Somewhere in this blog I have written that power is very addictive—once acquired, it will be very difficult to surrender it. And what's even more fantastic is that the person having the power does not usually realise that he is addicted to it!
Samy boy has been saying—I don't know how many times; I have lost count—that he would soon step down to make way for the next generation of leaders to lead the party. But I think it is quite obvious to most people that he didn't really mean what he said. In fact, I'm beginning to wonder why even bother to announce it; it's not like he's gonna keep his promise anyway!
And so, I couldn't help but smile when I read his latest announcement that he's gonna vacate his post next year, "eight or nine months before his current term expires." Is this guy for real? He's quite a funny man. And it's not only because everyone is wondering if his hair is real.
Although I have not personally conducted interviews with all the party members, I'm inclined to believe this guy when he said that "party delegates, members and the Indian community had grown weary of Samy Vellu's promises to step down over time."
But then again, that is the political culture in Malaysia, you see. Political parties make it something of an implied rule, and in some cases an outright rule, that the top posts are not to be challenged. It means that once a politician becomes the party president, he is likely to remain the president for a long, long time to come. Therefore, if it happens that the person holding the top post failed to conquer his addiction, there is no doubt whatsoever that he will fossilise in that seat. But alas, the last time I checked there is still no effective treatment for power addiction.
UPDATE (22 MAY 2010):
Of course we Malaysians must have seen it coming, but for the benefits of those non-Malaysians, this is the result of the fellow who called for Samy's immediate resignation. It is quite normal in Malaysian politics that whenever anyone would challenge the top guy, he is apt to be banished into the wilderness.
5 comments:
Latest development is that Mugilan has been expelled from the party. In Malaysian politics the golden rule is never to challenge the top party posts. Long live democracy!
On the other hand, On the other hand, some people do seem to still have faith in democracy in its literal sense.
Although some others prefer to play safe...
Malaysian politics are like watching a weekly tv drama. I look forward to seeing what the atmosphere is really like in Malaysia. Only a few months away! Sept I will be in KL!
Looks like momentum is building up against Samy. Maybe he's not gonna last till next year (and beyond) in his seat after all?
And what does a Malaysian political leader do when challenged by his people? Well, of course fire 'em all! But if this continues, Samy is gonna run out of people to fire from the party, huh?
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