LETTER | Once upon a time in 2018, our now scandal-mired prime minister said this about his party Bersatu: “Our party has principles. We will only accept people who we feel are aligned with the principles of our party's struggle – people without bad records or history.” Keep that thought in mind, as we have a walk down memory lane.
When Bersatu was first formed back in 2016, it tried hard to distinguish itself from Umno, the party it had split away from. Back then, Bersatu did not want to be branded as Umno 2.0 or be associated with Umno’s leadership. This explains why Muhyiddin stressed that the party would not just liberally accept any applications for membership.
In addition, he added that the party would implement a vetting process to ensure that the acceptance of new members would not oppose party goals or violate its rules.
“They must also fulfil other conditions, like not having (involved in) any corruption, abuse of power, and criminal cases against them,” Muhyiddin had said.
But talk is cheap, just look at where Bersatu is today. From saying that the party will not accept bad apples, Muhyiddin now shamelessly works hand-in-hand with the same bad apples he rejected. Yet in his maiden speech as prime minister addressing the people, he still had the cheek to say: “I am also aware that the rakyat wants a government that is clean, with integrity and free from corruption.”
Further, he even promises that his Cabinet ministers will have integrity and be of calibre. How can that possibly materialise when many in Umno and PAS are infamous for holding such tainted track records?
“I realised that Malaysians have grown tired of the political turmoil,” he also stated. Yes, a political turmoil that he very much incited. Had he not deserted Pakatan and led Bersatu out of it, Pakatan Harapan wouldn’t have fallen apart. The democratically-elected coalition would not have lost its legitimate parliamentary majority.
However, should such betrayal come as any surprise? After all, most of Bersatu’s membership and leaders consist of Umno old guard. It is no secret that many from Umno hopped over to join Bersatu before, during, and after GE14 for entirely self-preserving reasons.
Different party, same Umno mentality. These politicians were not truly on board with Harapan’s goals and values, they merely crossed over to save their skins and benefit from the winning coalition. Sadly, this played a major role in the collapse of Harapan.
Mahathir outright refused to work with Umno because he simply cannot accept working with the corrupt on any terms. No negotiation, no compromise. However, Muhyiddin, on the other hand, is prepared to embrace the corrupt as long as that makes him prime minister, a position he supposedly does not covet.
Evidently, the reason Bersatu was initially formed for no longer exists. They were once ready to fight Umno, now they’ve embraced Umno like one of their own. The party they once slammed before is now the very same party they’ve brazenly wooed to form an undemocratic backdoor government with.
Given the gripping events of the past two weeks, what should Malaysians expect next? Will Muhyiddin ultimately dissolve Bersatu and rejoin Umno? If the history of Malaysian politics is anything to go by, the answer is who knows? Malaysia Boleh, right?
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.
