As campaigns for the state polls go full throttle in the coming days, politicians have been reminded to steer clear of ugly campaigning and to practise mature politics.

Despite authorities’ efforts to clamp down on the 3R issues of race, religion and royalty, analysts believe that such topics will not die down so easily.

Political pundit Dr Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar, from International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), believes “it is almost impossible” to ensure politicians do not touch on such issues.

“Some people think that they have freedom to speak, but such freedom doesn’t include freedom to harm or hurt others.

“The laws are already in place. And this issue is not unique to Malaysia, it happens in other countries too. It grows with identity politics,” he said.

He said ugly campaigns should be nipped in the bud.

“It is time to be politically mature. The authorities should enforce electoral laws strictly and without fear and favour,” he said.

He noted that so far, there had not been many controversies as it was still early days of campaigning.

The issues raised mainly revolved around the performance of the state governments and alleged election offences committed by rival parties.

“In the previous elections, we saw campaigning getting ugly as polling day neared, and I think this trend is likely to continue. Parties and candidates will turn to the tactic of harping on why their opponents should not be elected.

“This is when sensitive 3R issues will be played out,” said Tunku Mohar.

On whether 3R-based campaigning could be reined in with the proposed enforcement unit, he said that would depend on how well the unit functions.

“With the enforcement unit, there is a wider consciousness on the sensitivity of the issue and the unit will serve as a deterrent against using the 3Rs as campaign material.

“If the unit functions well, we will see a decline in the use of 3R to canvass support, hence bringing stability to our political system,” he added.

The Communications and Digital Ministry is working together with the police to mobilise a unit to monitor 3R issues.

Dr Oh Ei Sun, a senior fellow at the Singapore Institute of International Affairs, said campaigning could take an ugly turn in the second week as polling day draws closer.

He said issues such as scandals and controversies would be played up more intensely then.

“Yes, it will intensify in the second week with, for example, scandals and controversies raised towards the finish line,” he said.

“The two Rs (race and religion) would continue to be raised in one way or another. Mahathir (former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad) will focus on race while PAS will focus on burnishing its religious credentials.

“It is a division of labour,” said Oh.

In the run-up to the 15th General Election last November, scandals such as the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) project, poor management of the Covid-19 pandemic, and corruption dominated headlines.

Vandalism of posters of candidates and campaign materials were also reported.

According to the Centre for Independent Journalism’s (CIJ) state elections social media monitoring dashboard, four out of the 19,250 data points collated between July 24 and 30 could be categorised as incitement or calls for violence while 25 were deemed as dehumanising or hostile.

A total of 2,765 were categorised as discriminatory or offensive.

The Election Commission also reminded candidates, parties and supporters to adhere to election laws and maintain public order.

Source:
courtesy of THE STAR

by RAGANANTHINI VETHASALAM

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