Third Force

There has been a lot said about the Third Force in Malaysian politics. While this term has been mooted by the likes of Haris Ibrahim and Raja Petra Kamarudin, it has now been diluted by the main-stream media and political opportunists to include anything and everything under the sun, which is neither BN nor PR.

Personally, I am sticking it to mean the true political independents – the Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM).

I like this group because, their candidates can be said to be truly independent, as independent as one could be in Malaysia. I like the fact that TheStar has painted them as a group of idealists, because that is exactly what I see them trying to accomplish, to strive towards a vision of an ideal Malaysia. For that, we definitely need idealists.

However, the only problem with idealists is that they tend to get jaded rather quickly with dumb asses and unfortunately, our local political scene is filled with too many donkeys. That said, I still hope that these idealists will not set their hopes too high for the next GE. Personally, I think that they have the chance to capture a few seats in the next GE – maybe just a couple.

However, I hope that these candidates and the MCLM realise that this is a long haul fight. It is not about winning seats in the next GE. It is about changing the landscape of local politics. With that as the target, the candidates will be less likely to burnout. But if Malik Imtiaz is the kind of calibre that we will be seeing from the MCLM, I doubt that burnout would be the problem.

Anyway, I just wish the MCLM the best and I will continue to contribute where I can, to bring forth the vision of a better Malaysia. I’m staying for the good fight!