KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 — With the six state elections ending on August 12, most would have expected the respective state governments to be formed as soon as possible — and in an orderly fashion.
Evidently, that has not been the case; for starters, Penang only sees its 40 state assemblymen sworn into office today, while Selangor announced its line-up recently.
Moreover, there was discontent in Kedah over the distribution of executive councillor seats in the state government.
Which means over two weeks have passed without a fully functioning administration in some states.
Then there are the hot-button issues raised during ceramah on the campaign trail for the September 9 by-elections for the Simpang Jeram state seat and Pulai parliamentary seat, which were both left vacant following the death of incumbent Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub,
And you can see why constituents feel exhausted, said Alia Mior, 28, a communications executive who resides in Ampang.
“The non-stop bickering doesn’t seem to ever end. We just had the state elections, and it has started again in Johor.
“Even with the appointment of the Selangor menteri besar, I wonder why it took them so long to decide who to name as the menteri besar? Weren’t the names decided beforehand?
“While they took their time to resolve this, there were ongoing matters that required attention on the ground,” she said.
Acknowledging that the youths played a big role in the 2022 general election, Alia said several factors drove them to the ballot box then.
“So why did youths pick Perikatan Nasional (PN) during the general election? From 2018 to 2022, Umno-Barisan Nasional (BN) didn’t change one bit.
“I used to keep up with Puteri Umno, but now, I don’t even feel its presence anymore. Don’t talk about getting more women to fill political leadership roles, when Wanita Umno doesn’t even seem significant anymore.
“Some said getting rid of Datuk Seri Najib Razak would fix the party. Now, it seems even worse than before. So why not try and vote for a new coalition and see what it can do differently?” Alia said.
In the 15th general election, despite political parties not hedging their bets on youth voters, it was reported that those between age 18 and 30 made up about 75.6 per cent of the voter turnout.
It was also reported that a majority of youth votes went to PN, allowing the coalition to secure the second-highest number of parliamentary seats at 74, after Pakatan Harapan (PH) that secured 82 seats; Umno-BN only managed to get 30 seats.
As for the state elections, national news agency Bernama reported that more than 50 per cent of the 9.67 million eligible voters in Kedah, Penang, Kelantan, Terengganu, Negeri Sembilan and Selangor were youths aged 39 and below, of which 661,905 were between 18 and 20 years old; 2.16 million between 21 and 29; and 2.16 million aged 30 to 39.
The outcome of the state elections saw PN making inroads in Selangor, whereby its seat count rose to 22 from five, while in Penang, it won 11 out of 15 Malay-majority seats — most of which were state seats under the Permatang Pauh parliamentary constituency which the coalition also won in GE15.
PN also saw improved results in Kedah — a near clean sweep — and Terengganu where coalition partner PAS made a clean sweep.
All talk, no action
Alina Razman, 26, used to be a BN supporter, along with her family who had been loyal to the party for more than 20 years.
As for her, she grew up listening to her parents talk about the coalition and the good things it had done.
“Maybe it’s true that they were once good, but I don’t see it today. All I see now is a lot of bickering and power-hungry politicians who just want a spot in the Cabinet for their personal interests.
“There is just a lot of talk, but no action. For about two or three years, the leaders have spoken about making the party great again, but what do we see today? They lost more seats in the recent state elections.
“If they want our support, they must prove that they are worth our vote. Do more than just make promises,” she said.
Citing an example of changes that she hopes to see was fresh and capable faces assuming leadership roles in the party.
She said the old faces must go.
“The people denied them in the 2018 general election, and yet, they are still here. What does it tell you? It will be the same old cycle all over again, and the country will never be freed from corruption and money politics,” Alina said.
In the 2018 general election, Malaysians made history when they denied BN the two-thirds majority required to form the federal government.
However, the PH administration only lasted 22 months before it was toppled by the Sheraton Move which saw the departure of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) from the PH coalition, along with a sizeable number of MPs from PKR and several parties, to form PN.
It’s complicated
Are the youths confused about who they should pick? To a certain extent, Naim Mohd Daud, 22, said yes, it did feel like a blur when the entire Sheraton Move happened, and he could not tell who was in government then.
“But if you ask me, among my friends, we don’t talk much about politics. It seems so complicated, and we just want no part of it.
“Things like the Sheraton Move confuse me even more. But, in the end, if you ask me, I want a government that will improve the education system. After Covid-19, the education system is a mess.
“Many students can’t cope, and when they can’t cope, they drop out. The government, whoever it is, must pay attention to these things, and not just talk about it superficially without going to the ground to look at the actual situation,” he said when contacted.
Religious factors, not really
Mohd Danial Yusoff, 20, said although PAS played up a lot of religious issues, it did not sway his choice of who he wanted to vote for in the state election.
According to the university student, he said, at the end of the day, PAS is a political party, and in his opinion, its leaders should not mix religion with politics.
“I am not sure about what most would think, but personally, for me, I don’t agree with political parties dragging race and religious issues into the picture.
“In fact, it made me lose confidence in them even more, because it seems like they are misusing religion for a political purpose.
“Are they sincere? We don’t know for sure,” he said when contacted.
Mohd Danial said youths on the ground want a candidate who proves they can serve the people, and carry out work that brings about constructive change.
“So, for me, and even my friends, it doesn’t matter who the candidate was, but it matters more if that person has actually done work or showed us proof of how they can fulfil the promises made during the election campaign.
“Don’t treat youths as though we know nothing. We don’t want a seasonal politician who comes once in a while to show they care, but not really bring about lasting change or improvements,” he said.
Politics of fear, fear of politics
At the same time, Sarah Razak, 28, said what PAS did — claiming that people who are against the Islamist party are enemies of Islam — was not right.
“How can you say that about other races and religions? PAS’ methods are not right, but at the same time, those in the unity government should not scare people with the ‘green wave’ narrative.
“Youths today are tired of politicians because of this — politicians raising sensitive issues that have nothing to do with our welfare or livelihood,” she said.
Instead, the marketing executive said politicians by now should know they need to focus on improving youth welfare in the county, and not turning every issue into a political one.
Voting is a right and a responsibility, and Sarah said youths today know exactly what to do, there was no need to fear politics.
“I just don’t like hearing politicians drag race, religion, and the Rulers into their agenda to gain voter support. These issues should not be politicised in the first place.
“Why don’t they talk about this on ‘normal’ days? All of a sudden, when elections arrive, everything seems to be about these sensitive issues,” she added.
Idrus Mohamad, 19, also a student, agreed, saying that youths want to see what politicians can do for them in the long term, and how they plan to improve the education system, such as introducing facilities that could create a better education environment in the country.
“Until now, I don’t see these so called ‘changes’ that the politicians said they would bring. That makes you wonder whether they will actually fulfil their promises or are merely sweet-talking us to get votes and that when they do win, they forget about us,” he said.
Angry at Umno
A first-time voter, Leila Rahman, 20, said people on the ground were angry at Umno, for retaining current president, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, due to his court cases.
“I know many who, despite being staunch supporters of Umno-Barisan Nasional (BN), are very angry with the party.
“The unhappiness stems from the party choosing not to replace its president. This is the reason they voted for PN. It was a form of retaliation — people rejected the ‘red’ coalition (tolak merah) because of him.
“He has to go, and only then can Umno actually change, and maybe then the situation can be salvaged,” she said, referring to how people rejected PH over its cooperation with BN.
Likewise, Rashdan Ali, 25, said Umno should realise by now that its president is pulling the party down.
“What’s wrong with stepping down until the air has cleared? The longer they drag this on for, the worse they are making the situation. They will lose more supporters.
“They should step down temporarily; otherwise, how can the changes actually take place when they are seen as abusing power to protect certain people,” Rashdan said, referring to reforms that were promised to the people.
A matter of education
Is there a difference between the Parliament and the State Legislative Assembly? This was a question Amira Ahmad Fauzi, 32 often heard when her friends asked if she was going to vote.
“It is frustrating that, as Malaysians, my friends don’t know the difference. How then will they vote? Or know the importance of picking the right person to represent them in the state government?
“If the education system had emphasised this better, I’m sure the country would be in better shape today.
“What we have now is people casting their vote for who is the most popular on TikTok. I don’t think a healthy democracy works that way,” she said when contacted.
Amira added that most of her friends did not know the state elections differed from the general election that took place last November, and hence, found it a hassle to return home to cast their vote.
“By the time they asked me, it was too late for me to persuade them to go back,” she said.
When met at a food stall, Fatimah Abdul Rashid, 21, said she voted for the person she knew as she had not heard of the other candidate for her area in Jelebu.
“I live in the same kampung as the BN candidate, so I voted for him,” she said.
However, when asked who her preferred candidate was to be the menteri besar of Negeri Sembilan, Fatimah said she was not sure what a menteri besar is, or what the job entails.
In fact, she did not know who the famous three-term menteri besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan was, let alone his immediate successor Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun.
“Err... menteri besar? ... No, I’m not sure [who he is],” she said after a long pause.
