是时候制定政治献金法

 

前首相慕尤丁的受贿和洗钱7项指控已让公众哗然，因涉及金额超过2.3亿令吉。尽管这让人大开眼界，但与另一位前首相纳吉相比这不算什么，后者在一马公司丑闻中，因将6.81亿美元（30亿令吉）注入个人账户而被提控多项贪污罪名，其中在挪用SRC国际公司4200万令吉一案中，巳罪名成立，目前正在服刑。当他们被指控索取这些资金时，他们是时任首相。

这响钟应当足以让人们关注金钱政治的问题，特别是政治献金如何影响或操纵选举结果，破坏自由和公平的选举民主。纳吉挪用的资金延长了2013年大选后的一届首相任期，慕尤丁的政治献金极可能导致他在上次大选中大有斩获，取得比预期更好的成绩。

能否仅仅责怪土著团结党涉贪呢？很难说，这就是为何慕尤丁的前首席机要秘书马祖基呼吁反贪委员会调查人民公正党和民主行动党的账目，以证明该机构没有选择性提控政治对手。

一个政党一般可通过三种方式来筹集资金：一、基层筹款，二、既得利益者（通常是大户捐献者）的私人捐款，三、公共资金。

目前，我国没为政党提供公共资金。许多传统政党凭著长年累积的基层党员，会通过会员费和各种形式的支持者自愿众筹，在基层筹款方面会有明显占更大的优势。反之，新成立的政党可能会遇到筹款难题，不容易获得足够数量的支持。

即使有了这些基层筹款的血汗劳力和参与式民主的良好示范，这笔资金仍可能不足以支付一个政党的所有费用，如日常运作（工资、水电和租金）、课题宣导、政策研究和政治宣传，以及最终最耗费的选举。

无人监控财团政治献金

大多数政党或许不会立即拒绝来自既得利益集团的私人捐款。除非相关部门开始调查可能涉及的不法行为，否则没有任何法律或法规可以直接监控这种资金流动。利益集团可能会提供几万、几十万甚至几百万令吉的捐款，但这类型的捐款很少会没有附加条件。这样的注资或不会签合约阐明条件，但这自然会产生一种期望，即政党胜选当权就会回报他们。

对捐献者来说，这更像是一笔投资，而不是出自他们对该党的真正热爱和支持。哪有那么热心爱党的支持者会理智地宣布投入2.3亿令吉的免费资金供该党使用？这是不寻常的。这就是为何土团党出事了。该党支持者一定感觉受到打压和为难，发现自己现有的处境是因为站在了政治的对立面。

一个没有法律限制的政治献金是一个大问题，因为选民不知道谁是该党背后撑腰的金主—这些金主们如何不正当地影响甚至操控了该党制定政策方面的议程和方向。可以想像制药厂对医疗政策、发展商对土地和环境政策、金融业对市场经济政策的影响，而这些利益集团要的极可能对公共利益造成伤害。让政治献金的多寡决定了政策走向是破坏民主精神的做法。

显然，当务之急是要减少政党对少数的大金主和既得利益者的依赖，这正是为何需要制定政治献金法──为健康的民主竞争打造一个公平的竞争环境。

针对个人和公司的政治献金需要有一个顶限数额。在去年8月由以政治献金为题的全党议会团体（APPG）起草的国会私人法案中，建议针对个人和公司的每年法定捐款顶限分别为5万和10万令吉。另外，外国人或公司，以及官联公司将不被允许捐款。为了方便监督和执法，所有筹款必须通过一个指定的政党银行账户，不能再通过个别的政党支部或政治人物的个人账户筹款。

政府应成立政治献金委员会，以监督政党每年需提交的财务报告，检阅政党的大户捐献者名单、确保执法的过程管理妥当。该委员会最好由享有公众信任和支持的独立委员组成，由联邦财政预算支付薪金和营运消费，并直接对国会负责以避免被行政机关操控。

公共资金分配各党

公共资金应是政治献金法的一个重要部分，以鼓励和争取各政党支持该法案，因为他们已必须遵守捐款限额和通报要求，公共资金将会是实在的好处弥补私人筹款局限。APPG法案中建议的公共资金数额也只需动用到联邦财政预算的0.05%或相当于1.3亿令吉，就可根据大选得票率向各政党分配公共资金。

或许大多数公众对公共资金倡议的第一反应是如此：“为什么我们需要为这些政党买单？”。可是啊，人民需要被告知，公共资金的替代选择就是鼓励各政党设法增加其私人政治献金的份额！这正是我国面对政治贪污现象的其中一个重要根源。

刊登于《東方日報》《群議良策》專欄2023年3月22日 

東方臉書鏈接

Time for political financing law (unedited original article)

Time for political financing law

Former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's bribery and money laundering 7 charges have been brought to public attention, involving sums of more than RM230 million. It is another eye-opener, although nothing compared to another former prime minister, Najib Razak, who is serving a jail sentence for siphoning US$681 million into his personal account.. When they were accused of soliciting such funds, they were sitting prime ministers. This should make people concerned about money politics and how political funding can influence or determine election outcomes and undermine free and fair electoral democracy. Najib's money extended his tenure as prime minister in the 2013 general election, Muhyiddin's may have led to a better-than-expected result in the last general election.

Can BERSATU alone be blamed? Hardly, which is why Muhyiddin's ex-aide Marzuki Mohamad has called on the MACC to investigate the PKR and DAP books to show that there is no selective prosecution.

There are three broad ways in which a political party can normally raise funds: i) grassroots fundraising, ii) private donations from vested interests (usually big donors), iii) public funding.

At present, there is no public funding for political parties in Malaysia. Many established traditional political parties would have a greater advantage in grassroots fundraising through membership fees and various forms of voluntary crowdfunding from supporters. Newly formed political parties would then find it difficult to achieve a critical mass of support.

For all the good practices of participatory democracy and the hard work that goes into grassroots fundraising, it may or may not be enough to cover all the expenses of a political party, such as day-to-day operations (salaries, utilities and rent), issue-based campaigns, policy research and advocacy, and ultimately elections. 

It is likely that most political parties would not immediately refuse private donations from vested interests. There are no laws or regulations that directly monitor this flow of money, unless the relevant authorities start investigating possible wrongdoing. Interest groups may offer tens or hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars, but rarely would such donations come without strings attached. They may not come with explicit promises, but there would be an expectation that the party in power would return the favour. For the donors, it's more like an investment than their genuine love and support for the party - it wouldn't be normal to declare support to the tune of RM230 million free money for the party to use!

This is how things have gone wrong for BERSATU. Its supporters must be feeling the heat as they now find themselves on the wrong side of the political fence. Private funding of a party without legal limits is often a major concern because voters do not know who the big money behind the party is and what their agenda and undue influence would be in terms of policy formulation.

Reducing the party's dependence on a few big donors and vested interests would be the obvious thing to do, but this is where the need for a law on political financing comes in - it is about creating a level playing field for healthy democratic competition.

There needs to be a contribution limit for individuals and companies. In the Private Member's Bill drafted by the former APPG on Political Financing last August, the statutory limits are RM50,000 and RM100,000 per year respectively. Foreign companies and government-linked companies would not be allowed to contribute. For monitoring and regulatory purposes, all fundraising must be done through a designated party account, not through party branches or individual politicians' accounts.

The government should establish a Commission on Political Financing to oversee the monitoring, regulation and enforcement processes for political parties to submit their annual financial reports and disclose major donors. The commission should consist of independent commissioners who enjoy public confidence and support, be paid from the federal budget and be accountable to parliament.

Public funding should be a key component of the Political Financing Bill in order to motivate political parties to support the Bill because of the tangible benefits to them of having to comply with contribution limits and disclosure requirements. The amount of public funding proposed in the APPG Bill would only require 0.05% of the federal budget or the equivalent of RM130 million to start distributing public funds to political parties based on vote share.

It may also be true that the first reaction of most members of the public to the proposed public funding would be: 'why do we have to pay for these political parties?' People need to be told and persuaded that the alternative to public funding would be to de facto encourage political parties to find ways of increasing their share of private funding!

Time for political funding law

Former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin is accused of bribery and laundering more than RM230 million.

It is another eye-opener, although nothing compared to the court cases of another former prime minister, Najib Razak, who allegedly embezzled US$681 million (RM3 billion).

Muhyiddin was in office when the alleged crimes took place. Najib has been convicted of some of the charges.

People should be worried about money politics and how political funding can influence or determine election outcomes.

Najib’s money extended his tenure as prime minister in the 2013 general election; Muhyiddin’s may have led to a better-than-expected result in the last polls

Is Bersatu alone to be blamed? Hardly, which is why Muhyiddin’s ex-aide Marzuki Mohamad has called on the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to examine PKR and DAP’s books to show that the Bersatu president is not the victim of selective prosecution.

There are three broad ways in which a political party can raise funds: grassroots fundraising, private donations from vested interests (usually big donors), and public funding.

At present, there is no public funding for political parties in Malaysia.

Many established parties would do better in grassroots fundraising through membership fees and various forms of crowdfunding.

Newly formed parties would find it difficult to achieve a critical mass of support.

For all the benefits of a participatory democracy and the hard work that goes into grassroots fundraising, it may not be enough to pay for a political party’s day-to-day expenses (salaries, utility bills and rent), issue-based campaigns, policy research and advocacy, and, ultimately, its election machinery. 

Most political parties are unlikely to immediately refuse private donations from vested interests. There are no laws or regulations to monitor this inflow of money, unless the authorities are prompted to investigate suspected wrongdoing.

Interest groups may offer tens or hundreds of thousands or even millions of ringgit, but rarely do such donations come without strings attached. The conditions may not be explicit, but there would be the expectation that the party, when in power, will return the favour. The donations are more likely an investment than borne out of true love for the party.

Bersatu’s supporters must be feeling the heat as they now find themselves on the wrong side of the political fence.

Private funding of any party without legal limits is a major concern because voters do not know who the big funders are and what is their agenda.

Obviously, the party’s dependence big donors and vested interests should be reduced, and that is where a political financing law comes in. It is about creating a level playing field for healthy democratic competition.

There must be a contribution limit for individuals and companies. A private member’s bill drafted by the former all-party parliamentary group on political financing last August sets the statutory limits at RM50,000 and RM100,000 per year, respectively.

Foreign entities and government-linked companies will not be allowed to contribute.

For monitoring and regulatory purposes, all fundraising must be done through a designated party account.
 
The government should set up a commission on political financing to oversee the monitoring, regulation and enforcement processes for political parties to submit their annual financial reports and disclose major donors.

The commission should consist of independent commissioners who enjoy public confidence, are paid from the federal budget and accountable to parliament.

Public funding should be a key component of the political funding bill to win the support of the political parties because of the tangible benefits it will offer them, given that they have to meet the contribution limits and disclosure requirements.

The public funding of political parties proposed in the all-party parliamentary groups’ bill will only require 0.05% of the federal budget, or RM130 million.

It may also be true that the first reaction of most people to the bill will be: “Why do we have to pay for these political parties?”

The people need to be told that the alternative to public funding is private funding, the results of which they have seen for themselves.

144th article for Agora@TMI column, published on The Malaysian Insight, 20 Mar 2023 

Can Malaysia Madani bring transformative change?

PRIME Minister Anwar Ibrahim has introduced the term “Masyarakat Madani” to mean “civil society”. 

Many people may not be aware that “Malaysia Madani” comes from a book written by him entitled “Membangun Negara Madani” (“Build a Civil Nation”). It is a 217-page publication on his political philosophy and policy framework. 

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 book is not a manifesto, for it lacks detailed policy descriptions and is rather complicated.   

Anwar tends to use uncommon words to describe what he knows from long-term observation and analysis. 

Unlike previous prime ministers, Anwar was once a political prisoner and a student activist, and it is these experiences, along with his extraordinary command of language and depth of knowledge, that determine the slogan and image he chose to present to the nation. 

These are the recurring themes in the book: 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, mitigation of natural disasters, and reining in rapacious capitalism.  

These are likely to be Anwar’s priorities as prime minister. 

The biggest problem with Malaysia Madani is that it is too difficult for the public to understand, let alone his cabinet colleagues and senior civil servants.  

The six drivers are not easy to remember. This could weaken the campaign’s popularity by making it harder to resonate with people.  

It is foreseeable that politicians would selectively use the Malaysia Madani drivers to refer to the policies they advocate.  

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. 

Will the unity government be able to uphold the principles outlined in the Madani book? 

Malaysia Madani is just a collection of Anwar’s personal narratives and beliefs; it cannot be easily translated into actions and policies, as he still must face and overcome the challenges of the old order in 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. 

140th article for Agora@TMI column, published on The Malaysian Insight, 20 Feb 2023  

Can Malaysia Madani be the transformative change? （unedited original article）

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.

昌明大馬治國口號能有效？（未編輯的原稿）

自從昌明大馬（Malaysia Madani）理念經由首相安華於1月19日在布城國際展覽中心再次推介，儼然成為了安華和希盟主導的新團結政府的治國口號。

為何說“再次推介”？其實昌明大馬這口號源自於安華的一本政治思想和政策框架著作，早在去年10月2日，於首邦市一家酒店宴會廳已推介了。這一本著作有兩個語文版本，馬來文版的書名稱為“Membangun Negara MADANI”（《建造公民社會國家》,簡略為《建》）,英文版的題為“SCRIPT for a better Malaysia”（《更好大馬的劇本》）。昌明大馬很明顯就是取自馬來文版的書名。而MADANI和SCRIPT是縮寫，分別以馬英文代表了書中的六大原則：永續、繁榮、創造力、尊重、信任和關懷。安華是其中最早在90年代就率先提出Masyarakat Madani這詞彙的人物，那詞彙代表“文明社會”或civil society的意思。出身社會群眾運動和伊斯蘭教運動的他對Madani情有獨鐘。

首度推介這本著作時，未掀起太大的漣漪。當時還未舉行大選，安華僅是希盟的共主和人民公正黨主席。希盟的競選宣言要遲至1個月後才出爐。所以在今年1月重新推介昌明大馬時人們誤以為是全新的概念。當然這次推介的身份是首相，所以這理念獲得高度關注。那麼為何還要重來一次呢？

安華在2018年獲釋出獄，當時就是等待接棒的希盟首相人選。重返政治回到國會後，馬哈迪似乎不願守承諾交棒，不少支持者就勸請安華要為拜相做好準備，要鋪陳自己一套的政治論述和執政理想，塑造准首相的形象。那時的安華馬不停蹄地全國跑透透演講為自己造勢和聆聽民眾的聲音和意見。書中有提到一些當初為他量身打造的運動如DNA23用以接近年輕人和倡導數碼經濟。後來喜來登政變和新冠疫情來襲中斷了他的拜相政治議程。

昌明大馬的腳本《建》是一本217頁厚的書，書中闡明這有關安華個人的政治思想觀點和政策框架。畢竟它不是競選宣言，缺乏詳細的政策細節內容。書中表明要用六大原則來體現昌明大馬，還要相當系統地通過8大層面檢驗政策，分析該理念的複雜度和相衝之處，並提出如何監督和促使制度改革的策略。安華表示，六大原則有連貫性、相輔相成的。影響他撰寫這本書的參考文獻就有258個，單單是安華撰寫的前言就用了18頁。

 

換句話說，若要真正全面明白安華有關昌明大馬的政治思想，就得慢慢地去了解和消化他的文字。這不是一件容易的事---除了他的語文根底深厚用了不少鮮為人知的生澀字，他也提了很多概念和他在過去多年的社會政治經濟文化觀察與分析，還有他閱讀過眾多的書籍、吸取的知識精華，所謂昌明大馬理念的厚度可媲美《建》書的厚度。

儘管昌明大馬的完整理念不太容易讓民眾乃至高級公務員和內閣同事吸收，這是安華致力打造給人民的形象定位。畢竟安華與過去諸位首相不同，他曾是政治犯度過漫長的牢獄之災，但他愛好閱讀因此閱歷廣闊、知識淵博和充滿墨水，再加上他超凡的語言能力，這些個人特征決定了治國理念和口號的不同，因為他能去得更深更遠。

昌明大馬提到的各大政經文教問題與分析，絕對與當今我國的情況依然相關。在《建》著作裡常提及和重複的論述可看出，安華要的是良好施政拒絕貪腐濫權；要塑造一個包容性高的多元社會，彼此互相尊重；解決貧窮和貧富懸殊問題；要永續發展照顧環境避免災害和貪婪的資本主義。

我認為昌明大馬最大的作用對於首相安華來說，就是有個施政理念的鋪陳和包裝，讓人民看到這新政府似乎有不一樣，對他領導的團結政府會增加了信心。而安華可以用這理念來整合和拉近團結政府下的各政黨，試圖凝聚一個內部共識。

安華提出的六大原則雖然有用，但也充其量是原則和大方向，一些或許是大家都已懂或熟悉的課題，實際上要如何落實才是重點。比如說，過去幾任首相的口號或政治中心思想如大馬一家（Keluarga Malaysia）, 關懷人民（Prihatin Rakyat）甚至是一個大馬（1 Malaysia）放在今天的脈絡沒有錯，也沒有過時宜，但他們是否有真正做到了口號的概念？

我也認為，治國理念或口號應該成為一個家喻戶曉的價值觀和精神面貌，明白施政方向和政策，才能有效。它的重要性就如一個品牌的標語，要有效傳達產品訊息。若這個理念或口號太玄太複雜，就難以產生共鳴，減弱了宣傳效果。昌明大馬正面對這個大挑戰：因為比較起過去的“大馬一家”，“關懷人民”和“一個大馬”，昌明大馬似乎太深奧，6個原則也不太容易記住。

倘若安華繼續沿用這個，明年獨立民調機構應該做個民調試探多少民眾記得全部6個原則？不然昌明大馬只是用來貼在很多政策，人民未必明白其中的內涵。最後可能只會淪為政治人物各自表述，牽扯去昌明大馬的原則，似乎就能說得過去了。這個現象在過去也發生在較易懂的口號“大馬一家”和“一個大馬”。

要知道目前這一個所謂團結大聯合政府，連各黨的競選宣言都還沒統合，現在說要貫徹這個更價值觀原則性質的“昌明大馬”更是難上加難。這些政黨領袖們或有不同的政治理念和政黨價值觀 ， 比如砂盟和沙民聯都傾向地方主義，巫統仍是土著至上主義。當然這些領袖們可從中選擇哪些比較可接受的昌明大馬原則或價值觀，以表示“團結”在這首相後面，但一些政治矛盾不能被忽略，特別是目前面對國盟在野陣線的政治挑戰。團結政府能不能守住多元種族宗教和文化路線，不被國盟挑釁而右拐？

根據獨立民調機構的截止1月中的民調結果，對安華的滿意度(68%)還要比團結政府的還要高個14個百分比。這點不出奇，因為安華是這個團結政府的核心靈魂人物，他的領導表現就影響了團結政府的形象。他主要獲得一面倒多數的華印裔支持，也有多數的巫裔（60%）支持。這是給安華領導釋放好感和鼓勵。安華應該更加有信心著手處理和解決國內重大課題和中長期的改革方案。

昌明大馬畢竟還是安華自己的政治思想和理念，它不是政黨的競選宣言，得面對舊有政策、制度、文化和秩序的挑戰 --- 要改變不容易、也需要時間。昌明大馬這理念能走多遠多久，就要看安華任相時期的能耐和造化了。

安華的「昌明大馬」能否奏效？

 「昌明大馬」的個人色彩濃厚，是安華的政治思想和理念。其既不是政黨的競選宣言，又必須面對既有政策、制度、文化和秩序的挑戰。安華要著手改變這些問題並不容易，更需要時間。而這項理念能走多遠，最終還是得看其掌權期間的能耐與造化了。

---

【文／林志翰】

首相安華（Anwar Ibrahim）於二〇二三年一月十九日，假布城國際展覽中心「再次」推介「昌明大馬」（Malaysia Madani）理念。這也儼然成為安華及其所領導的團結政府提出的治國口號。

為何我說是「再次」推介「昌明大馬」？其實，安華作為出身群眾運動和伊斯蘭運動的領袖，對此詞彙「Madani」情有獨鐘，其亦為一九九〇年代率先提出「Masyarakat Madani」這個詞彙的人物。二〇二二年十月二日，安華將這項理念匯集成書，出版馬來文版著作「Membangun Negara MADANI」（中文譯為《建造公民社會國家》，本文以此稱呼）及英文版著作「SCRIPT for a better Malaysia」（中文譯為《更好大馬的劇本》）。而「MADANI」和「SCRIPT」是縮寫，分別以馬、英文代表書中的六大原則：永續、繁榮、創造力、尊重、信任和關懷。「Masyarakat Madani」這詞彙則有「文明社會」或「civil society」之意。

此著作推介時並未掀起太大的漣漪。只是，如今安華成功當上首相，為何還要「再次」推介「昌明大馬」的理念呢？安華於二〇一八年獲釋出獄，當時就是等待接棒的希盟首相人選。重返國會後，馬哈迪遲遲未信守承諾交棒；而安華也以准首相之形象，積極鋪陳一套政治論述和執政理想，並且馬不停蹄地巡迴全國演講。這麼做既為自己造勢，也聆聽民眾的聲音。可是，喜來登政變和新冠疫情的來襲卻中斷其拜相之路。

爾後，安華出版這本《建造公民社會國家》。此書厚達二百一十七頁，單是前言就有十八頁。這本書作為其拜相的出師表，闡明安華個人的政治思想觀點和政策框架。書中表明要用六大原則體現「昌明大馬」，還相當系統地通過八大層面檢驗政策，分析該理念的複雜之處，並提出監督政府和促使制度改革的策略。安華表示，這六大原則互有連貫，彼此之間相輔相成。

理念艱澀深奧

此外，書中也提到其對於社會、政治、經濟及文化各方面的觀察分析，也有閱讀後書寫的知識精華。政策方面，書中也有提到一些如「數碼原生代」計劃（Digital Native Agenda，DNA23）。當初身为準首相之時，這些政策及計劃皆為他量身打造，以接近年輕人和倡導數位經濟。安華的語文根底深厚，使用不少鮮為人知的生澀字眼，閱讀起來絕非易事。這也是「昌明大馬」不親民的一面，難以讓民眾、高級公務員和內閣同事所理解吸收。

然而，這正是安華與過去諸位首相不同之處。他曾是政治犯，在監獄中度過漫長的歲月。豐富的知識與閱歷皆決定其治國理念和口號有過人之處。「昌明大馬」中提到的各大政經文教問題與分析，當下依然存在。在《建造公民社會國家》中，安華清楚表示，其要的是良好施政，拒絕貪腐濫權；要塑造一個包容的多元社會，彼此互相尊重；解決貧窮和貧富懸殊問題；要永續發展，照顧環境，避免災害及貪婪的資本主義。

我認為，「昌明大馬」最大的作用在於：對內，安華可以將此理念整合和拉近團結政府下的各個政黨，並且試圖凝聚內部共識；對外，則可透過施政理念的鋪陳和包裝，讓人民看到新政府與過往政府不同之處。但是，這項理念充其量是原則和大方向。面對政治現實，政策要如何落實才是重點。過去，我國有許多政治口號及中心思想，例如：「大馬一家」（Keluarga Malaysia）、「關懷人民」（Prihatin Rakyat）及「一個大馬」（1Malaysia）。這些口號放在今天依然符合時宜。只是，歷任首相都未必能真正達成自身所提出的口號。

同時，我也認為，一個治國理念或口號應該是家喻戶曉的價值觀和精神面貌，並且有著廣為人知的施政方向和政策，方能產生效果。其就如一個品牌的標語，必須有效傳達產品訊息。倘若理念或口號過於複雜，難以與民眾產生共鳴，也減弱宣傳效果。而這正是「昌明大馬」面對的挑戰。比起過去的口號，「昌明大馬」顯得太深奧，六個原則也難以讓人留下深刻印象。

須堅守多元路線

如此下來，「昌明大馬」也只是被粘貼在許多政策上，並且淪為政治人物各自表述的符號。而類似的現象也在過往的政治口號中發生。只是，今時不同往日。自第十五屆全國大選結束後，團結政府連各個政黨的競選宣言都尚未統合，政黨領袖們的政治理念及政黨價值觀更是南轅北轍。比如，砂拉越政黨聯盟（GPS）和沙巴人民聯盟（GRS）都傾向地方主義；巫統仍是土著至上主義。

當然，這些政黨領袖們可以在「昌明大馬」的大原則下各取所需，篩選各自所能接受的價值觀，以表示與安華站在同一陣線。然而，面對來勢洶洶的國盟，團結政府能否經得起考驗，彼此之間的政治矛盾能否不被挑起，從而守住多元族群、宗教和文化路線，恐怕才是關鍵。

根據截至二〇二三一月中的民調結果，民眾對於安華的滿意度（68％）比起團結政府高出14％。安華作為團結政府的靈魂人物，其表現影響團結政府的觀感。民調顯示，安華主要獲得華、印群體一面倒的支持，亦獲得60％巫裔的認可。這是對於安華的利好訊息，其更應該著手處理和解決國內重大課題，並且擬定中長期的改革方案。

只是，「昌明大馬」的個人色彩濃厚，是安華的政治思想和理念。其既不是政黨的競選宣言，又必須面對既有政策、制度、文化和秩序的挑戰。安華要著手改變這些問題並不容易，更需要時間。而這項理念能走多遠，最終還是得看其掌權期間的能耐與造化了。

原文鏈接：http://contemporary-review.com.my/2023/02/15/1-504/

打破幻想理智监督 选民重新认识选举 (2022年12月7日-南洋商報採訪）

有關我的部分的節錄：

无论是悬峙议会，抑或“政治联姻”，来自群议社的林志翰博士都不感惊讶，反而在里头看到了契机。

他指出，我国独立超过半世纪，如今首次出现的种种政局，无疑都为选民上了宝贵的一课，其中，包括进一步了解国家制度的运作、对政党政治的了解，又或直接从过去的对某政党或领袖的幻想中醒觉。

“我们总以为投票后就能改变一切，其实不是的，我们还得进行后续的监督和评估。”

再来，当朝野的定位与界限因为“联姻”而变得模糊后，谩骂抨击相对变少，而选民也更能从里头检视他们的表现，审视他们的宣言。如此，选民可以更成熟地看待政治。

过去，群议社就曾因为就希盟与马哈迪的联手提出相反意见，结果惨遭咒骂，如今林志翰认为，或许选民会开始从对政党的狂热中，学会理性看待各别候选人过去的表现，以及他们提出的宣言。

较早前，他也说，尽管从竞选到首相人选迟迟未出的这期间，选民出现了许多匪夷所思的反应，例如为自己属意的领袖求神拜佛，或辱骂诅咒敌对阵营的代表，或以非理性的角度拒绝了解另一群选民的想法，但同样也有选民开始以更理智方式去审视当下的局势，其中，不少人就已经开始懂得在接获讯息前，先反复核实真伪后才分享。

另外，他也认为，随着“政治联姻”导致朝野界限相对模糊之际，公民社会的角色扮演就更为重要。不仅如此，若公民社会变得强大，那么对政府的建议与监督也更有力度。

文章鏈接在此

新政府应尽早落实政改

 去年11月24日，新首相安华上位，他的内阁在12月3日组成。是的，这个所谓“团结”政府芳龄未满3个月或100天，已有不少组织和个人陆续要求会面、传送备忘录和发表公开声明要求新政府采取行动落实他们倡导的课题。

近期安华不忘推介“昌明大马”表达自己的执政理念；另一边厢他委任了女儿努鲁依莎成为自己的经济和财政顾问，惹了裙带关系的争议。再说一开始时他独揽了首相和财长两重量级公职，当中或许有重要的政治考量，不禁让人怀疑这个新政府有多少改革意愿。

一些执政党支持者迫不及待为新政府辩护，反要求热情主动的公众稍安毋躁，“给新政府更多时间”。常见的说辞包括：

（一）这是一个大联盟政府，组成的政党的理念大相迳庭，各自有竞选宣言；
（二）他们从没正式合作的经验；
（三）这是一个“脆弱”的政府，有很多政治压力和分裂点；巫统党内斗争仍激烈，还有6州选举即将来临。

因此这些支持者呼吁：“不要太著急，也别要求太多，让新政府专心继续工作，展示他们为国为民的政绩”，可到底要给新政府多少时间来证明自己，落实他们的竞选承诺？

政策改革可快可慢

对部长和政策制定者来说，要改变政策有不同层次的技术难度。最低门槛是部长拟定和发表政策或行动计划，公开声明他们的承诺，即使这些皆没法律约束力。部长有权宪报任何法律条规或修改指南，或发出任何通令以不同方式执行某些条规。因此，若有关政策完全在部长的行政权力之下，那么政改就看部长的意愿。

但是，若某问题需要部长提议修改现有法律或提呈全新法案，那么这就得经过内阁会议决定、总检察署的法律劝告及草拟法案。政府需向国会提呈该法案。一般法案仅需上下议院的简单多数支持即可通过。可是这已施加压力给相关部门先尝试游说内阁里的盟友，过后还要在国会积极争取其他议员支持该法案。要落实这类型的法律改革不一定能快，但该部门的努力和意愿必须先被公众看见。

若涉及修改联邦宪法，门槛就要被拉高了──需要上下议院的至少2/3多数支持才能通过法案。 纵使过去一些政府没有2/3的席位，例如马哈迪的希盟政府和依斯迈沙比里的政府，他们分别通过了修改宪法的18岁青年投票和反跳槽法案。理论上这类的政改可透过跨党派的支持和合作而达成，可惜这种情况并不常出现。

选民的一般关注点还包括执法和政策落实。他们常以结果来评断表现──要看到现实状况的改变和下达社会基层的政策效果。

解决复杂问题需更多时间

有些问题比较复杂，比如说解决贫穷问题或减少非传染疾病的病例数字，不能通过单一的法案或调整条例就能解决问题。有些问题也牵涉一个或更多的公共机构，因此需要制度改革，或要调整和修改多个关键法律。所以，这需要一些时间才能看到法律改变。要观察这些政改的效应则需更长远的时期。

其实，政治不仅仅是执法和通过法案等的技术程序层面。即使部长强烈认同某政策，他或会首先内部咨询负责的公务员和相关机构，同时也要听取有关领域的专家、受影响的群体以及公民社会组织的反馈。

最后，部长还是得拿出政治决心引领所寄望的改变，他们必须为公共利益挺身而出作决定，经得起某些利益团体的施压和挑战。人民代议士不应对改变恶法和糟糕的政策有所顾忌。

以民为本的政治人物需展示他们的政治意志力，即使某些强大的利益集团持续威胁和恐吓，也不畏惧改变、不被收买。如果他们执政后，却在过往支持和倡议的课题上打U转，那么很难怪人民对政治人物不守原则存有不良的印象──在野时政治化课题来攻击对手，在朝掌权时却无动于衷或忘了初心。

笔者相信支持者对这个团结政府有所期待，热切期望他们能成功。但政治人物需要的是适合的策略和政治智慧以著手落实竞选承诺，这不等同于要求他们必须立刻交出成绩。政治人物其实用不著更多的借口推搪改革，人民也不应该为他们设想这些借口，特别是说“目前政治时机不对”。

改革要趁早

任何时候都是开始落实选举承诺和改革的好时候，越早越好，就是不要等到太迟交不出成绩，给人诟病在朝没做事。希盟首度执政的22个月就能作为借镜，政治现实可迅速改变，不会等待任何人。连行动党资深领袖林吉祥早前已发文告提醒首相安华，说安华可能没有五年的时间，敦促他及早落实体制改革。

错过了一次的政治改革契机，包括希盟在内的联合政府难道还要再辜负支持者？

刊登于《東方日報》《群議良策》專欄2023年2月1日 

東方臉書鏈接

Consumerism and the Chinese New Year Festival (Original unedited manuscript)

I remember once my mother told me that when she was a young kid back in the 60s, she only got to eat chicken during the Chinese New Year (CNY) festive season. Nowadays chicken has become the most popular and consumed meat in the country. In 2021, Malaysia’s poultry meat consumption of 49.7kg per capita was triple the world’s average (14.86kg) and also well above the OECD’s (31.98kg). It could be that in those old days, meat was a luxury to many poor families, the price may not be as affordable as compared to today's standard of living.

For this year’s CNY festive season, among the 8 controlled food items set by the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living are white pomfret, white shrimp, live pigs and pork (belly, meat and fat) as well as vegetables such as imported Chinese potatoes, and round cabbage, and Chinese garlic. Chicken are not included because they are still a controlled item for a persistent period since last year. But In terms of CNY festival ‘luxury’ meat items nowadays, obviously Chinese pomfrets and large shrimps (some say abalone and scallops as well) have replaced chicken, especially for the reunion dinner on the CNY’s eve.

Reunion dinner could be deemed as a special occasion for the year where family members from all corners come back to have the meal, and it is usually prepared extensively to treat these family members in the gathering. Most families are likely in the mood to ‘splurge’ on more extravagant luxury food items. They feel proud and happy to share these on social media.

More than just the dinner dishes, normally Chinese families would also stock up CNY cookies, chips and crackers, barbequed meat, mandarins, as well as packet drinks like Chrysanthemum tea, carbonated drinks like 100Plus and Shandy. These are the food items prepared for the visiting guests but surely family members themselves would also find those irresistible to consume before any guest arrivals.

Before CNY, shopping for such items became reactionary towards price reduction promotion. News broke out that a certain hypermarket chain offered a promotional sale price for their 100Plus and Shandy, many shoppers were alerted by words, text or pictures shared in social media, stormed to the chain stores, and caused the items to be sold out the very first day of the promotional campaign. The photos of shoppers fighting to grab the carton of drinks before these could be delivered to the shelves, and they loaded their shopping trolleys full with the cartons queuing for the check out, these are the herd mentality scenes to behold. This ‘shortage’ phenomenon also induced panic buy among many other shoppers too, feeling that these drinks are now a must, and they have to get them too, and in more quantity ifossible.

Think about it seriously, the aforementioned drinks are hardly a must have or serve any direct relevance about the festival itself. Even the cookies and crackers, these are the items that might keep the visitors’ conversation going, but without those people can still chat (and not have to worry about the amount of sugar and fats consumed).

Like other big festivals, CNY also tends to drive consumerism for new products and new items, via various CNY sales in the malls or online platforms - from new clothes, shoes, to services like doing nails and hair.

The preconceived mindset for many Chinese is that they must wear everything new for the festival. While spring cleaning the house to review and remove unwanted items to declutter is a good annual practice, adding new items to the closet and cupboard inventory just for the festival appearance may not be a wise decision for the household budget and for the environment.

One has to practice purchasing based on needs and not wants – some clothes can still be in quite good condition after some years, one should not feel shameful to wear the same Sam Fu. The legitimate reasons to purchase new items are to replace those belongings started to wear out or simply grow out of the current fitting.

In a planet with finite resources, and for the household also with finite disposable income, we should encourage more thoughts to conserve our own resources, ask ourselves ‘do I really need this?’ before purchase. It should not be equated as ‘thrifty’, but this could help overcome the impulse buying behaviour. These savings might be useful in future for more necessary spending. In this way, I congratulate you Gong Xi Fa Cai, I just gave you tips to make more fortune.