The question of leadership in a coalition government, should the Pakatan
Rakyat (PR) form the federal government in Malaysia next year, was a glaring
issue given insufficient attention recently at the annual assembly of coalition
member Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS).
A conservative faction of PAS
demanded that party president and Muslim cleric Abdul Hadi Awang (right) be
made prime minister if the Islamic party wins the most seats in the general
election due by April.
"This is not for the sake of
revering him but he is the most qualified person to become the next prime
minister... and we, as proteges of an Islamic party, should not campaign for
others to take on the post," said Hairun Nizam of the party's Ulama wing
at the assembly last weekend.
Although there was boisterous
approval from delegates, it was quietly dismissed as "premature" by
senior party members since there would be no certainty that PAS would win the
most seats when compared to its partners and whether Datuk Seri Hadi would be elected
to Parliament.
The demand caused some
discomfiture among coalition leaders because Hadi appeared to have given tacit
approval to the idea of him being made leader of a PR government. In his
winding-up speech, thanking delegates for choosing him to be prime minister, he
said: "It is syiok (thrilling) to be PM. All I can say is that I ask for
God's help, that Islam will be the eventual winner."
It contradicts the consensus
among coalition leaders that Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, as opposition leader, is
the designated prime minister-in-waiting if the opposition takes over
Putrajaya.
The lobbying for Hadi as prime
minister is not totally unexpected, given the undercurrent of uneasiness among
PAS' conservative segments since it began working with secular forces in the
coalition.
First, it is a clear indication
that people in the party are unsure whether the PR set-up will respect the
party's Islamic principles. As the party still insists on its goal of an
Islamic state despite promoting its "benevolent state" concept, it
wants the holder of the highest office in government to be someone with a
thorough knowledge of Islamic religious laws and practices.
By having Hadi as prime minister,
the party assumes that it can rely on the cleric to ensure the setting up of an
Islamic government and the implementation of the hudud, the Islamic criminal
code that prescribes punishments such as amputation of the limbs and stoning
for certain offences.
Second, it is evident that the
rank and file of PAS, especially those in the rural heartland, are still
uncomfortable about the party's two partners in the coalition - the secular but
Chinese-dominated Democratic Action Party (DAP) and the Malay-based Parti
Keadilan Rakyat (PKR).
Both parties are basically
secular parties which do not share the same ideological leanings and political
goals of the Islamic party.
Third, there is strong resistance
in PAS' conservative faction to Anwar being made prime minister-designate. It
is based on their negative perception of the opposition leader's past as a
former Umno deputy president and his long association with a party they
strongly detest. The conservative elements are also discomfited by suspicions
of Anwar as an exponent of religious pluralism. It is a concept based on the
notion that no religion, including Islam, has the monopoly on truth.
Hadi appeared to go along with
the conservative party members when he did not dismiss their overtures at the
party's annual assembly. The party president has also signalled to them that he
is not exactly content in playing second fiddle to Anwar in the coalition. He
did this a week before the annual assembly by offering to contest against Prime
Minister Najib Razak in his Pekan bastion. If someone from Pakatan Rakyat were
to challenge Datuk Seri Najib, it should be Mr Anwar, and not the PAS
president.
Hadi does not seem to stand a
good chance of becoming the prime minister-designate. He does not have Anwar's
international image and years of experience as opposition leader. Hadi's image
as a cleric bent on implementing hudud and the Islamic state concept works
against him. He will not be able to command respect and support from the
non-Malays. Hadi's administrative experience is limited to five years, during
his tenure as Terengganu state's Mentri Besar. But Umno wrested the state away
from him in the 2004 General Election, when it was under his watch. He was
blamed for the party's defeat in Terengganu.
With all the odds against Hadi
becoming prime minister, the lobbying for him to lead a PR government should
raise alarm bells within the opposition. A PR government under Hadi as prime
minister would rattle the non-Malays, who fear increasing Islamisation and all
the implications for their way of life.
There could also be a backlash
with the non-Malays not casting their votes for PAS, despite most of them
supporting the opposition. If this happens, PR's dream of taking over Putrajaya
may not materialise because of the Islamic party winning fewer votes compared
to the other two component parties.
Hence the call by conservative
PAS delegates - for the party president to lead the next government - is not a
sideshow after all. It may appear to be a flippant suggestion from a section of
a component party, but the idea itself has serious implications for the broader
opposition coalition.
Salim Osman
Business & Investment Opportunities
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