What has the song "First Cut
Is The Deepest" got to do with political sentiments in Malaysia?
That was my precise thought when a
rather inebriated guest singer proudly made references to his ethnicity and the
recently concluded Umno (United Malays National Organisation) general assembly
before and after his rendition of the song at a popular local pub on Sunday.
For those who are unfamiliar with
the 47-year-old tune, it sums up the anxiety of entering a new romantic
relationship while still suffering from the hurt of one’s first love.
Most people associate it with
British rock icon Rod Stewart, but the poignant song was written by Cat
Stevens, now known as Yusuf Islam, in 1965.
Stevens, born Steven Demetre
Georgiou, composed it when he was still a struggling songwriter and sold it for
30 pounds (US$46.93 ) to P.P. Arnold, a former Ike and Tina Turner backup
singer, who turned it into a hit in 1967.
Cover versions by Keith Hamp¬shire
and Sheryl Crow also became huge hits, but Stewart’s classic interpretation
remains the most renowned.
What was the song’s connection to
the Chinese community and not being understood by Umno, as the guest singer
said after his three minutes on stage? I was left wondering, too.
Perhaps it was yet another
manifestation of the pervasive political atmosphere in the country today.
It is scary, but everything in
Malaysia is somehow associated with politics and the overbearing anger and
hatred it begets is stifling.
As expected, last week’s Umno
general assembly provided more fodder for the ill will to go on.
Party president and prime mi¬¬nister
Najib Razak has come under fire for declaring that the Sedition Act would not
only remain but would be strengthened.
His detractors are denouncing it as a
“flip-flop”, but the decision clearly had the support of the party, which
secured 88 of Barisan Nasional’s 133 seats in the 13th general election last
year – one short of the total of 89 won by Pakatan Rakyat parties.
It is true that Umno needs to go beyond
its Malay heartland base and gain support in the urban areas to remain
relevant, but only the politically naive would expect a leader to go against
the tide of the grassroots.
In any case, whatever Najib does has
never been right in the eyes of those opposed to his leadership. It has always
been the case of damned if he did and damned if he didn’t.
Much has been said and written about
the assembly, but for someone who has observed such gatherings for three
decades, it was a rather tame affair.
Sure, there were some heated
moments, the expected venting of communal frustrations, the usual clownish
remarks and attempts at bashing a particular community, but Najib and his
deputy Muhyiddin Yassin drummed home some pertinent points at the end of it.
Muhyiddin brought home the stark
reality that Barisan, which lost its two-thirds majority in Parliament for the
first time in the 12th general election, could be ousted from Putrajaya with
just a loss of 2 per cent support in the next polls.
Amidst the rhetoric, Najib sent the
most important message – Umno needs the support of the other races to remain in
power – stressing that this was why Tunku Abdul Rahman formed the Alliance,
which evolved into Barisan Nasional under Abdul Razak.
A close friend, a retired politician
who has served as a Member of Parliament for two terms, said such assurances
might do little to sway diehard supporters of Pakatan Rakyat, but had restored
a semblance of hope among those who want to see the return to rational politics
in the country.
Both sides of the political divide
have to pull back from digging deeper trenches separating Malaysians from each
other.
The rational and moderate among us
must remind political leaders and their supporters that there is more to life
than trading insults and perpetuating endless hatred.
Malaysians must be made to realise
that politics has always been about battles between competing interests and
attempts to balance partial truths.
Instead of looking at the complex
perspectives involved, we are constantly drawn into the partisan hate through
simplistic beliefs about being right and wrong, or good versus evil.
With today’s digital technology and
widespread use of social media, it is even easier for those bent on stirring
discord to get quick and extensive coverage.
In the old days, rookie journalists
were reminded that just because somebody says something shocking it would not
mean that it was news.
Not anymore. Any rabble-rouser for a
small and insignificant group can now manipulate the media into getting ample
attention by making incendiary remarks.
But there is a limit to how much
political rancour and hate people can stomach.
Even in countries where two party
systems of democracies are practised, voters are being turned off by the
intense politicking, especially when there is no difference between the parties
when it comes to corruption or standard of governance.
As a result of this aversion, what
is being referred to as “anti-politics” is very much in the air in Europe.
The United Kingdom’s 64-year-old
Political Studies Association has set up an Anti-Politics and De-Politicisation
Specialist Group dedicated to providing a forum for researchers examining the
trend.
According to the group,
“anti-politics” appears to have marginalised political debates, taken power
away from elected politicians and fostered an air of disengagement,
disaffection and disinterest in politics.
The way politics is being played in
Malaysia, I wouldn’t mind a dose of it here.
M. Veera Pandiyan, The Star/ANN, Petaling Jaya,
Malaysia
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