Why Wait Till Tomorrow ?

Why Wait Till Tomorrow ?

Two days' ago, a Sarawak friend sent me a video clip. The CM and the public were at a gathering in Kuching, and majority of the attendants were Malays and Dayaks.

When Adenan took to the stage, the music was playing. It was the 60s oldie The Young Ones by Cliff Richard.

He took the mic, and sang with a soft tone: "...And young ones shouldn't be afraid... Tomorrow, why wait till tomorrow..."

The audience was not that young any way, and Adenan himself is 72. The song didn't seem to match the crowd, but whether a person is young depends much on the attitude and not the biological age.

Adenan sang with full dedication while his listeners hummed along, moving their bodies in tempo as if they were delivered back in time to the 1960s.

Such a scene could be unimaginable here in West Malaysia. A political rally doesn't need to be an aggressive show to abuses against the rivals or sweet promises to entice the voters, but a merry sing-along with the rakyat.

Adenan is not an inaccessible lofty CM but a frank and straightforward big uncle next door.

The lyric seems to tell the heart of the CM, that young people should not be fearful or wait for tomorrow.

Two days later, Adenan declared that the state assembly would be dissolved on April 11, seeking his first political mandate.

Do the rakyat wish to share his dream with him? And will they stay with him?

The answer looks quite affirmative. Since he took over the baton from his predecessor Taib Mahmud, Adenan has shown a refreshing new style in the way he speaks and acts, far less bureaucratic and much fairer and open-minded. He is that kind of good leader people have been yearning. He delivers what he says, and his policies are never empty promises.

He even has a trump card with him -- more sovereignty for the state of Sarawak, a common voice of majority of Sarawakians. He not only insists that the 18-point agreement during the formation of the federation, but also builds a solid defense to bock off the expansion of Umno into the state.

A UNIMAS survey shows that Adenan's approval rate reaches a high of 85.5%, 64% in the local Chinese community.

BN is expected to have a clean sweep in predominantly Malay and Dayak constituencies, and these constituencies make up some 80% of all the 82 state seats.

The remaining 20% seats are Chinese-majority, but they are not going to change the big picture anyway.

The opposition won in 13 Chinese-majority seats during the 2011 state elections thanks to a powerful anti-Taib sentiment, but even that could not displace BN's two-thirds majority advantage.

Without the Taib factor, the anti-establishment sentiment is weaker this time, and the pro-Chinese policies of CM Adenan has won the approval of the local Chinese community.

That said, this does not mean Chinese votes will return to BN in a big way. 

The Chinese voters remain unhappy with the whole system, and are particularly disgusted at the federal policies and Federal-level leaders. They might not turn to BN just because of Adenan alone.

In the meantime, DAP has drawn up policies to tackle the Adenan Effect, and is not going to surrender just that.

A bigger threat comes from SUPP and its splinter group UPP both eager to run for BN in Chinese constituencies. Three-cornered fights and leg-pulling appear to be inevitable, much to the delight of the opposition.

The same situation exists in Dayak parties, whereby SPDP and Teras have vied for BN representation.

Adenan cannot fix this problem and may have to watch his next move as he goes along. So he first declared the dissolution of the state assembly to see whether things will change in his favor. 

Be it Teras of SPDP, running on a BN ticket promises excellent winning chances. But in Chinese constituencies, DAP is still very powerful and a three-cornered fight or leg-pulling from either SUPP or UPP is doomed to fail.

Adenan can no longer wait. He has planned for the worst case scenario whereby BN loses most Chinese-majority seats.

Adenan will still win with or without the Chinese votes, but for one who advocates diversification and aspires to be a leader of all communities in Sarawak, an absence of Chinese support could constitute a major setback.

Sin Chew Daily

1 Apr 2016