Malaysia's PM Najib to Face Big Test in Upcoming Election

09.03.2012

The upcoming Malaysian general election will be a big test for Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Since the ruling Barisan Nasional was deprived of its prized two-thirds majority in parliament following the March 2008 election, Mr Najib has introduced gradual reforms to change the deeply entrenched race-based system in the country.

But some have criticised his reforms as being half-hearted.

Kedah, which sits on the northwest corner of peninsular Malaysia, is the birthplace of two prime ministers - Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia's first Prime Minister and Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The 13th general election must be held by April 2013, but is expected earlier.

Deputy Minister Mukhriz Mahathir has wasted no time in working the ground earlier than anticipated, to try and recapture the state from the opposition, Pakatan Rakyat.

Despite growing disenchantment with the government's affirmative action policies, he still believes that pro-bumiputra policies are needed in the country.

"We don't want the Malays particularly to be left behind, in this effort to make Malaysia a developed country. So because of that need translated into politics, UMNO still remains relevant," he said.

Lim Guan Eng, Chief Minister of the opposition-controlled state of Penang has quickly dismantled the special preferences for ethnic Malays in the awarding of state contracts which have underpinned the BN's rule since the early 1970s.

He claims that by ending cronyism and corruption, the state has converted financial wastage under the previous regimes into surplus and Penang is now almost debt free.

These policies have also attracted some US$4 billion worth of investments in 2010 alone - more than any other state in Malaysia.

"I think, many people find it incomprehensible, how running a clean government can allow you to record budget surpluses, can allow you to reduce debt. I think it all boils down to having open tenders, having rules to ensure that public interest is always protected, putting your state first, putting Penang first, not putting your own interest first," said Mr Lim.

With these changes, observers believe it will be harder for the ruling coalition to win back support of the non-Malays, as well as a new generation of Malays who feel that the preferential treatment has only benefitted a few.

Anwar Ibrahim, leader of Pakatan Rakyat, said: "This whole slogan and this jargon about the supremacy of the Malays is the supremacy not of the Malays... (but) this small clique of people in the establishment."

Dr Ong Kian Ming, lecturer, Faculty of Economics and Policy Science, UCSI University, Malaysia, said: "It's definitely negative on the part of PM's ability to win back the non-Malay vote... At the same time of wanting to have a more market-led economy, the PM was forced to allocate a certain portion of the MRT projects to the bumiputra contractors so to speak."

Dr Zakaria Ahmad, senior vice-President, HELP University College, Malaysia, said: "Has the government changed? The ruling government meaning the ruling party in the ruling coalition, UMNO, have they changed? I don't think that they have changed that much, even though they have been talking about wanting to reinvent themselves and so on."

Ethnicity has become a major demarcating and distinguishable feature in Malaysian politics for many decades. Eliminating these ethnic markers therefore will not come easy, but it's a struggle which has fired up the imagination of many Malaysians. And the upcoming general election will determine which of the two competing visions will succeed.