General Election and a Fighting State of MInd.

When is the next GE?

That is the question on everyone’s mind.  Many people say, he will announce dissolution today. Cabinet members are asked to come in full lounge suits with red tie and the usual protruding handkerchief. To some people- running a government is indeed like going to a dinner party, all dressed up, like drinking Darjeeling tea and making embroidery. It’s a simple request- let’s take a picture together because some of us may not be contesting and maybe this is the last BN cabinet team.

You must understand a little bit of the psychological make-up of Najib. He is an aristocrat with a feudal constitution. He likes being waited on, his hands kissed and hordes of people waiting for him at the airport, ladies with bunga manggar and maybe ululating. (The typical high pitched shrills let out by Arab women when receiving guests). And I would always joke with friends, after decades of being the MP for Pekan, not possible for Najib to not know the way how to get to Pekan. He does not need direction finders.

Once I was with JJ, now serving as Najib’s invisible major domo- aka in- house chief Mr Fix It, he told me- the problem with you (me) is that you don’t treat Najib as an aristocrat. He is you know, and we are knaves. Of course I let out some expletives and told JJ, only you can do that, I cant. Why should we I said, he’s more stupid that we, you want us to act like knaves. We both laughed loudly.

When friends told me elections will be early march, I said it will not be. because at the end of march, I told them there will be LIMA in Langkawi. Najib will not dissolve parliament before that because he will not want to attend LIMA as head of a caretaker government. Najib will want the psychological boost that comes along with being a fully legitimate and in-term PM. No caretaker stuff for him. His feudal upbringing will not tolerate that.

I wasn’t aware that at the end of April, there is one other important event which the PM wants to attend to affirm his legitimacy. That is the ASEAN Summit. Will feudal Najib want to attend as head of caretaker government? My reading says, he will not want to. He wants to go as a fully legitimate and in-term PM.

In other words, Naib may attend the summit for a brief time sufficient to establish his presence, have a photography session and then cut short the attendance, citing certain domestic obligations to come back and dissolve parliament. Parliament will dissolve sometime just before 28 April.

Najib and also Rosmah will not want to miss the glamour and prestige that come along being present as PM and first Lady at the Asean Summit.

Mental Frame of doing battle in Pahang.

Last year, when Pahang announced that it has achieved a balanced budget I was perplexed. When I was ADUN (2004-2008) I did not miss any opportunity after Budget speech each year to raise the issue of deficit budget. I know the reasons how and why deficits can be explained and was willing to accept there are justifiable reasons. But I never fail to mention my concern that budget deficits may hide financial indiscipline and even misdeeds. So my attitude at deficit budgets is always to be circumspect about it. My detractors can always check the Pahang Assembly’s Hansard to verify my speeches following the state’s Budget Speech.

As to the sudden Balanced Budget after, I don’t know- 15^th consecutive deficit budgets? - Pleasant surprise would be a gross understatement. I wrote an article, I thought I know the reason for the balanced budget and would have thought someone in the Pahang Assembly will debate this issue. Unfortunately, I did not hear anything.

Serupa sahaja- deficit budget would have been dismissively explained as being the product of the government spending on welfare and on poor people. In the past, I have invited colleagues to be rational- look at how big is the percentage being committed to helping the poor and welfare and see whether the percentage can justify and explain the deficit budget.

When I was ADUN, deficit budgets have been incurred probably for the last 13 or 14 years. Suddenly, Pahang achieved a balance budget. Surely that would have raised alarm bells of suspicion. If I were in the Dewan, I would have raised the issue, maybe in subdued terms but no less critical and candid, but will raise it anyway.

I would immediately suspect the figures have been massaged so as to show financial prudence on the part of the state government and a desire to show the public, we can achieve balance budget.

True enough I was later dismayed to hear, the state government asked for approval of a supplementary budget to ask more money and asked for approval of a bill allowing the state government to borrow directly from banks and financial institutions. Why was the supplementary budget necessary had the original budget been carefully planned to achieve a balance budget? Why was a bill approved to confer to the state government authority to borrow directly from banks and financial institutions?

This mental preparation- appreciating the usefulness of exercising scepticism and even cynicism, will now allow me to do battle in my home state.