By Al Jafree Md Yusop
The idea of a third force is getting popular because many citizens are feeling disillusioned with Pakatan Rakyat, said a political scientist.
Wong Chin Huat said the disillusion stems largely from Pakatan’s failure to convince Malaysians that it can be really different from Barisan Nasional (BN), notwithstanding the remarkable reforms carried out in Penang and Selangor.
“A major contributor to the perception that Pakatan is just another bunch of power-crazy politicians is its in-fighting. More likely, they lack confidence so they are fighting a life-and-death battle for whatever they have now."
“Perhaps they are infiltrated by ‘Trojan Horses’ sent by Umno or BN. More likely, they are simply too trapped in the winner-takes-all mentality so prevalent in Malaysian politics,” said Wong, who is also a fellow at Penang Institute, a think tank linked to the Penang state government.
In the build-up to the 13th general election, talk was rife that a third force would take shape to challenge the BN, but it all remained a dream.
But Wong believes the third force can work given the voters' distrust of politicians.
According to him, if voters do not trust politicians now, they should take upon themselves the task of becoming agents of change.
They should put more trust in their ability to change politicians and not just be cynical and bitter, he said.
“The third force can take the form of organisations and movements such as Bersih 2.0 which is civil society-led.
“If Malaysians are eventually strong enough to stop flawed political elections, the two coalitions (BN and Pakatan) will get the message...,” he told theantdaily.
During Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s (PSM) 15th national congress last June, party members have agreed to form a non-electoral alliance among the left political parties and NGOs in Malaysia.
According to PSM chairman Dr Nasir Hashim, the alliance could eventually be turned into a third force to contest in the next general election.
“This (third force) will happen once we feel we are ready to face the challenge,” he added.
But why a non-electoral alliance instead of an electoral one?
Nasir said PSM is concentrating on empowering its members and the left movement in this country.
This is to ensure that they will be well prepared to face the rakyat and explain to them what socialism is and how it can help them, he said.
“The process of empowering our members and the left movement in this country is important to prepare them in facing the challenges ahead.
“You must understand that we have been backstabbed by our ‘friends’ in Pakatan during GE13, and we have been demonised by the ruling party for so long. I think it’s time for PSM to make extra effort to explain to the people what socialism really is,” he said.
Nasir has once described PSM’s relations with Pakatan as a “mess” in the run-up to the hotly contested GE13.
He said PSM realised that it had entered the May polls without strength and was hoping for a one-on-one contest and also Pakatan votes to ensure victory.
“As a result of the obstacles and sabotage, we were left alone (in GE13) to face our enemies in Pakatan and also BN. They took the opportunity to exploit this as had happened in Kota Damansara, where PAS said it expected to win with the support of PKR and Umno,” he said.
Nasir won the Kota Damansara state seat on a PKR ticket in the 2008 general election, but in the May polls lost it to BN in a three-cornered fight.
