Anwar Ibrahim's protege Keadilan Youth chief Mohamad Ezam Mohd Noor has probably come of age - in politics that is. With his recent eight-day detention in the police lock-up and with 14 charges awaiting him in the courts, Ezam says that he has now earned his stripes.

He has nevertheless yet to sever his umbilical cord to his mentor and this shows very much as everything about this young leader seems to be inextricably linked with the man who became a symbol of injustice after being brutally beaten up while in custody, sustaining, amongst other injuries, the infamous black eye.

Sitting in his book-crammed Institute of Policy Research (IKD) office in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, Ezam says that he first joined Umno because he was influenced by the former deputy prime minister, and now jailed, Anwar Ibrahim into thinking there was room for reform within Umno.

It was during the 1988 judiciary crisis when former Lord President (chief justice) Salleh Abas was sacked that the young Ezam, an economics student at the International Islamic University, first decided to be active in politics.

"As a student, I was always critical of Umno. This was because my parents were both top Umno people in Kampung Seri Kembangan and I could see how the Umno grassroots were manipulated by the higher leaders for their own selfish gains," says the son of a miner from Sungai Besi.

Ezam relates how he became even more critical of Umno after the expulsion of Salleh from the highest bench of the judiciary.

"He was one of the Arabic readers in IIU - very humble and very simple and very much respected by students. We were very angry with the dismissal and I managed to get through to certain people to meet Anwar. I still remember Anwar saying that he was not in the position to really speak his mind as he is building up his strength within the party.

"He then appealed for people like me and others to assist in reforming the party. That is where I took up the challenge and joined Umno. I climbed the ladder - first as a youth leader and then to the number two post in the party's division. I kept very much in contact with Anwar and I was influenced by his commitment, and writings and policies for reforms."

Despite knowing very well how feudalistic Umno was, Ezam believes that there were many sincere people in the party. "Even now in Umno, there are many of them at the grassroots level but they are played out and manipulated by others at the top."

No room for reform

Ezam, who joined IKD as a fellow on Anwar's recommendation after graduation, says that when he joined the institute, he found a lot more "which are not right in Umno".

"I was quite young and was not that outspoken but I could see Anwar was quite open to criticism."

Ezam learnt a lot and was stimulated intellectually by Anwar, who was well-known for his penchant in holding discussions, forums and dialogues of civilisations.

Recalling how Anwar openly expressed his disagreement in London with the judgment handed down on DAP's Lim Guan Eng who was jailed for sedition when he tried to help a Malay girl who was sexually abused, Ezam says, "Mahathir called him (Anwar) and told him that the CJ (ex-chief justice Eusoff Chin) was not happy with his remarks in London."

Despite this, Ezam and many others stayed on, waiting for the right moment when Anwar would rise to the party's number one, and the reform agenda could then be put in full force in Umno.

"My basis for entering Umno was reform and the basis for leaving was also reform. When I realised that there was no room for reform, I left Umno and followed Anwar - not because of my personal attachment to him - but because we shared the same visions. What happened to Anwar showed there was no room for reform.

"We were not sure how the people would react if we left for the sake of reform alone. Even Anwar himself, when he was expelled, the first time he met the people, he was not sure how the people would react."

Asserting that he does not regret the financial sacrifice, Ezam says that had he stayed on, he would have received his pension as a former political secretary to Anwar, the privilege to buy a piece of land under the state government, tenders and many more.

According to Ezam, the sacking of Anwar unleashed a 'revolution' which brought about a drastic change in the way Malaysians view politics and politicians, and a shift from the politics of personalities to the politics of issues.

He said the belief that the government was invincible is now gone.

"People dare to speak about an alternative government and toy with the idea of changing the government. The people's thinking even change on racial issues. And because of this, the government is struggling very hard to put the issue of race back on centre stage."

Ezam, who now takes the centre stage at ceramahs (talks) to expose the misuse of public funds by government leaders, says that the people were the ones who pushed him into the spotlight.

"The people are adamant for change, even one year after elections. They now come in thousands to listen to ceramahs, whether rain or shine, with FRUs (Federal Reserve Unit) and roadblocks. The people's reaction to issues is what's making 'things get hotter'."

Corruption and abuse of power

"The struggle now is very much against corruption and abuse of power," says Ezam, who proceeds to list out his main topics of ceramahs in recent months.

"The Employees Provident Fund is being used to prop up the shares of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange; Tabung Haji (Hajj Fund) is being used to buy assets and companies that are not economically viable; the Permodalan Nasional Bhd fund is used to save some individuals; cronies are bailed out, especially the recent Malaysian Airlines bailout these are among the misuse of public funds."

Ezam stresses that even his mentor had highlighted such misuse of public monies when he was in the cabinet.

"I have my sources who relate to me the misuse of public funds and abuse of power. I have proof and I hope they charge me in court so that I can show them and repeat what I have said. But not a single one of the many charges I am facing is on any of these," he says.

Ezam, who is facing 14 charges for breaching of various laws such as Official Secrets Act, sections of Police Act and most recently Sedition Act, says the slew of the charges against him reflects a government which is at a loss to deal with citizens who are becoming more aware of their rights.

"The attacks against me basically constitute a preemptive measure," he says, and adds that it is normal to be on top of the list of 'the ones to be silenced' when one is vocal.

Ezam warns the government that there will be more public protests, what with the dropping of commodity prices such as palm oil, coconut and rubber.

"When their livelihoods are threatened and when they are not able to feed their children, the people will protest. The government denounces peaceful assemblies and it uses the media to create a wrong perception among the people regarding such gatherings.

"The ruling party is so afraid of People Power that they detained me for eight days and put me with drug addicts in lock-ups where conditions are abhorrent," he says, relating that the lock-up had no proper toilet and those remanded had to do without water at all, even for toilet use.

"I have been in lock-ups before and this time was the worst. The food was not fit at all for human consumption."

The experience has made Ezam even more determined to speak up.

On the accusations that he had told the media that he would use street protests to "topple the government", Ezam clarifies, "'Topple' was not my word. That word was used by Hishammuddin Hussein Onn (Umno Youth chief) when commenting on what I was accused of saying. He should remember that even his grandfather, Datuk Onn Jaafar, believed in protests. I truly believe that it is the right of the people to give their mandate to the government and it is the right of the people to take that mandate away."

Other forms of protests

Ezam states that the government has yet to realise there are other kinds of protests that are taking place besides the ones being held on the streets.

"There is protest on the stock exchange. The Time.com IPO was the first case of shares being offered to public which were undersubscribed. That is a protest by itself and it is very effective," he claims.

Ezam says that although the opposition is on the right track, despite the bumps and jolts now and then, there is a lot to be done.

"People's focus should not be diverted from pursuing the principles of truth, reform and justice. There is a big group out there - women between the ages of 18 and 25 who has yet to be 'captured' and this is the strength I am talking about. The strength is with the young," says the determined leader whose aim now is to prove that Keadilan is not another S46, the splinter group of Umno formed in the late 1980s, which later returned to the ruling party's fold.

"We are prepared to go to court and we are prepared to be locked up. We are no doubt a Malay-based party but we are open to all races and religions. We are also not an ex-Barisan Nasional party as there are many individuals from non-governmental organisations and formerly non-partisan people who joined Keadilan. This party survives on people power and not in glorifying certain personalities," says Ezam.

On the fact that some regard him as being very much like Anwar, Ezam says, "I unknowingly tend to emulate his style as I had been following him. That to me, is not important, but it is the message that I carry that matters."

Ezam, who admitted that he was trapped in racial politics while in Umno but has since 'repented', says that it was his exposure to "NGO people of all races that worked together while I was in IKD that 'opened my eyes'".

He tried hard to explain to the people to avoid from being lured by the ruling BN who he says is increasingly driven to desperation and resorting to the use of explosive issues such as race to divert public attention.

"The people have to demand their rights from the government that they have elected. This is where we have to educate the people to demand for what is theirs," says Ezam.