COMMENT The people marched in Bersih 1, 2 and 3. What was that all about? For free and fair elections; for an opportunity to topple the BN that has shown contempt for voters not only in elections but also in their laws and policies.

We have read about how voters were so passionate about making a real change that they had taken the trouble to travel back from overseas to vote in the May 5 general election.

Now, just a few months after constituents had voted for their state assemblyperson in Kajang, the representative from PKR resigns without providing any valid justification to the very people of Kajang who had voted him in. The assemblyperson, Lee Chin Cheh ( right ), said it was for “the greater interest of Pakatan”...

In most cases, the people can accept the justification for a by-election if the politician concerned is embroiled in a scandal or has health problems and is thus forced to resign.

In this case, it seems to be a case of “resignation of convenience”, aimed at solving the internal politicking between the PKR menteri besar and the PKR strongman who opposes him and to facilitate the entry of Anwar Ibrahim into the Selangor state government.

The cost of this strategy is to force a costly by-election and leave constituents without representation for weeks.

Mind you, Anwar has said that he has no intention of becoming the Selangor menteri besar and the current menteri besar has said he does not intend to vacate his post. All these make the resignation of the Kajang assemblyperson Chin Cheh all the more preposterous.

Anwar ( left ) is already the adviser to the Selangor state government and head of the entire Pakatan Rakyat coalition. So, how will he being a state assemblyperson help to strengthen Pakatan in the state?

This is a most cynical violation of the public trust. Furthermore, if Anwar is to stand in the Kajang seat, he has to justify holding two offices (in addition to his federal seat in Penang), which can be seen as an abuse of political privilege and a further contempt of voters in both constituencies.

DAP politicians have finally been forced to forgo this privilege/contempt of voters after years of public shaming. Karpal Singh has spoken out against this gross abuse of political privilege and it would be interesting to hear his views on this further case of constituency grabbing within Pakatan.

 

Voters may boycott Kajang by-election...

In other words, this forced by-election has nothing to do with any political necessity to outdo the BN. In fact, this latest political circus act within PKR may well work in favour of the BN if the Sultan of Selangor decides to follow in the footsteps of the Perak Sultan in 2009!

Nor has this anything to do with “higher principles” of the faction opposing incumbent Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim. We have seen and heard the interminable bickering between the incumbent Selangor menteri besar and the PKR strongman in the same party ever since 2008, with mixed messages about Khalid’s corporate and political competence.

To justify Khalid’s ( left ) removal, PKR has to educate us about his shortcomings for only that will give the electorate of Selangor a better idea of the political vision and mission of the prospective new Pakatan leadership in the state, and perhaps justify the Kajang by-election.

PKR hacks may claim that the people are not privy to their “grand strategy” that is behind their latest shenanigan. But what good is that when even DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng has professed ignorance of this grand strategy?

The people of Malaysia have been making their voices heard as they have done so in the various Bersih public campaigns of late. We do not accept political parties taking us for granted and turning the democratic process into a political circus according to their will.

As a strong message to all the political parties, the voters of Kajang may well decide to boycott the coming by-election so that Malaysian politicians will not take voters for granted, ever again.

DR KUA KIA SOONG, a former MP, is adviser to human rights group Suaram.