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If it feels like GE13 was a long time coming, that's because
it
was. For more than a year politicians of all hues, commentators and
international observers were urging Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak
to
push the button, but he held out.
The reason for the delay well into 2013 - we later found out
-
was so the people had more time to see that transformation is working. Fair
enough. By the time the May 5th date was set, we all knew our economic
success
during 2012 was no fluke, instead key milestones of the GTP and
ETP.
But crafty Najib doubtless also knew something else both his
critics and impatient BN supporters didn't. He knew Pakatan Rakyat, rather
than
getting stronger and better organised, would actually fracture over the
extended time frame. The small cracks between the parties that were
dismissed
last year by DAP Secretary General Lim Guan Eng as differences of opinion
that
occur in "any coalition" would eventually break wide open.
And that's why we find ourselves in such a strange position
on
the eve of GE13, with observers declaring Pakatan Rakyat dead and buried
before
it has even faced the people; with the pre-selection disputes of
PKR-DAP-PAS
betraying an "every man for himself" mentality; with PAS members
sprinkling Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang's name into the conversation every
time
the Prime Minister's job is mentioned; and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim reduced
to
conducting "poor me" interviews to the foreign media, paving the way
for his defeat in an election he pretends won't be free and
fair.
If Najib really foresaw all this, if he really delayed
calling
GE13 because he knew Pakatan was set to self-destruct, then he has a
quality
common to real star performers on the biggest stage: patience and timing.
At no
point did he panic or succumb to pressure from outside or within
BN.
And the timing of GE13 has left Pakatan Rakyat voters in an
unenviable position. Given that the success of this nation is now utterly
irrefutable, they are effectively being dared to vote for the great unknown
and
put it all at risk. To do that now, at this late stage, would be
reckless.
Najib, more than anyone, won't be taking a GE13 victory for
granted, and right up until May 5th he will be urging his candidates to
fight
for every vote. But his language is littered with clues as to his
confidence.
He isn't just asking for a mandate – to fall across the line - he
long ago
changed his message, calling for a decisive mandate that gives the go ahead
for
the next stage of transformation and that includes reforming his own
party.
If he gets this mandate and the result is even deeper
reforms
that benefit Malaysia, then his patient long game will be
vindicated.
The Choice, 23 April 2013
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