All about the youth

With just over 30 days to the National UMNO Elections, the contests for posts from Deputy President to the last Puteri Exco seat are heating up. But for many, one to particularly watch out for is that for Youth Head of the party.

Amongst the three candidates vying for the prize that has been occupied by no less a figure than incoming President Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak, one individual stands out through his age, character and campaign platform.

Khairy Jamaluddin has just turned 33, and is the only candidate under the age of 40. Some have said that this fact may not be relevant for UMNO Youth, seeing as to how the wing has traditionally been headed by persons over 40. But recent trends suggest that there has been a substantive change in how the party is perceived by younger voters – a change that calls for, among others, a generational rejuvenation. Without this generational shift in the leadership of UMNO Youth, then clearly the thirst for change have yet to reach the doors of the wing.

Some elaboration is necessary. Khairy has on occasions argued that it takes a youth to bestunderstand the aspirations and concerns of the below-40 segment. Whilst this may be a valid argument, it does not capture the more fundamental need to move away from the generation of outgoing Youth Head Dato' Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein – Hishammuddin has done much to rebuild the wing from the ashes of 1999 but the demands of the day require a new approach to how UMNO Youth operates. A young face would send all the right signals to the younger generation that UMNO is serious in rebranding itself to becoming a party that no longer preaches to the youth, but elevates one of them. The slogan Pemuda untuk Pemuda is thus, quite fitting.

They say age is just a number; at least in this case though, Khairy's non-political personality and character exudes youth-ness puts some doubt into that cliché. Having a penchant for contemporary music, football and even fashion, he represents much of what UMNO Youth should look like if it intends to woo the post-Merdeka generation of young voters who yearn for a movement they can identify with. Who else in the race but Khairy can even come close to being 'one of us'?

But perhaps what encapsulates Khairy's synonymy with Malaysia's youth is his campaign message of inclusivity and empathy. Tired of years of zero-sum, communal-centric politics of confrontation, Khairy's"Setiakawan" message promises to bring about a radical shift in the UMNO Youth narrative, a movement traditionally associated with being the right-wing conscience of the larger party. Voting figures show that chest-thumping Malay ultraism simply will not work anymore amongst young Malaysians who have grown up in relative peace and prosperity; UMNO Youth under the helm of Khairy will stand a better chance of recapturing the imagination of young Malaysians who have no guilt for feeling Malaysian first and foremost, or for sanctifying the ideals of justice and democracy. This last point was best demonstrated during the program Hujah at Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka on 18 February when Khairy stuck to a centrist position on matters such as ISA and race relations whereas the two other candidates competed with one another to portray a traditional ultra Malay face. Khairy also displayed maturity in his critique of the government – defending the institution's fundamental strengths whilst acknowledging there was room for improvement vis a vis implementation of policies. Such sophistication was lacking in both other candidates who felt no shame in slamming UMNO, BN and the Government on national television.

This contest is no less than a contest for the party's future. The delegates must wise up to the reality that UMNO no longer commands the support of the majority of under-40s and elect the man with the right age and right message to ensure UMNO's survival.

Pakatan Hypocrisy, like a stick in the mud.

The takeover of the Perak State Government by the Barisan Nasional has exposed many things: the value of stealth in politics, the political operator in Prime Minister-to-be Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak, but most of all, the hypocrisy within the Pakatan Rakyat ranks.

One would have thought that a coalition fashioning itself as a credible alternative to the current Government would bite the bullet and accept that after an extended honeymoon since the 12th General Elections, it was finally outdone in this battle. That Pakatan's figurehead Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim indulged in months of trumpeting September 16th and the toppling of the Federal Government via defections by Barisan Parliamentarians surely made what transpired in Perak all the more painful to swallow.

Instead of pondering about where its missteps have been, Pakatan has cried foul over a legitimate grab – a paradox it may be, but a legitimate government is a government nonetheless. And whilst the Pakatan crowd have been incessantly calling for there to be a special sitting of the State Assembly to unseat the (former) Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaludin, claiming that the Sultan of Perak has no power to decree that Nizar and his EXCO resign, it is useful to note that had Anwar Ibrahim obtained the magic number of 30 defectors in Parliament, he would merely have to seek an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to prove to the latter that he has the confidence of the majority of Parliamentarians – Anwar himself hinted on more than one occasion that that was precisely what he intended to do!

The above, can still of course be described as a necessary political positioning – though it does show Pakatan to be no better than what it accuses Barisan of. What is most troubling and most irresponsible is the Pakatan's hypocrisy with regards to the power and role of the monarchy. If during the BERSIH demonstrations – and the circus that followed it – they were more than willing to fake having the tacit support of the monarchy, it is simply inconsistent for them to now criticise the Sultan for utilising His Highness's 'reserve' political (and constitutional) power. If during the Idris Jusoh – Ahmad Said controversy in Terengganu Pakatan members were championing the right of the Sultan with glee as the Prime Minister was humiliated, how is it that they find it fit to question the right of the Sultan to declare a government fallen? Regardless, Nizar's refusal to yield to the Sultan's decree is plainly an act of trampling upon the the institution of Malay Rulers and with that, very legitimate and understandable Malay sensitivities. It isarguably this extreme posturing that has led even UMNO leaders like Khairy Jamaluddin; some what ill at ease with the manner in which Perak was won, to call for Nizar to be banished. Unorthodox perhaps – when has Khairy been anything otherwise? – but the point to be made is that what ever grievances Pakatan may have with what has transpired, it must never channel it in ways that convey disrespect to the Sultan. Certain things are meant to be beyond the sphere of political gamesmanship.

And at the very least, in Barisan there are the likes of Khairy, Tengku Razaleigh and even Tun Dr. Mahathir – three individuals hardly in love with one another – that make their discomfort with defections quite clear and public. The public will ultimately decide whether what Barisan did was politically wise – democracy always decides, in the end. But until Perak is again put to the vote, Pakatan will have to eat some humble pie and back down from their position of extreme hypocrisy that threatens to drag the monarchy further into the mix of what is already a vicious environment.

Malaysia Expects

Many detractors are pre-empting the career demise of national coach B Sathianathan after the loss in the final of the Merdeka Cup and then against Myanmar recently in the semi-finals of the Royal Grand Challenge. Nonetheless, I hold that it still early days; it is worth remembering that B. Sathianathan took over from Norizan Bakar who was responsible for the disastrous outing in the AFC Cup October last year. Despite his experience in local football, Norizan had the same problem Louis van Gaal had with the Dutch team circa 2002 - he never gained the respect of the changing room. B Sathianathan on the other hand, is a talismanic figure, if not a fatherly one, in the eyes of star players like the twins, Azi Shahril, Subramaniam, Daudso Jamaluddin, Syed Adney and most in the team.

A rebuilding process also means injecting experience into the team that Rajagopal handed over to Sathia. Part of this process was the experience the players received when the team traveled to the UK and did well against the Manchester United Academy team and Stoke City. Simultaneously, this process also took the shape of the re-inclusion of in-form seniors who many wrote off after the AFC debacle - players like Shukor Adan and Zamani Misbah, before slowly reintroducing flair player Indraputra, ex-captain Khaironisam, overlapping leftback Irwan Fadli and the football journey man Nizaruddin Yusop. However many commenters and the football chattering classes are still not convinced that these senior players will add any value. The jury is still out with regards to the 2nd phase senior inclusions.

More recently, there have been other indications of progress to be proud of. The match against Chelsea displayed the tactical maturity especially in the 1st half when the team stuck to the gameplan, and then in the Merdeka tournament showed the goalscoring vein of form, bar the finals of course.

As such, Sathia is the right man to rebuild the national team simply because he knows the psychiological and physical limitations of the players. And this man is not shy of discipline and determination either. He turns up at almost all the local league matches from coast to coast and draws inspiration and opinions from coaches, players, administrators and fans alike. In the high stakes game of of top flight football management, musical chairs and merry go rounds are common occurences. Like Arsenal however, we have to keep the faith with our own Monsieur Wenger. Malaysian's simply have to be patient to move ahead internationally and not forsake the house that Jack built.

The appetite for a regional trophy can only be fulfilled only if the fundamentals are there. We certainly have the talent as we can observe in the Harimau Muda squad which fields exceptional players like Fakhri, Hairiri, Gurusamy and Tan Yang Wei. Not to forget Bunyamin Umar , Farig Rashid and Azrol Azmi who has made National junior appearances and still manages to turn up for MyTeam on the weekends.

The National Team will never lose its traction in the hearts of Malaysians, and just maybe, the AFF Suzuki Cup could be the turning point for Malaysian football. Hardcore football supporters like harimau malaya.com and Kelab Penyokong Selangor have all made plans to the trip up north. Come 6 December Malaysia V Laos, all Malaysians will hold thier breaths, waiting for the goal net to rattle with Safee Sali celebrating with the other boys in tow. Cometh the hour, cometh the man.

Football is Politics

Over the past years, the state of Malaysian football has been
increasingly under scrutiny. With local league attendances dipping at an alarming rate and the quality on the pitch following suit, such fears appear justified.

The popular consensus is that in Malaysia, sports, and football in particular, should be free of politics. On the surface of it, this notion seems reasonable enough. Upon closer inspection however, the
notion appears to not hold water.

First things first, State FAs' financial constraints and their lack of fund-raising knowhow mean that 'grassroots' football have not been cultivated to its full potential. For example, we have yet to find an answer to the UK's Sunday (amateur) League football for children to develop their skills and further make the sport a part of their upbringing.

The impact of such limitations is not hard to figure out. Most immediately apparent is the small pool of young players from which to work on. The lack of a junior league means that schoolchildren play on average only three to five competitive matches in a season – a Dutch Football Association study concluded that as many as 35 matches are
needed for players aged 12-16 to best develop their talents and learn the subtleties of teamwork and match discipline.

The state of Malaysian football is not only under threat from within with weak institutions but also unwittingly from TV sets has made a good outing on a Saturday night in the stands of Shah Alam Stadium replaced by sitting on a stool in a mamak stall watching the EPL. It astounded me when I asked my younger brother recently to come see the national team play in the AFC recently and he replied that he would
rather watch the Merseyside derby. And get this: he is a Chelsea fan.

And herein lies an indication that despite the failings of our local scene, Malaysia is, without doubt, a footballing nation. Malaysian football fans would know the likes of Zbigniew Boniek (of Juve fame)
on top of the universal household names like that boy Cristiano.

So how do we ensure that a footballing nation like ours can go local too, ushering a return to the glory days of the 80s and early 90s when
stands were filled week in week out? As foreshadowed, it would be too easy to blame politics and politicking for the state that local
football is in. As it is, let's briefly examine the relationship between football and politics.

Football and state patriotism is relative, and much of state building hinges on football. It was state patriotism or state-ism, if you like,
that drove the passion in the 80s. It remains the same today, although manifested slightly differently. For example Kedah won 2 triple titles back to back under an UMNO govt and they packed down a crowd of 20,000 every weekend. However, the top footballing states are now governed by opposition, Selangor, Perak and Kedah. It was mad to see PKR flags and
PAS regalia at Kedah away matches till FAM had to ban political paraphenelia to the stadiums.

Thus it seems that politics and football will be difficult to separate. In any case, politics is what moves the sport and to get into those positions a lot of politics becomes necessary. One only has to recall Sepp Blatter usurping Havalange for the post of FIFA President or the Platini UEFA campaign that leagues must give prominence to local players then imports to see this. In our context
then, there needs to be a readiness to allow politics and politicians to be involved in the institutions of the sport, so long as they do so
to the benefit of the shared agenda: the advancement of Malaysian football.

And to be sure, this phenomenon in Malaysian football is not unique.The Glasgow derby has always and will continue to be laced in
sectarian undertones. I recall vividly Gascoigne's Protestant"s Orange
Order's flute taunting the Catholic Celtic fans in 1998.

Further examples include,

1)Red Star Belgrade in the old Yugoslavia who have Serbian
Paramilitary connections.

2)Boca Juniors as the "people's Club", based in the slums of Buones Aires; contrasted with River Plate known as the Los Millionares or the rich man's club

3)The history of Lazio v Roma:
Lazio Ultras- Neo Nazi il facisti fans that reside in the Curva Nord (Nothern Curve) and Mussolini's football club – contrasted with Roma,
a communist working class club. Roma has slowly gathered a more affluent social following with more glamorous players, whilst Lazio is
on the outskirts of Rome and are now synonymous as the right wing working class club.

Football is politics.