Politics of smoke and mirror

There is method in the Selangor madness.

COMMENT

A foreign observer trying to fathom the workings of Malaysian politics would be hard pressed to understand what is going on right now in the state of Selangor.

You may be forgiven if you thought that state constitutional rules and statute books would provide sufficient sign-posting for the removal of a Menteri Besar, and you would be correct, but only to an extent.

The culture of politics elsewhere may be complex. But in Malaysia, it can be stupefying or downright illogical. People in the know will attest that in all of the chaos and madness, there is order and method.

Amidst all the ranting and posturing, there is purpose. If one is daring enough to persevere through the curtain of smoke and mirrors, the bluster and threats may subside to reveal a contingency or back door. Every player knows it is there, but no one wants to be the first through it when there are still cards left in the deck.

The Menteri Besar debacle currently being played out in Selangor is a high stakes game.

Selangor is the most urbanised and populous state, boasting the highest GDP in the nation. It is unimaginable that Pakatan Rakyat can be a contender for Putrajaya without holding on to this state.

The state is Pakatan’s natural vote bank, consisting of the well heeled, progressive and educated middle classes representing all the ethnic groups. It is a microcosm of Malaysia and a gateway to the rest of the nation. Losing it by extra-electoral means would turn the Pakatan alliance into a dysfunctional and untenable choice for those who believed it was a viable alternative.

The issuing of the show-cause letter to incumbent MB Khalid Ibrahim by PKR’s disciplinary board yesterday has taken the fiasco to a whole new level of brinkmanship. Khalid has since rejected the notice as deficient.

Meanwhile, a notice has appeared in the Facebook page of PAS Selangor, inviting people to join a “solat hajat” (prayer meeting) with the stated aim of defending the current government of Selangor. The organisers of this event call themselves “Geng Uztaz”. The event is scheduled to take place at the official residence of the MB between 6.30pm and 11.00pm tomorrow. It would appear that Khalid has given permission for his official residence to be used for the function.

It will be interesting to see who among the PAS notables will turn up and who will be conspicuously absent. Khalid must certainly realise that the “solat hajat” may not be the godsend that he is looking for, if a “pious conscience” is supposed to trump political expediency.

Quoted by the Malaysian Insider today, PAS Secretary General Mustafa Ali blasted Rafizi Ramli of PKR for making what he said was a “stupid statement”—that PAS favoured Umno’s Tengku Razaleigh as Prime Minister in the event of a Pakatan victory in GE13.

Between Rafizi pouring kerosene on old fires and PAS’s ulama faction trying to herd the “faithful” into Khalid’s residence, the way is still not cleared for the circling Pakatan plane, already low on fuel, to land.

Even as PAS’s August 10 meeting draws near, some of its senior leaders are still voicing their commitment to the opposition bloc. Are they hinting that the PAS should make good on its coalition obligations?

Might this be the green light to the fire exit through the thick smoke?