Why does Najib look so glum?

Written by MalaysianInsider

March 29, 2008

He looks glum in every photograph, as if he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. Why is Malaysia’s prime minister-in-waiting Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak so downcast? To be sure, every Barisan National leader has looked dejected after Election 2008 destroyed forever the myth of the invincibility of the ruling coalition and its power-sharing formula.

But Malaysia’s Number 2 was one of the few BN politicians to come out of the polls with some credit. He retained his Pekan seat by a solid 26,000 majority and is being acknowledged by the grassroots as the one Umno senior politician who has shown leadership qualities over the past 24 months. And despite some political careers lying in ruin after the polls, he is closer to the top job than ever before (the smart money says that Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will pass the baton to Najib in mid-term). So then why does he look so down?

Perhaps he knows that he will not come out of any political battle for Umno unscathed. Since the Abdullah-Mahathir spat erupted into the open two years ago, there have been feelers from the Mahathir camp for Najib to show his independence. In political parlance, it means to distance himself from the Prime Minister. The DPM ignored these messages.

But after March 8, several messages have been sent to Najib and his friends through intermediaries, who say they are acting on behalf of Dr Mahathir. Some of them have been of the harmless variety, suggesting that he set a timetable for the handover of power from Abdullah. Others have carried more menace for Najib.

Political pundits and Umno politicians argue that it makes little sense for Najib to move against Abdullah for several reasons. He knows that the party is in a bad state, disoriented by the new political terrain, hungry for a scapegoat and fearful of Anwar Ibrahim’s re-emergence. If he takes on Abdullah and wins, he could end up inheriting a shell of a political party.

If he plays the loyal deputy, it will be a matter of only one or two years before he takes over. And even if Abdullah fails to strengthen the party and is dumped unceremoniously just after the general assembly in December, Najib will be given the benefit of doubt by the party faithful. So in theory, Najib is in a good place.

But in the cut-throat world of Malaysian politics, Najib knows that he is facing the most challenging time of his political career, which began abruptly at the age of 23 after the death of his father, Tun Abdul Razak, Malaysia’s second prime minister.

He knows that by choosing to remain loyal to Abdullah, he is now fair game for Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. When Mahathir unloads next against Abdullah as he will with increased frequency and intensity, there could be some choice references to the Number two.

This could be related to the murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shariibuu. Najib’s confidante Abdul Razak Baginda had an affair with the woman and is among those implicated in this case which drew international media attention. The DPM has been accused by the opposition of knowing Altantuya and being involved in a move to cover-up her murder. He has denied these allegations fervently. But if Dr Mahathir and his supporters in Umno raise questions about the murder, it could carry more sting because the accusations are being made by party men.

Also, there is a possibility that Dr Mahathir and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah could question Najib’s fitness for top office by raking up some accusations of the past about defence contracts, his wife’s role in business, etc.
So some say maybe the easiest option for Najib is to throw in his lot behind Mahathir and Ku Li and force Abdullah out of office. But this equation may not be helpful to the suave Defence Minister because he may have to accept Ku Li as the president of Umno and Mahathir as the power behind the throne. Effectively, this will relegate him to third in line.

Also, it would be unrealistic to think that Abdullah and his supporters will remain silent if Najib decides to switch camps.

So perhaps now we can understand why the glum look. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Najib knows that in this season of fighting and contests, he will be hit by shrapnel from the enemy attack. The question is how severe will the wounds be.