Written by Wong Choon Mei, Politics Now!
KUALA LUMPUR (Politics Now!) - At the PKR annual congress that begins today (Nov 25), expect nothing more than self-praise, self-congratulations, self-pats on the back and great, glowing tributes to 'Voice of Gaza' Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Never mind the plunge in approval rating for a grossly-underperforming Anwar, his PKR ministers and their frequent nincompoop-like ideas, or the lurid 'A & W' scandal that harks back at Anwar's own past same-sex-tinged debacles, the lameness about what to do with a recently released killer Sirul Azhar Umar who is taking potshots at how dirty are the politics and the powers-that-be in Malaysia so that he can continue to roams freely in the streets of Australia.
What! Mention to be made of the ringgit plunging to its lowest level in history and the downward spiraling economy with no competent hand in charge? Or how much an ordinary plate of mixed rice and a drink costs these days? No way! Possibly, these will be among the first to be swept under the PKR carpet.
Seriously, who in PKR - either the weakest or second weakest party in the Pakatan Harapan coalition that includes DAP and Amanah - would dare urge Anwar to give up the Finance Minister's post or at least appoint a knowledgeable and capable Second Finance Minister to get the country back on track?
Rest assured, it's braggadocio that will be the order of the day this weekend.
THE MOCKERY GROWS
Already, Anwar has fired a warning salvo, insisting that the survey sample used by pollster Merdeka Center was "small". The survey had found Anwar's approval rating at just 50% compared to 68% nearly a year ago - a serious although not too surprising plunge given the visibly growing dissatisfaction with him as PM and his government as a whole.
“The survey involved 1,200 people, and we take heed. But we need to engage 32 million people,” Anwar told the media, referring to the country’s population.
Needless to say, his response drew laughter. By any account, a sample size of 1,200 is considered decent indeed - but then Anwar is not a number cruncher.
His former boss Mahathir Mohamad not only jailed him over sodomy accusations but consistently mocked his lack of understanding and knowledge over matters economic and macroeconomic. Now it looks like Mahathir didn't get Anwar wrong on that score, with the ringgit falling again to 4.6875 versus the U.S. dollar on Friday due to inflation concerns.
The mockery is now gaining steam with Anwar in the hotseat and unable to claim he was never given a chance to be PM - with comments such as these flying through social media - "or is Anwar saying only 1,200 people support him less now, but 32 MILLION people still love him!"
"LOL! Cannot accept result always have excuses," wrote a commenter on forum.lowyat.net.
"I'm not among the 1,200 but I shared the same sentiments with them. PMX got his priorities wrong in his first year. Accept this reality and improve," wrote another commenter on the same platform.
I SAT OPPOSITE JOE BIDEN, ANTHONY BLINKEN SAT ON MY RIGHT!
Nonetheless, the sarcasm and irony are wasted on Anwar, now booming on hot gusts of air ejected by his own PR and Communications team.
For example, just 2 days ago, to address concerns that he was spending too much time seeking 'self-glorification' via the Hamas-Israel war and not enough time tweaking the Malaysian economy, Anwar shot back that he 'sat directly opposite United States' President Joe Biden, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was seated to his right' at a working lunch during the San Francisco Apec summit.
"We are a country of 32 million people, and it was not easy for just one person to speak up (about Palestine) in front of the US president," the NST reported him saying.
"I could have taken the easy way, by saying things diplomatically, urging to find peace and to work together, but I chose to say the truth even though it is unpopular or difficult to hear."
And what were these momentous "things" that "thinking about the mothers, the babies, houses that have been ruined and children becoming victims" Anwar had spat out to Joe Biden and Anthony Blinken?
Well, the Malaysian PM called for an immediate ceasefire in the Palestine-Israel war. One might ask, so what! What's so brave or controversial about that? Maybe Anwar didn't read about it or didn't realize it - but most governments around the world have urged for not only an immediate ceasefire but a peaceful resolution of the bloodshed.
Only some governments, especially the pro-Hamas ones, have called for Israelis to be chased out of the region while some, like Anwar, have been banging on the conflict day in and day out to the neglect of their own nations. Perhaps for some of these leaders, including Anwar, it's to impress on the Muslim voters in their countries that they are the 'true' Muslim heroes and should get voted in again!
BEAUTY SLEEP OF EGO
It remains to be seen if Anwar can successfully clamber down from his self-created Cloud Nine. But already, PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli has warned to expect "boring speeches" as the party transitions from the opposition to the "main party in the government bloc.”
In the 2022 general, PKR won only 31 of the country's 222 seats - a sharp fall from the 48 seats it took in 2018 when Anwar was still in jail serving out his second sodomy conviction.
And the way things are going, if Anwar doesn't wake from his beauty sleep of ego, ego and ego - chances are high if not certain, PKR will lose even more seats in the next general election.
Written by Wong Choon Mei, Politics Now!
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