The Law and the Art of being Popular

NST Online
2008/05/31
The law and the art of being popular
By : JOHAN JAAFFAR

WATCHING the images of a senior police officer being hoisted on to the shoulders of the so-called "Cheras barricade breakers" saddened me.

According to reports, the barricade was demolished "peacefully" by the crowd in the presence of policemen watching "to maintain peace and order".

I wonder if anyone questions how many laws have been broken by the boisterous yet agitated crowd or whether the gathering is even allowed by the Police Act.

Should anyone care to listen to "the other side" -- the highway concessionaire Grand Saga who maintained that the barricade was erected "on an indisputable portion of the concession area"?

I have no love for Grand Saga and I empathise with the residents if at all the barricade had caused so much misery to them. But I believe we have to be fair to all parties -- the people affected and to the company, too.

No one is above the law. That is the principle that we have upheld all these years. That is the Malaysian way of doing things. If we take the law into our own hands, we are heading towards anarchy.

If you have been following media reports in Taiwan and Hong Kong over the Cheras issue, you will understand how much it has dented our reputation.

There is another worrying element to the reports -- hints of racism.

Why, I wonder, has a matter pertaining to the setting up of a barricade protested by residents of all races become a racial matter?

The way I look at it, the country's image is one thing, but the maintenance of law and order is another.

It is easy for anyone to say that they stand by the people on matters like this. Toll highways have never been popular with Malaysians, anyway. It hurts the pocket. But people have no choice but to pay to go places.

Shall we do away with tolls on all our highways?

An enticing prospect needless to say, and indeed one that will get wholehearted support from everyone, except of course the operators of those highways.

But does anyone in his or her mood of irrational exuberance remember the matters pertaining to concession agreements, the funding and its necessity?

In the name of popularity, should the present government pronounce as null and void all those concession agreements signed so far?

Taking a populist approach is easy.

Side with the people over everything. One can never go wrong. Just give the people what the people want.

But things are not that simple. So the only logical thing to do is play the underdog. It is always the Goliaths over the Davids. The little people are victimised by "the system".

The Big Guys motivated by nothing but greed make life miserable for the masses. These people make tons of money while the highway users endure ever increasing rates. In an economic system like ours, there is no law against making money.

Playing to the gallery is good politics. Just imagine how one becomes popular siding with hawkers and every conceivable petty trader who has no regard whatsoever for the law, safety or cleanliness.

Stand by them, and presto, you're the folk hero. Some of today's MPs and state representatives were social activists before. But they, too, are on the side of law and order now.

Behaving like saviours of the little people is one thing, but the burden of being elected representatives is another.

There are members of parliament and state representatives who would love to label themselves as orang yang ditakuti (the dreaded ones). They want the image of a no-nonsense, hard talker and a gunslinger, ever willing to spray bullets on hesitant and bumbling politicians. They build their notoriety on acting tough.

Some even make it a point to provoke, condemn and humiliate others. The Dewan Rakyat sadly has become one big arena for bertikam lidah (sabre rattling). Some of the scenes are not too pleasant. Harsh words are exchanged and proprieties take a beating.

Do we have to go to that? Do we have to witness our politicians behaving like spoilt schoolchildren in the so-called Dewan yang mulia? Why can't they just get into the business of representing the people?

They have tons of problems to begin with. The people want their representatives to bring forth their grouses, argue their cases and help them find ways to improve their livelihoods.

Why can't they do just that, rather than perfecting the art of throwing mud at each other?
Why can't they be like what they are supposed to be -- ahli-ahli yang berhormat (the respectable ones)? I fear the day when fist fights will actually happen in the Dewan Rakyat.

Good, rational arguments win hearts and minds.

Take the case of Datuk Ibrahim Ali's maiden speech in the recent sitting. He has been called many names. But he gave one of the best speeches at the Dewan Rakyat. He has nothing new to sell, actually. But it was his calmness, research and eloquence that won the day.

If only there are more like him than the noisy interrupters and perennial table bangers.

Why, I wonder, do parliamentarians need to waste time on semantics and dubious rules of the House or lambasting fellow MPs when they should be making suggestions and contributing ideas? That will differentiate the men and women from the boys and girls.

Brute force without wisdom fails by its own weight, someone famously said. Little wonder we forget most of the questions and statements made in Parliament.

But is our society being reflected in what happens at the Dewan Rakyat today?

We need a responsible government, and equally responsible representatives to play the role of check and balance. The very people who were elected on the mantra that the ruling government at the time was ignoring and disrespectful to the rakyat, practising cronyism and succumbing to racial politics, must now prove themselves as the harbinger of change.

They must now show the way for the betterment of the people, to ensure the emergence of a civil society and more importantly to respect the law. That applies even to the supporters of the demolition of the Cheras barricade among them.

They must also work together to heal a divided nation. Is that too much to ask from our Yang Berhormat?