LETTER | Just as the appearance of a swallow doesn’t render the season as summer, BN or Umno’s victory in the recent Nenggiri by-election is no guarantee that the party is riding on waves of Malay support.

The particular circumstances of Nenggiri, the Orang Asli support and the taken-for-granted approach by Perikatan Nasional gave the edge to Umno.

Let not Umno or Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who was overjoyed by Umno’s performance, believe that this is going to be the future political trend.

The Mahkota by-election is coming next month and it is certainly not going to be a walkover for Umno, even if Malays there traditionally supported the party.

The fact that Johor is the birthplace of Umno is no guarantee that the younger generations have a good memory.

If the statute of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh’s freedom fighter could be torn down in the recent student upheaval, what historical memory are we talking about?

As they say, those who bask in the memory of the past might be condemned to the pages of history, which might be true for Umno.

In recent times, Umno benefited from Chinese and Indian votes by virtue of its political association with the DAP.

Yet, it was the same DAP that was not invited to campaign in the Nenggiri by-election. Such is the hypocrisy of Umno.

Given the sizeable non-Malay voters in Mahkota, let us wait and see whether Umno will ask the DAP not to campaign there.

The political opportunism of Umno is so blatant that ordinary Malays cannot help but notice it. Crass materialism is largely responsible for the downfall of the party.

It would take a spectacular effort to revive the party that thrived on the slogan “bangsa, agama and negara” (race, religion and country).

DAP worse than MCA

In any case, the DAP is worse than MCA, the party that is often subject to ridicule by the former.

Even during the political heyday of Umno, there was a certain degree of camaraderie between the two parties.

Umno never insulted MCA the way DAP has been insulted and ridiculed to the extent the political alliance has been called into question.

Yet the DAP stoically puts up with the humiliation in the name of national unity. However, deep beneath this often-repeated slogan is the greed for power, political positions and the related material rewards or perks.

PN’s mistake

Perhaps the opposition, the PN, was not well focused on discrediting Umno in the Nenggiri by-election. The opposition’s predilection on religious matters might have shifted the balance in favour of Umno, especially on the bread-and-butter issues.

Kelantan might be the traditional base of PAS, yet the Islamic party has done little in looking after Orang Asal affairs.

PAS leaders should take time to ascertain the political thinking of the original inhabitants of the country.

For starters, the Orang Asal community prefer a better life on earth rather than the promised heaven.

Writer is a former Penang deputy chief minister.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.