A Quiescent Quandary As Quality Questions Bedevil A Quixotic Leadership in 2022

The prevailing mood in Malaysia this January is one of bewilderment, despair and helplessness. The prolonged impact of an unrelenting Covid-19 pandemic, socio-economic doldrums, some overseas travel restrictions coupled with rather sudden and harrowing flood experiences that affected eight states seem to have sapped the will, energy, patience and endurance of most Malaysians. The country is at its lowest ebb. More dreadful, obvious and off-putting than these relatively recent phenomena is the state of alarm and disillusionment with the poor quality of leadership the country has had for nearly two years now. The last leader of the country who commanded some grasp of governance and inspired some gravitas was dispensed with in undue haste in an unceremonious, unethical, illegal and immoral manner in February 2020.

Questionable Legacy of Dr Mahathir

The deposed leader, the country’s 4th and 7th prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is neither an uncontroversial statesman nor a paragon of virtue but he knew more than a thing or two about governing Malaysia. He is mainly, even perhaps directly responsible or blameworthy for the current state of despondency, desperation and distress the country is in. These problems had their genesis partly in his broken pledge to hand the leadership to Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the widely anticipated and acclaimed successor who, while still in prison, inspired a massive effort, together with Dr Mahathir, to bring down a nefarious and narcissistic kleptocrat. Dr Mahathir will be long remembered for craftily undermining and unseating everyone of his designated or potential successors. For the more than 24 years and one month he was in office he managed to keep his ministers and top government officials on a tight leash. That ensured subservience. They knew when to shut up or to speak up. In their public utterances they would not attempt to clarify, contradict or counter him. The compliant press and media faithfully reported whatever he said, sometimes even unthinkingly. But there was law and order in Malaysia and generally good growth rates. In spite of one particularly arbitrary internal security clampdown and some international controversies he provoked Malaysia was looked up to.

His main failing was that he vastly overestimated the capacity of his people. In expecting them to emulate the Japanese and Koreans he ignored the reality of a uniquely heterogeneous society with its diversified pool of talent, strengths, sophistication and tensions. Partly on account of this miscalculation his whole ‘ Vision 2020’ platform was a false, futile fabrication, a forgivable innocent piece of fantasy.

A good sixth form student in 1991 could have seen through it all but his obedient and obsequious ministers and top civil servants with business czars in tow repeated it often enough to drown out and distort the reality. Malaysia remains a third world country.

Dr Mahathir was an unusually strong no-nonsense man and as he established himself he discarded some excellent political collaborators including Tun Musa Hitam, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim. The absence of these gentlemen from the government did not diminish the country’s stature but it often raised valid questions about how much better the country could have done had they continued to have some kind of a role. Certain disasters, and there were many, could have been avoided or contained.

8th Prime Minister

Tan Sri Muhyddin Mohd Yassin, the country’s 8th prime minister was never in the same league of those three who were dispensed with, ceremoniously or unceremoniously. He was a rather remote and reserved figure, virtually unknown, somewhat colourless and unthought of until he emerged rather quixotically as prime minister in March 2020. He was not really any rallying or resourceful force before that date. In fact he was not anything of any substantial political, intellectual or leadership weightage. His sole inspiration to go for the top post of prime minister seems to have been derived from a secretly secreted ‘ Keep-Anwar-Out’ mantra preached by the Maha Guru. The repository of the suspected rather queer moment at the episodic Sandakan Hotel was another, but much lesser, source of instant inspiration.

In the seventeen months of Muhyddin's prime ministership the country was plagued by a catastrophic COVID-19 pandemic. That is undeniable. The man looked anaemic, looked more an understudy of an acclaimed actor than an actor, had no stage presence and only seemed to assert himself more to get safety of tenure in his office. How he and his attorney general persuaded, prevailed on or advised HM the Agong to proclaim an Emergency remains a mystery. The Emergency, accompanied by a lockdown, enforced by the police with prohibitive fines and other penalties saw to the almost complete defenestration and even threatened to bring out the death throes of the entire educational, business, tourism and entrepreneurial establishment. The small time housewife who sold nasi lemak and the pedestrian pedlar of small trades were driven to extinction. Enrolments in colleges collapsed and businesses closed down.

Muhyiddin had a penchant for nomenclature and creating high sounding posts. He invented senior ministerial positions and had the ingenuity to name a deputy prime minister after dithering over the issue for months. That deputy prime minister, a third rung leader, prodded on largely by his party MPs that had lost the last 2018 general election wasted no time in proclaiming the end of Muhyiddin’s matinee show.

A Third Rung PM

The third rung leader, Dato Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob is proving to be the country’s first third rate prime minister. He has shown again and again that he has great difficulty in identifying, appreciating and reacting to any crisis. The significance of prompt, effective and presentable responses to emerging challenges is clearly uncharted territory for him. When the whole country was deeply anxious, distressed and even coerced by the deadly floods he appeared unconcerned. The Speaker of the House of Representatives, an ally of the prime minister seemed constrained from allowing any reference to the floods. Long after the floods had receded a Parliamentary session is planned to discuss the floods. It did not happen when it was most needed.

With all this happening there will be more loose talk in social circles about the poor quality, indifference, irrationality and arbitrariness of cabinet ministers. Some of these ministers had won their parliamentary seats under the banner of the coalition that now mainly constitutes the current opposition. At least one minister has attempted and failed to dismiss or dislodge his ministry’s topmost officials. Civil servants are protected by long established rules and regulations which this particular mediocre minister thought he could circumvent with his imagined imperial ministerial authority. It seems to be a reflection of the ignorance, brazen buccaneering and bullying tendencies of these ministers. These actions of the ministers are designed simply to bolster their political and personal standing. National interest does not seem to figure. New, superfluous and spurious posts and projects are known to be created to the horror of seasoned budget-minded civil servants.

A Beleaguered AntiCorruption Chief

For weeks now there has been speculation and rather harsh commentary about some past large shareholding by the chief commissioner of the Malaysian AntiCorruption Commission. On this issue again there is no convincing outcome. There does not seem to be a clear course of action that would satisfy the public and the many NGOs which are demanding action and answers. The chief commissioner himself has not provided a plausible explanation to exculpate himself. He has acted rather defiantly. There is naturally speculation that he is privy to some salacious stuff, including suspected corruption at the supreme elite level. The circumspection and compunctions in treating this case by the top leadership fuels more rumours. The MACC’s net has largely ensnared small, catchable and generally unknown small fish.

This is a matter that involves the head of the most important agency charged with the responsibility of clamping down on corruption. Corruption especially at the supreme elite level is easily one of the country’s most threatening problems. About half the annual budgetary allocation goes towards public sector salaries and pensions. Yet this is the appalling situation with a key well funded government agency.

The absence of a conclusive course of action has given rise to wild rumours and speculation. The irony of it is that some influential opinion leaders seem to have given up hope that anything will happen. This phrase ‘nothing will happen’ is the most repeated statement. It sums up a painful and pathetic reality.

An Emasculated Anwar

A convicted former kleptocrat-prime minister is widely perceived to be the greatest campaigner in any imminent election. His presence in the state elections in Melaka ensured a convincing victory for his political allies. Meanwhile both Dato Seri Shafie Apdal and Dr Mahathir Mohamad, by their respective roles, have ensured willy nilly that the once well-thought-of Anwar Ibrahim is not a credible force or alternative choice to be the next national leader. Anwar has also shot himself in the foot by rushing to reach a memorandum of understanding with the least legitimate government in the country’s history.

It now looks as though the people can still be manipulated to decide that Malaysia can continue to sink further into the marshy morass it is in. Both might and what is right seem to have lost their bite. Political, economic and social life goes on listlessly. In the meantime the country continues to be entangled in the fetters of long entrenched race, religious, regional and powerful majoritarianism instincts. There is little hope or scope for things to change drastically.

M Santhananaban

January 14, 2022