Recent announcements by Anwar Ibrahim that Pakatan Rakyat has secured enough ‘crossover’ MPs to form the next federal government are indeed worrying. The accuracy of this announcement itself warrants some verification but assuming its true, there are some ethical issues that need to be addressed.

I will admit I am one of the many Malaysians who were absolutely delighted that the opposition (now Pakatan Rakyat) took four additional states, apart from Kelantan, from the ruling coalition. This delight was rooted in the fact that I, like many other Malaysians, have been completely fed up with the arrogance of the BN government coupled with a strong desire to see the opposition be given the long overdue opportunity to rule and be tested.

However my worry has to do with how this opportunity is gained – that the process is just as important as the end result. While gaining control of Parliament is ideal when done via the polls, doing so by wooing MPs from opponent parties after an election breaches ethical boundaries that leaders should adhere to.

The argument that no money is used to entice these MPs does not justify the ethical compromise MPs make when they betray the confidence that the voters placed in them and their party ideals they represented at the 2008 GE. Another frequent argument used to justify such crossovers is that people voted for the candidates rather than the party. But is this entirely true?

Unless a survey is done on the state of mind of every voter on what influenced his/her decision, this argument would be at best considered guesswork. It would be safe to assume that both considerations played a part in a voter's decision.

Ethical principles must be adhered not only when it is suitable or profitable to us but even when it is not strategical in the short-term. It is only when leaders live up to such principles would they gain the real respect of the rakyat and this would in turn translate into long-term victories built on the foundation of unshakeable principles of justice and fair-play.

I can already here the howls of protest - ‘This is politics-lah!’ or ‘Aiyah…don't be so idealistic-lah’. But if we, the voters, do not hold our leaders true to high ethical standards, should we then be disappointed when other small but incremental ethical breaches occur when these leaders actually take control of Parliament?

The notion that ‘the people get the government they deserve’ would then sadly ring true. MPs who want to crossover because they truly believe in the ideals of the Pakatan Rakyat should have the moral courage to resign from their MP posts and contest again on a new ticket. Let the voters decide for themselves if they will trust these candidates.

Let’s not forget that the BN government profited from such unethical manoeuvres in the past but the boomerangs of those unethical political decisions have come a full-circle and now pose a possible threat to BN itself.

Calls by the BN government to legislate laws barring such crossovers should be supported but coming from the BN, they ring unsurprisingly hollow and smack of hypocrisy. Politicians should not underestimate the intelligence of the Malaysian public and their ability to see through apparently noble intentions that are actually veiled unethical political strategies – whether from BN of Pakatan Rakyat.

Today the crossovers (if indeed they happen) may benefit Pakatan Rakyat but would this same boomerang come back to haunt it in the future with a greater force? History seems to suggest it would.