu?” (What more do the Chinese Want?). BN leaders, irrespective of those who won and lost in the election, supported Najib’s Chinese tsunami contention. Some called the Chinese as “ungrateful” while others regarded them as “racists” for exercising their democratic rights. While a proper study is needed to analyse voting patterns at GE13, and if indeed the Chinese community as a whole should be blamed solely for BN’s loss, the election results in Sabah showed no such evidence of a racial tsunami. The tsunami in Sabah cut across geographical and racial boundaries.

As expected, BN returned to power in Sabah with 48 state seats compared to 59 it obtained in 2008. The opposition managed to increase its share of state seats from only one in 2008 to 12 in 2013. At the federal level, BN won 22 seats as opposed to the opposition’s three. With BN coming to power obtaining more than a two-thirds majority, Sabah once again became a strong fortress for the ruling coalition. The 22 federal seats contributed by Sabah BN also ensured the ruling coalition’s simple majority win in parliament.

Despite Sabah playing its role as kingmaker in federal politics, the opposition managed to make significant inroads at the state and federal levels. This is particularly evident in the Kadazandusun-majority constituencies in which the opposition managed to win five seats. Most of the BN candidates contesting in the Kadazandusun-majority areas also had their majorities substantially reduced. Key BN leaders from PBS (Parti Bersatu Sabah/Sabah United Party) such as Herbert Timbun Lagadan and Jahid Jahim also lost their seats to PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat/People’s Justice Party). Following the trend in the Kadazandusun-majority constituencies, the opposition also managed to make inroads in the Chinese-majority areas by winning three seats in Api-Api, Luyang, and Sri Tanjong. The opposition also won in three mixed areas with a substantial number of Kadazandusun and Chinese voters in Inanam, Likas and Kapayan – all with increased majorities.

At the federal level, BN continued to establish its dominance over the Muslim-Bumiputera-majority areas. However, it lost in Penampang, an urban area with a large number of Kadazandusun and Chinese voters. Despite BN winning more seats than the opposition at the federal Kadazandusun-majority areas, the majorities obtained by BN candidates were substantially reduced. The opposition also won two urban and Chinese-majority constituencies of Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan. The mixed federal seats of Tuaran and Sepanggar were won by BN but with reduced majorities.

So, what do the election results in Sabah tell us?

First, the results are a clear indication of BN’s influence over the rural Muslim voters. BN’s politics of development once again unleashed its magic. The culture of dependency cultivated by BN through the endowment of aid such as water tanks, roof zincs and cash money charmed the rural voters. For most of the rural voters, quick gains in term of cash money gave them a new lease of life. No amount of persuasion could influence the rural voters to vote for any party other than BN. In some instances, it was alleged that some would take a picture of their ballot paper as proof in return for water tanks or roof zincs. The absence of an alternative Muslim-based party also forced the Muslim-Bumiputera voters in Sabah to support UMNO. Most did not support PKR as the party does not have credible Muslim leaders. Multi-racial parties such as PBS, PBRS (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah), SAPP (Sabah People’s Progressive Party) and STAR (State Reform Party) are less attractive to the Muslim community because they are more Kadazandusun or Chinese in outlook. The last Muslim-based party in existence is USNO that is now defunct and whose remaining leaders are supporting STAR led by Jeffrey Kitingan.

Second, the elections results in Sabah indicate the sentiment of Kadazandusun voters against BN’s Kadazandusun-based parties such as PBS, UPKO (United Pasok Momogun Kadazandusun Organisation) and PBRS (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah). Lack of leadership, unclear vision, and failure to attract the young people weakened the Kadazandusun support for these BN parties. Joseph Pairin Kitingan and Joseph Kurup who lead PBS and PBRS respectively survived the election due to split votes in Keningau and Pensiangan. UPKO president Bernard Dompok even lost to a young PKR leader Darell Leiking in Penampang. The formation of the RCI (Royal Commission of Inquiry) to address the problem of illegal immigrants and the millions of ringgit in development funds channeled to the Kadazandusun areas failed to consolidate the Kadazandusun support in BN.

Third, the election results in Sabah also showed the support of voters towards local-based opposition parties such as STAR and SAPP that staunchly champion the “Borneo Agenda”. For some, the Borneo Agenda is still relevant but it is championed by the wrong leaders. The voters were given the impression that STAR and SAPP leaders were only interested in pursuing their hidden agenda using the Borneo Agenda as a bargaining chip. Some also believed that STAR and SAPP were funded by a third party to split the opposition votes. Despite these allegations, STAR managed to win one seat through its chairman Jeffrey Kitingan in Bingkor – his stronghold for a very long time. SAPP was completely decimated. SAPP’s president Yong Teck Lee lost in Likas to a newcomer from DAP (Democratic Action Party) with a 5652-vote margin. SAPP also lost in all seats it contested. Clearly, most of the Chinese abandoned SAPP because of the party’s lack of direction. The rejection of STAR and SAPP also meant that some Sabahans had started to look beyond parochialism that has fuelled Sabah politics since independence. In the Kadazandusun-majority constituencies such as Matunggong, Kadamaian, Tamparuli and in mixed area such as Inanam, voters preferred PKR than the local-based opposition parties to represent them.

The election results in Sabah gave BN the mandate to rule the state for another term. The results also show Sabah playing its kingmaker role once again in determining control of the Federal government. However, the significant shift of support away from BN to the opposition indicates a changing political dynamics on the ground. Sabah may remain a “fixed deposit” to BN for the time being and its politics of development may still be a force to be reckoned with in the rural areas. The dependency culture that BN cultivates may help the rural people to survive economically but only in the short term. If BN fails to face the changing political realities, it may lose Sabah in the next election. The opposition’s ability to make inroads show that it has the support of the people whose plights BN has failed to address. All the opposition needs to show is that it is sincere and that it is a much better alternative to BN. The election in Sabah is clearly not about the rise of one particular race against the other. It simply shows the ordinary Rakyat exercising their democratic right to choose the political party that best represents their interests.

Source: http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/newmandala/2013/05/11/the-rakyat-tsunami-in-sabah/

Close battle to win Putrajaya

The battle is drawn, the race is tight, and BN and PR have the equal chance to win. But in the end, it is up to the voters to decide.

http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2013/05/02/malaysias-13th-general-election/