Many may not be aware that the slogan
'Malaysia Madani' comes from a book written by Anwar Ibrahim himself, entitled
'Membangun Negara Madani' ('Build a
Civil Nation'), which was released last October before the 15th General
Election. It is a 217-page publication on Anwar's political philosophy and
policy framework.
The book has two language versions, the
English version is called 'SCRIPT for a better Malaysia'. In the Malay version,
Anwar has taken the alphabets in the 6 drivers for the policy framework he has
set out to represent 'MADANI': Sustainability, Prosperity, Innovation, Respect,
Trust, Care and Compassion. Anwar is one of the first leaders, probably as
early as the 90s, to introduce the term 'Masyarakat
Madani' to mean 'civil society'. Obviously, he prefers Madani because his reputation is built on the social and Islamic
religious movements in his youth.
Why a relaunch? The response to the first
publication was lukewarm at best, but now Anwar is doing this in the name of
the Prime Minister, so it has received a different level of attention,
especially now that he has made Malaysia Madani a slogan for his government.
The book serves as a document detailing his
vision, values and political narrative as a leader, especially in the period
after he was released from prison in 2018, returned to Parliament and acted as
Prime Minister-in-waiting. The Sheraton Move and the COVID-19 pandemic
disrupted his agenda.
The book is not a manifesto for Anwar's party,
it lacks detailed policy descriptions and is rather complicated. The 6 drivers
were examined under 8 policy imperatives, analysing their complexities and
conflicts, as well as how they could be monitored and implemented through
institutions.
So, to fully understand what he meant by
Malaysia Madani, one has to slowly read and digest his words in the book, and
it is not an easy read. He has such a tendency to use certain uncommon
vocabulary, to incorporate what he knew or experienced from his long-term
observation and analysis, and certainly to show off his knowledge acquired from
his extensive reading habits.
However, unlike previous prime ministers,
Anwar was once a political prisoner and a student activist, and it was these
experiences, along with his extraordinary command of language and depth of
knowledge, that determined the slogan and image he chose to present to the
nation.
The recurring themes in the book are: good
governance, rejecting corruption and abuse of power; building an inclusive
society where people respect each other; overcoming poverty and wealth
inequality; sustainable development to protect the environment, mitigate
natural disasters and rein in rapacious capitalism. These are likely to be
Anwar’s priorities as Prime Minister.
The positive implications of Malaysia Madani
for Anwar are that the people would perceive that Anwar and the new government
have their distinctive values and new ideas, thus increasing the people's
confidence in the unity government. Anwar can also use the opportunity to unite
the various component parties under the new government and try to find an
internal consensus for all.
Anwar's 6 drivers in Malaysia Madani may be
incisive, but they are at most principles and general directions, people are familiar
with some of the issues and problems raised by Anwar. In fact, the key should
be how the changes are implemented. It could be said that the slogans such as
"Keluarga Malaysia"
(Malaysian Family), "Prihatin Rakyat"
(Care for the People) and "1Malaysia"
which were lauded in the past, do not seem outdated in today's context, but
have the previous prime ministers successfully implemented policies according
to the slogan concept?
Compared to the previous slogans, the biggest
problem with Malaysia Madani is that it is too difficult for the general public
to understand, let alone his cabinet colleagues and senior civil servants. The
6 drivers are also not easy to remember. This could weaken the campaign's
popularity by making it harder to resonate with the people.
It is foreseeable that politicians would
selectively use the Malaysia Madani drivers as a label to refer to the policies
they advocate. Under this unity government, even their respective party
manifestos are not yet integrated, so it would be too much to say that Malaysia
Madani values should be implemented now. It must also be recognised that the
ruling component parties have quite different political values, with GPS and
GRS tending towards regionalism, while UMNO is still committed to a Bumiputera
First policy. There could be political conflict, especially now that Perikatan
Nasional, the main opposition is mounting a serious political challenge, could
the unity government withstand the pressure and continue to uphold the lines
and principles of multi-racial, multi-religious and multiculturalism as
outlined in the Madani book?
Malaysia Madani is just a collection of
Anwar's personal political narratives and beliefs; it could not be easily
translated into actions and policies as he still has to face and overcome the
challenge of the old order, politics and culture. How far Malaysia Madani can
go depends on Anwar's tenure as prime minister and how he manoeuvres the
implementation of his grand vision.