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| Electoral reform a farce without free and fair media coverage Posted: 30 Dec 2011 09:09 PM PST An electoral contest with one contestant monopolizing the media to the exclusion of his adversary is akin to a debating competition where one debater is using a microphone to speak to the audience while the other is using none. By Kim Quek Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's call for free and fair media coverage for the coming election strikes at the core of the fundamental flaws that have made Malaysian elections a mockery of democracy. This is because electoral democracy is a game of perception. And perception is shaped by the media. Hence, an electoral contest with one contestant monopolizing the media to the exclusion of his adversary is akin to a debating competition where one debater is using a microphone to speak to the audience while the other is using none. And the Malaysian media is notorious for its biased reporting, as the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional (BN) has never been shy in exploiting to the fullest, its iron-grip on the entire spectrum of the local mass media (save the Internet) to advance its political fortune. Such complete control is made possible through a combination of repressive legislations and media ownership, as the BN government possesses the arbitrary power to grant or terminate any media license (printed and electronic) without legal redress, and all such media are owned either by BN's component parties or by their allies. And public TV and radio, which are legally bound to be politically neutral, have long been corrupted by BN to serve its parochial political interests – a practice that has emphatically breached our Constitution.
With such unlimited media power at the exclusive disposal of a ruling power as ruthless as BN, one can imagine what kind of scenario will be seen at a Malaysian national election. It will not be a democratic election for sure. More likely, it will look like giant Goliath fighting little David, as far media war is concerned. And yet, it is the media that influence the mind, and the mind that influences the vote. Granted that advancement in Internet has somewhat mitigated the unleveled playing field, but its current stage of usage in Malaysia is nowhere near the kind of level that would enable the opposition to meaningfully counter BN's vicious propaganda perpetrated through the main stream media. TV, radio and newspaper are still the regular information feeders depended upon by overwhelming majority of Malaysians, particularly those in the non-urban areas. And the opposition's serious handicap in information dissemination is further critically compounded by the 8 to 10 day campaign period (though allowable period is 60 days), a practice perpetrated in recent decades by an obviously manipulated Election Commission (EC) to favour BN. With such a ridiculously short campaign period, it is impossible for the opposition to carry its message – not to mention countering BN's false propaganda – to the far flung territories that include the hinterlands across the South China Seas. More than any other factor, BN's monopolistic abuse and exploitation of the mass media, coupled with the indecently brief campaign period, has been accountable to BN's unfailing victory in every general election in the past.
Surveying the current scenario ahead of the election, what we see is a fundamentally altered political landscape. On one side of the battlefield, is an aged and decadent coalition with antiquated policy, kept in power by dint of its grip on the state machinery. On the other, a newly emerged coalition brimming with ideas to rejuvenate the nation, with proven record of sound governance in its state governments. Under such circumstances, it is fair to say that BN should be no match for Pakatan Rakyat in a free and fair contest, more so in the current trend of dissent against decadent and aged power that has swept across the world including our region. But of course, we have never had a free and fair contest, and in fact, our unleveled playing field has gone from bad to worse. It is in the realization that we may once again be cheated of a fair choice of government that hitherto docile voters have risen strongly to brave brutal crackdown to demand fair election in the Bersih 2.0 rally. It is not difficult to surmise that, given the present extreme lop-sidedness of Malaysian election, whether the people will be given a fair choice in the coming poll hinges on how effective the current attempt at electoral reform will be towards rectifying the current flaws. The recent focus by the parliamentary select committee (PFC) and EC on introducing indelible ink and advance voting in lieu of postal voting is of course a welcome improvement. But we must be cautious not to allow such focus to blur our priorities, top among which is the mandatory practice of free and fair and non-discriminatory media coverage for all contestants. And of course, the current unconstitutional abuse of public media (TV, radio, news agency etc) to disseminate biased information in favour of BN has to cease forthwith.
This is something that BN can do right away without waiting for new legislation or alteration of election regulation. All that is needed is the political will and commitment to honour the letter and spirit of our Constitution. Knowing the critical importance of free media to democratic election, it should be made a non-negotiable issue. I have no doubt that Bersih 2.0, political parties and all who cherish democracy and the Constitution will stand very firm to demand that BN gives its solemn pledge to restore free and fair media coverage as pre-requisite to the return to democratic election. |
| Posted: 30 Dec 2011 08:34 AM PST It certainly has the edge but the big question is why is Najib running scared of calling for the polls. Overall it can be said that it looks likely that BN will win the 13th general election due to three main reasons: Use of racist, fear-mongering tactics to woo the Malay vote; control of mainstream media to bad-mouth the opposition plus no alternative media in rural areas; and lack of impartiality (to put it in a refined manner) by the Election Commission. Selena Tay, Free Malaysia Today Yes, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is too afraid of holding the 13th general election. He is afraid that BN will not win, and in reality he has no confidence of winning. Otherwise, why would he not immediately call for the polls to be held the moment after he had presented the Budget on Oct 7, 2011? After all, it is blindingly obvious that the civil service, the national institutions, the rural folk and those in the interiors of Sabah and Sarawak are supporting him. With this so-called overwhelming support, it is indeed amazing that he still lacks the courage to call for the general election. In addition to that, he has also thrown in the RM500 aid as bait. However, the RM500 is no big deal as it is only a one-off. Even if he were to give this sum every five years, it only amounts to RM100 a year. And that is equivalent to RM8.45 a month – peanuts and pittance! Is Najib trying to make monkeys out of the rakyat? Be that as it may, here is a brief guide highlighting the unique features on the scenario in all the states in Malaysia: Perlis: If you think the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) is in disarray, think again. In Perlis there are four warlords jostling for power: Azmi Khalid – he of the Public Accounts Committee fame; Radzi Sheikh Ahmad – well known and with much clout; Isa Sabu – present Menteri Besar (MB) and; Shahidan Kassim – previous MB. The smallest state but giving the biggest problems to Umno. PAS has two state seats here and hope to make further inroads and DAP has also set up a branch in Perlis after being absent for more than three decades. Penang: The Indian-Muslim NGOs try to annoy Chief Minister (CM) Lim Guan Eng but the Malays have never had it better. The support for Lim from the Malays is blanked out by the mainstream media and this could work out to Pakatan's disadvantage because the Malays in other states will think that the Penang Malays are being marginalised by the DAP-led state government. Kedah: PAS MB Ustaz Azizan Abu Bakar seems slow and sleepy but that is the style required in Kedah. Things are moving along fine although the mainstream media tries to paint a picture of no-progress. For example, a road in Kubang Rotan was tarred and repaired by the PAS state government but the mainstream media said it was done by the BN federal government. The PAS government was also accused of not helping the rakyat during the flash floods in 2010 although they had disbursed RM2 million to assist the flood victims. Kelantan: PAS MB Tok Guru Nik Aziz Nik Mat has helmed Kelantan since 1990 and this time the Malay daily which is Umno's mouthpiece tries to drown him with the water issue by publishing front-page headlines proclaiming that the water in Kelantan is dirty and smelly. In fact the water is clean and crystal clear and the dirty, smelly water proclaimed in the said daily is the water dug from the ground by some of the locals and this type of water is referred to by the Kelantanese as 'boring water'. How dull can BN get! The PAS state government has not kept quiet and has issued newsletters to try to counter the BN media. Terengganu: This state is ever-elusive for PAS although they have won it in 1959 and 2004. There are two warlords in the power struggle of Terengganu: Former MB Idris Jusoh versus current MB Ahmad Said. The stadium-collapse and the bridge with no river are the main issues here leading the opposition to question who gets a percentage cut from the construction works. In regards to the bridge which is part of the stretch of the Jabor Highway, the cost of the said bridge has ballooned from RM174 million to RM210 million. The construction cost of Jabor Highway itself has increased from RM3.7 billion to RM5 billion. Pahang: The home state of Najib. The hottest issue here is no doubt the one in regards to Lynas Corporation and the rare earth plant in Gebeng located in the constituency of PKR MP Fuziah Salleh. She is currently heading a people's movement which involves the rakyat with the intention of booting out this plant. Battle of all battles Perak: The state that made headlines in 2009 due to BN's illegal power-grab. Since then, the Silver State has lost its shine due to Perak MB, Umno's Zambry Abdul Kadir and his lacklustre line-up of Exco members. Ho-hum, yawn! But the bright spark here is the PAS Supporters Congress – the non Muslim section of PAS which has one of the most active branches in Malaysia in Perak. The co-ordination among the three Pakatan component parties is also the best in Perak. Selangor: This is in clear and present danger of going back to BN's grasp due to extremely aggressive campaigning by Umno using racial issues and scare-mongering tactics to win the Malay vote. Although Umno uses the same racial and scare-mongering tactics in all the states, it is the most prevalent in Selangor. Negeri Sembilan: One might think that nothing much happens here but lest we forget, Gemas in Negeri Sembilan is the location of the National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) cattle ranch – ground zero of the Cattle-Condo scandal. Enough said. Malacca: Welcome to the Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Melaka in Batu Berendam which has only five flights a week. At other times, it is a good place to hone one's skills in kite-flying. Malacca is also home to the largest go-cart circuit in Southeast Asia but rest assured it is not so much a go-cart circuit as a ghost-cart circuit. Costing more than RM12 million to construct, there is no one and no activity there!
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