YOURSAY | Harapan should be given first shot at forming govt

YOURSAY | 'If Harapan fails, only then can it be PN's turn.'

Who are PN and Harapan's likely partners?

Magnanimous46: The final result of the 15th general election is that the majority of Malays have chosen Bersatu and PAS, while the majority of non-Malays have opted for Pakatan Harapan.

While Harapan is the largest block with 82 seats and ought to be given the first shot at forming the government, ironically, none of the others - BN, Perikatan Nasional (PN), Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) or Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) - have shown an interest to work with Harapan.

This is probably due to the DAP bogey and the perception of majority Malay Muslim sentiments seen from the voting pattern.

Does Anwar have the numbers and is that sufficient to form a stable government? Let us not forget history: what Umno, Bersatu and PAS were capable of doing to the short-lived Harapan government post-14th general election.

Will these politically bankrupt race and religious paddlers, notorious for the Sheraton coup, allow a stable Harapan government to function? Is PAS an option for mainstream governance?

Notwithstanding the court cluster and Bersatu that betrayed Harapan, PN chairperson Muhyiddin Yassin has just taken it to the next level, earning the wrath of the Christian community by allegedly branding them agents of the Jews.

With this level of aversion to Harapan, are these the kind of people that reformist Harapan wants to collude with to form a government? Is this what the people that voted for Harapan would have wanted?

Harapan advocates that the moral high ground in governance should distance itself from these kinds of quagmires that are bound to end up in another Sheraton Move.

It is far better to play an effective opposition role to protect the masses than to be embroiled in political turmoil with the likes of race and religious outfits. Those that forget history are condemned to repeat it.

Quigonbond: It seems to me that the simplest path to the majority, and therefore, easiest to establish a stable government, is for Harapan to come together with GPS.

GPS seems to have agreed with GRS that they will join a coalition together, at least that's what GRS has been reported to say. With them, Harapan will just be about one seat short of a simple 111. And with Warisan’s three seats, it would provide the needed stability.

On the other hand, PN/PAS will need to cobble together basically all coalitions bar Harapan. GPS will be tripping over whether to work with PAS, and PN will be tripping over whether to work with BN - the former is over religious extremism, and the latter is over the facade of clean government.

So, in terms of difficulty, Harapan seems to have a slightly easier path. The problem then is for GPS and DAP to come to a consensus to work together.

It's amazing how Sarawakians have continued to support GPS when they did not have any qualms working with PAS after they turned extremist.

In the end, it is also about the fair-mindedness of the king. Bersih said it is right, the biggest bloc should have the privilege of trying to form a government first, then get a vote of confidence in the Parliament.

Being given this opportunity is another challenge for Harapan because it's just unguided/unscripted royal discretion at the moment.

In such an unprecedented landscape (though it should not be surprising as it has been prognosticated for months now), perhaps the Conference of Rulers should meet to set out a firm procedure.

Justice: Why make such a simple thing unnecessarily complicated? In terms of popular votes, Harapan got it. In terms of the number of seats won, Harapan also got it.

So why not give the Harapan coalition, which is the biggest bloc, to look for partners to secure the required 112 numbers to form the federal government first?

And if the Harapan coalition fails, only then can it be the PN coalition's turn to secure the required numbers to form the government.

To ask and give the first chance to the PN coalition to look for partners to form the government is to let the "minority" coalition or the coalition which won the lesser number of seats the right to do so and it is thus clearly against the principle of democracy.

SRMan: Former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s supposedly ”taken out of context” Christianisation process just two days before the general election was a gamble that he took.

His strategy? Forsake the small non-Muslim voters PN had, but draw in the bigger Muslim vote bank. The gamble apparently paid off.

After the Christianisation claim, he is now happily looking forward to working with GPS, which is from a state with 63 percent Christian.

Is he taking the East Malaysians for a ride? Remember the performance of Muhyiddin's 17-month stint as a PM? Two words - ‘Kerajaan gagal’ (failed government).

PN comprises a 44-seat PAS which thrives on religious and racial bigotry. Would a PAS-dominant PN want to faithfully work with moderate GPS? Or vice-versa.

Look back at what PAS has done over the past 30 months when it was part of the federal government. With the little power that PAS had, it had banned this and had banned that, stepping on the religious freedom of others in this multiracial and multi-religious country.

East Malaysians are affected too because many of them work here in Peninsular Malaysia. Remember, PAS warned that Muslims voting for other political parties would end up in hell? This is just ludicrous.

And it's just a matter of time before the party trains their sight on Borneo Malaysia. Ironically, the target would be you, the Borneo Bloc, which empowers them if you choose to work with them.

PK5001: Race and religion override good governance and development. It seems like a majority of Malays are willing to tolerate corrupt and incompetent leaders as long as they are Muslim Malays.

Malaysia is doomed and soon we will be at the bottom among those in the Asean region. To my children, who are professionals, I would advise them to migrate for a brighter future.

I have lost hope in my fellow Malaysians. My heart goes out to those who worked hard to try to make a difference. Let those who voted for racists and incompetence suffer for their ignorance and stupidity.

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