JANUARY 22 — On January 26, yet another by-election will be held in Malaysia — this time in Cameron Highlands. The upcoming contest has seen local politics take precedence over national politics significantly more than other by-elections held since the conclusion of the 14th Malaysian General Election (GE14).
Rather than nationally salient themes such as allegations of corruption, mismanagement and racial politics, issues such as the socio-economic difficulties of the Orang Asli, development projects within the constituency, and challenges farmers are facing have taken centre stage.
This suggests that the outcome of the Cameron Highlands by-election will be determined by a candidate’s perceived ability to resolve problems specific to the constituency more so than any other factor.
These trends are not emerging in isolation though. Indeed, since the end of GE14, there have been numerous indications of a resurgence of local politics – which arguably took a backseat during GE14 itself.
The Democratic Action Party’s (DAP’s) Selangor Central Executive Committee (CEC) election, held in December 2018, is one such example.
Tony Pua, political secretary to the Minister of Finance, failed in his attempt to be re-elected to the party’s state level CEC. He was the previous state chairman. To outsiders, the result was a shock.
Pua is a national figure, who was instrumental in bringing the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal to the centre of political discourse.
Yet, his popularity among DAP members in Selangor itself was in decline. There were reports of him trying to bulldoze his preferred candidates through so that they could contest in the Selangor state assembly.
In a speech at University Kebangsaan Malaysia in December 2018, party veteran Lim Kit Siang postulated that one reason for Pua’s loss was that he focused too much on national issues and lost touch with the grassroots.
Clearly, the goodwill that Pua earned from his role in GE14 was not enough to alleviate local concerns.
Consequently, he finished 19th in the 15-person CEC election. Another nationally significant figure believed to be close to Pua, Ong Kian Ming, scraped through the contest in 14th place.
Notably, the new DAP Selangor CEC chairman, Minister for Communications and Multimedia Gobind Singh Deo managed only a ninth placed finish in the election.
While Gobind Deo is nationally popular, his performance may have taken a hit after Pua endorsed him as the next chairman.
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Member of Parliament Nurul Izzah Anwar’s decision to resign from her positions as Penang PKR chair and PKR vice president is another indication of the trend towards local politics receiving greater weight.
On the one hand, it could be a signal of an intent to untether her political career from that of her father, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
On the other hand, it also suggests that she intends to focus on working the ground in her constituency, Permatang Pauh (Penang), in order to establish herself as an effective MP capable of addressing the concerns of her constituents.
Prior to GE14, her popularity rating among low-income residents in her previous seat, Lembah Pantai (Kuala Lumpur), was reportedly precarious.
Nurul Izzah’s decision to thus re-orient her work towards her constituency suggests she recognises the importance of cementing her credentials at the level of local politics to secure her political future.
Her successor in Lembah Pantai, PKR communications director Fahmi Fadzil, has adopted a similar approach.
He has conducted programmes, such as food distribution drives in low-income estates, while also attending to residents affected by disasters such as fires. These efforts demonstrate his understanding of the importance of having a firm grasp on locally significant concerns.
It is very common for residents to approach their MPs and members of legislative assemblies (MLAs) for government services that fall outside their purview – including road works, drainage issues, and receiving various forms of welfare.
The offices of the MPs and MLAs tend to have open channels of communication with various government offices and local councillors.
They also tend to stock up on forms pertaining to government services, and their staffers are tasked with assisting residents with their applications.
While these initiatives increase the points of access to government services, they can be resource heavy too.
Yet, it would be politically problematic if MPs and MLAs are seen as fobbing off residents to other public administrative divisions.
They would risk being perceived as unable to solve problems, which at its worst, can cost them their seat in a subsequent election.
This is also why the United Malays National Organisation’s (Umno’s) women’s wing previously introduced a party-based volunteer group, Skuad Sayang (Affectionate Squad), to approach residents, get a better understanding of problems they were facing, and facilitate the distribution of aid.
The Barisan Nasional Youth Volunteers had a similar function.
As we venture deeper into the Pakatan Harapan government’s tenure, its ability to resolve local level concerns will carry more weight with voters.
National issues do, after all, tend to be conceptually abstract relative to the day-to-day problems people face.
Just as the PH government moves to reform various systems of federal governance, it will have to keep a mindful eye on issues that are significant to local administration.
Ensuring public services are well-funded and sufficiently accessible — from the centre to the state, right down to the local — will be crucial in proving its governance credentials to voters who may have opted for PH only out of frustration with the previous Najib Razak government.
Moving forward, PH’s effectiveness will be contingent upon being able to address national issues without losing sight of concerns that are local in nature. — TODAY
* Prashant Waikar is a research analyst in the Malaysia Programme at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University.
** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
