The Taking of Selangor 123

It is apt that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who happens to head Barisan Nasional (BN) in Selangor, has signalled the ruling coalition's intention of reclaiming Selangor from Pakatan Rakyat (PR) by calling for the BN to change, beginning with Umno.

Change is indeed the need of the hour for the BN's component parties, since the voters in Selangor and four other states that chose to back non-BN candidates in the 2008 general election were clearly sending a message to their leaders that they want the “business as usual” culture to stop.

Nevertheless, “The Taking of Selangor 123”, to borrow a phrase from the box office's recent offering, starring John Travolta and Denzel Washington, should be neither like a celluloid hostage drama nor anything as chaotic as the unfolding of the Perak constitutional crisis.

The prudent way to achieve that goal would be for the BN to take the long road by re-building its reputation with the voters one step at a time. As the Perak episode has shown, muscling into office does not win support for the politicians or coalition involved.

BN, which currently controls the state pending various court rulings, might end up winning the legal cases, giving it the undisputed right to run the state. But in the court of public opinion, it has already lost and in a bad way.

So, if Najib wants to take back Selangor in a good way, here’s what he has to do.

Firstly, he need to rein in overzealous elements in enforcement agencies like the police and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission which have given people the impression that they are far from impartial in carrying out their duties. It would also do him well to slap down any government-controlled media companies that spew hatred and racism, which till today seem to only get a slap on the wrist whenever they come out with provocative headlines and commentaries.

Secondly, Najib needs to push for the rule of law to be securely upheld so that the public regains a sense of confidence that the channels of redress are functioning efficiently. The dividend from this reformation is that the overall quality of life of the people will improve significantly. Hand in hand with this, he needs to show that the political will to curb corruption is uniformly strong from top to bottom. As things stand, with scandals of the magnitude of the Port Klang Free Zone fiasco on its hands, the BN clearly has some serious cleaning up to do.

Thirdly, the BN needs to create a new sense of consensus among its component members and a sense of belonging among the various communities that make up Malaysia. The sense that its formula for racial harmony has been characterised by tokenism rather than being based on the bedrock of fair treatment needs to be rectified. And not just with slogans like “1Malaysia” as catchy as they might be. People want tangible policies that ensure everyone receives equal treatment.

If the people see these basic changes taking place, there will be no need for BN to “take” Selangor. The people of Selangor will be glad to give their vote to whoever delivers good governance and a decent quality of life to them.