The sudden interest of Utusan Malaysia’s Awang Selamat in how the Malay Rulers should conduct themselves in business is an interesting development.

In a recent editorial, Awang referred to a message—purportedly from an UMNO veteran—warning the Malay Rulers not to be excessive when pursuing their commercial interests. That the warning didn’t come from the current UMNO leadership but through a close third party seems to indicate that the party is quite worried about this development.

Business decisions aren’t clear-cut in Malaysia. They get mixed up with politics and, specifically, the politics of patronage. If you have a project that needs to get off the ground, you must first have the support of certain powers-that-be, which sometimes will involve a quid pro quo or some form of gratuity. Some people call this a “cost of doing business”. I call it graft.

The Constitution is clear that the Malay Rulers are not to be involved in business, but UMNO is not in a position to enforce this rule because they themselves flaunt the Constitution and the law with frightening regularity.

This issue allowed me to be a five-minute hero years ago at the 1993 UMNO General Assembly. In my speech, I humbly begged Their Highnesses to respect the law and made the point that there had to accountability for everyone. I said there was no place for legal immunity if a Ruler violated the law in his personal capacity. My remarks were greeted by tremendous applause.

Then I made a gigantic boo-boo. I said that what was good for the goose must also be good for the gander. I looked up to the UMNO leaders on stage and said that if we were to be a nation of laws, then surely we must apply the law to all and sundry, without fear or favour. High and low, King and commoner, national leader or wage-earner—all must be bound by the law of the land. You could hear a pin drop.

There was absolute silence… except for the sound of me digging my own political grave.

Fast forward 20 years later, and we’re still a nation in which the law is selectively applied to suit the powers-that-be. Indeed, we have many excuses not to apply the law and defend the interests of the rakyat.

It’s unlikely that a Mentri Besar whose appointment and tenure depend on the pleasure of the King would dare oppose the wishes of the Palace, whether in matters of business or otherwise. The rakyat today lament the widespread involvement of the Palace in big business and nothing is being done by the Government to stop it. They do not dare, because they themselves partake in similar ventures which the law does not permit.

Similarly it’s unlikely an Attorney-General would risk his future by going against the wishes of the PM in our system of government. There have been many high-profile cases which were disturbing in terms of how they were handled by the Government and the Attorney-General’s office, which suggests some kind of intervention by the higher-ups.

Our Courts do not help matters. We have essentially reinterpreted the Constitution to give discretionary powers to the Malay Rulers to sack a sitting Government, even though we know very well that this interpretation is wrong and tremendously shortsighted. When the Government dished out taxpayers’ money to Members of Parliament from political parties in the Government but not from the Opposition, the Court also said that this was fine. The Court somehow did not deem this practice to be wrong or unfair.

And now that we have given the Rulers and our Prime Minister all these extra powers, why complain?

UMNO is complaining about the Rulers’ excessive forays into business, perhaps because the Palace is encroaching onto their turf. UMNO isn’t against the principle of it, per se, provided there is enough moolah to go around for them too.

So, what difference does it make to the rakyat if projects go to UMNO or the Palace? I believe that it is incumbent on us and any politician who cares about the people to expose any wrongdoing and speak up against any abuse committed by our leaders, whether elected or hereditary. Criticising the Rulers and the Government carries a lot of risk, as we can go to jail for sedition. But that’s not such a bad deal compared to letting this country go to waste, to the point that there will be nothing left for our grandchildren.

Political leaders must be made to remember that if they abandon the rakyat and forsake an important principle just to reach the top, they automatically become a key player in the gua tolong lu, lu tolong gua system. They may reach the top but nothing would be left of their struggles. All their beliefs and promises for a better Malaysia will simply fade into dust.

This is why I was pleased to hear that the old Parti Rakyat Malaysia is trying to revamp itself as a third force in Malaysian politics. If nothing else, it should try to keep both the Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat honest by scrutinising everything the two coalitions do.

We certainly need politicians who believe in some basic things and can maintain these beliefs in the face of pressure and temptation. What are some of these beliefs? That every Malaysian deserves a decent life. That the wealth of this country must be shared as equitably as possible—massive disparities in income are bad for everyone. And that we must defend the poor and those without lands.

The change this country needs is not about change in leaders only, but a change in priorities. This can only happen if the rakyat is aware that it has the power to make that change. If the rakyat is interested only in defending religion, or the Rulers, or race, then the same politicians will rule. I hope that low-income-earners, for example, as well as the young and the underprivileged, will support politicians who champion things like better working conditions, a higher minimum wage, better access to services, better schools and so forth.

The grand narratives of race and religion don’t put food in our stomachs or give us medicine when we are sick. We need a new struggle about the lives of real people, not all these imaginary bogeymen. -- www.zaid.my

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* The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Astro AWANI.