By Hazri Rohilio
Malaysia made history over 24 hours between 9 to 10 May with the conclusion of the 14th General Elections (GE14). The days leading up to election day on 9thMay saw rigorous campaigning from both the incumbent government and the Opposition sides in what may well have been the most anticipated general elections in Malaysian history. What seemingly looked like an impossible uphill battle for the Opposition turned into the unfathomable triumph in GE14. The millions of Malaysians who were glued to their TV throughout the night (up to 3 o’clock in the am) were too curious, too excited, too eager and perhaps even too shaken up, as they watched history unravel – with drama complete with all the twists and turns. Arguably, few had faith in the eventual outcome, but many, many more believed. And when that many people believe, things happen. Yes, it was the people who gave the mandate to fight for justice, to fight for a new beginning for us and our children’s children.
What got us here is another conversation to be had, but what is now before us is an outcome that the majority of Malaysians chose. It is a mandate for a new government to be formed under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition led by the indefatigable Tun Mahathir Mohamad. Among what touched, moved and I dare use threatened many, was the image of “the Tun” leading the charge for PH. It was in itself a wonderous thing to see a 92-year-old soldiering against a political juggernaut that made Barisan Nasional (BN) what it is for the past 61 years. While it is easy to get swept back into the nostalgia of the historic day, it is something we should move on from. Clearly what got us here was a collective effort by all – one should never forget that.
For some, a 20-year perilous journey. My neighbour travelled home from Shanghai to cast his vote; numerous people shared the same over the internet (watch Malaysia’s Amazing Race: The Impossible GE14 Mission @https://youtu.be/zBZ3q7SijP0) that provided for inspiring stories on how Malaysians came together to make a difference. So, this does not happen often but it seems indeed the stars were aligned, over a seemingly miraculous sequence of circumstances that brought us here. Apart from the mandate for governing, what did GE14 give us?
Here are what I believe, are the important things we got.
1. Increase in activism & politicisation
The run up to GE14 began way, way before 2018. Who could forget the wave of yellow that descended on Kuala Lumpur in 2007, 2011, 2012 and 2015 known as Bersih rallies? While intermittent, the Bersih rallies provided salient politicisation of the masses. But back to the GE14, if one can remember, speculation on the date of GE14 was rife and the media played it as a mainstream interest. By the turn of the new year, almost everyone knew infinitely that the Government had run out of time to call for GE14. Organisations such as Bersih 2.0 and INVOKE played pivotal roles in encouraging political activism through their political discourse.
2. The rise and rise of social media
While the mainstream media was business as usual, the social media become a more dynamic and sensational source of information for the population. WhatsApp exchanges were arguably, the most common medium of information that was easily sourced (and free) crossing all generation gaps. FB provided the some degree of transparency on the proportion of supporters from both sides. Despite the prevalence of fake news, news on social media was at least more interesting compared to the sedated and expected news on TV.
3. More informed voters
When there is more readily available info, voters get to make more informed judgement. It is the judgement that counts. While navigating through the media “spin”, curious voters are fed with information everyday. WhatsApp chat groups discuss and sometimes progress into real-time chat arguments that bring reasonings from each side of the political aisle. GE14 was the preoccupation of the nation, both at work and at home. As we got closer to May 9, it seemed like undecided voters were hard to find. In spite of the fact that your ballot is secret, by and large voters had a clear idea of what their choices would be, with some declaring their choices more conspicuously than others.
4. Cool heads and restraint
Most of us could not imagine what a change of government looks like; same goes for what a power transition looks like. It is after all, unprecedented in the history of our young nation. While most Malaysians avoid confrontational behaviour, the bogeyman was always in play painting an unruly and chaotic picture of what change would look like. But cool heads prevailed. People understood that the stakes for change were high and paid restraint to ensure that the election process proceeded as unhindered as possible, save from minor incidences reported. In a sense, Malaysians knew what to look out for and put out their best on that day.
5. Hope and optimism, courage to change
I went to my polling station at about 2:30 pm on that day as the lines dwindled. There was only one fellow voter ahead of me in line on my way to pick up my ballot slip. It took me all of 3 minutes to cast my vote and slip them into the ballot box. As I was walking back to my car I saw the same person ahead of me getting into her car. I smiled and wished her luck and she managed to reciprocate the same. In that split second, I experienced all at once relief, respect, warmth, optimism, happiness and hope. We knew that each vote casted is secret but if I could suspend that moment in time and put it in a magical box it would capture the same hopes and aspirations of the 47.9% or over 5 million of the registered voters that voted for change that day.
6. Our self-belief as a nation
The outcome of GE14 sent shock waves the world over. Congratulatory messages came from far and near. Malaysia made the news again, where previously inundated with embarrassment over the 1MDB financial scandal, now exaltedly becoming a shining example of democratic triumph – more significantly one of unity in diversity instead of parochial, inward change movement such as Brexit, Trumpism and the Catalan referendum that characterised change in these regions. That made it all the more remarkable. It almost felt like we won the World Cup and could not wait to wake up to tomorrow.
Where do we go from here?
I am sure each of us have our own takeaways from our personal experiences. These are takeaways that we should think about on the GE14, ones which have left a mark on our people. As rare as the stars align, Malaysians were gifted with all the goods from a single historical event, that is GE14. Try telling me that it was a smooth ride to get to this point and allow me to steer you to the people who sacrificed, bled and took the risk so that the Malaysian people can become the masters of their fate. It was never easy.
Let us take these gifts, cherish and reflect on them. Figure out what it means to us and what we would do with them because we now know that we all make a difference. There is an apt quote that says, “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance”. What we do today will determine if we spend the future making up for what we did not do in the past.
