Raj, a lorry driver, was flipping through a newspaper as he spoke to FMT of his disappointment with Malaysian politicians on both sides of the divide. He occasionally looked up with frustration written on his face.
He was weighing in on an open letter written recently by Bersih official Mandeep Karpall Singh that said Malaysians were getting tired of a divided opposition.
The letter was published by Malaysiakini on March 8, the ninth anniversary of the 12th general election when the opposition denied Barisan Nasional a two-third majority in Parliament and took control of five states.
Mandeep wrote the letter in his individual capacity. He said many people he had spoken to were not interested in voting in the next general election because they had lost hope in the opposition.
Perhaps the opposition needed to be taught a lesson with GE14, Manjeet added.
Raj gulped down another spoonful of cendol and said he could relate to that feeling. He agreed that many politicians had not shown a willingness to put the people’s interest before their own, but he quickly added: “One must be fair to the opposition politicians, though. They haven’t been given full power to run the country.”
He said he did not believe Malaysia could produce leaders like Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, the widely respected former president of India.
Perhaps, he added, voters must share the blame. “Malaysian voters are just not mature enough. Many just look at the party flags and make their choice. But do those we elect care for us? Will they care if you die of starvation?”
Raj’s views were typical of quite a number of people that FMT interviewed randomly in Petaling Jaya.
However, a business development executive who gave his name as Steven said teaching the opposition a lesson by refusing to vote would not necessarily make things better.
“Yes they are fighting,” he said. “But we should judge them on how they have run Selangor and Penang.”
He said it wasn’t just politicians who must shoulder the responsibility of bringing about change.
“I think people feel tired because life is not getting easier,” he said. “But has the public done enough to change things? What’s the point of complaining on Facebook if you don’t go out to vote?”
A retiree who identified himself as Loh said he could understand what Mandeep meant. He too felt “a bit tired with the way things are”, he said.
“But I will still support the opposition. I’m not too concerned about infighting because it happens in all parties, even within Barisan Nasional.
“What the opposition members have to do is be more aggressive in going down to the ground and showing what they have accomplished.
“I think they have been trying hard to do that, but maybe they should try harder.”