Media Statement (2) by Lim Kit Siang in Petaling Jaya on Wednesday, 7^th October 2009: 

BN victory in Bagan Pinang by-election will stamp Isa as “mascot” for Najib’s 1Malaysia – further undermining national and international confidence that Najib premiership has the political will to carry out far-reaching reforms to make Malaysia interntionally competitive

Speaking at the 35^th Unesco general conference in Paris yesterday, Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said his 1Malaysia philosophy can be extended to the concept of 1Region and ultimately 1World.

Apart from the 1Malaysia gimmicry which now includes 1Malaysia jokes, what does Najib really mean by 1Malaysia?

Former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has publicly expressed his bewilderment and incomprehension of Najib’s 1Malaysia.

Lesser mortals should be forgiven if they are even more confused as to what Najib really means with this slogan.

It cannot mean one overarching Malaysian objective, when it does not even mean 1Umno – which is why Najib had to succumb to pressures to name Tan Sri Isa Samad as candidate for the Bagan Pinang by-election when all the Umno/BN leaders could not be unaware that the choice is utterly inappropriate for a Prime Minister who wants to send out the message that he stands for a new tomorrow.

One thing is sure however. A Barisan Nasional victory in Bagan Pinang by-election on Sunday will stamp Isa Samad as the “mascot” for Najib’s 1Malaysia, further undermining national and international confidence that the Najib premiership has the political will to carry out far-reaching reforms to make Malaysia competitive with the rest of the world.

In fact, the irony is that the bigger the majority Isa garners in the Bagan by-election on Sunday, the greater will be national and international disillusionment with Najib as it will be proof that he is capable of walking the talk of reforms, particularly in the campaign against corruption and gross abuses of power by the key national institutions and players in the country.

As both Mahathir and Tengku Razaleigh had rightly said, Umno and Barisan Nasional can win the battle in the Bagan Pinang by-election on October 11 but they will lose the battle in the next general elections.

This is because a vote for Isa is a vote to tell Malaysians and the world that Najib and his administration is not capable of the far-reaching political, economic, educational, social and cultural reforms needed in the country to remake Malaysia as an united, democratic, just, competitive and progressive nation to take our rightful place in the international community.

The only honourable result for the country in the long term is for a miracle to happen – for Pas/Pakatan Rakyat candidate Zulkefly Mohd Omar to score an upset win.

May be, Isa’s victory in Bagan Pinang is necessary to convince Malaysians who still harbor hopes in the Najib premiership as capable to national reform and renewal for Malaysia to start off on a new page to give up their illusions once and for all.

*Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary leader & MP for Ipoh Timor