I beg to differ with regard to the news report by TheStar titled, 'Khairy: Why is Anwar still Opposition Leader?', dated 5 March 2010.
Mr. Khairy Jamaluddin's comment about Parti Keadilan Rakyat no longer holding the majority in Pakatan Rakyat, following the defection of several MPs, and how it is unusual for Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (DSAI) to stay on as Opposition Leader is somewhat akin to missing the point.
The political convention on majority votes as expounded by Mr. Jamaluddin is immaterial as he neglected to distinguish between a majority and a popular vote. The former needs no elucidation as it is self-explanatory. The latter, on the other hand, denotes the acceptance by or prevalence amongst the masses of society. In other words, it is not so much on the number of votes that one has attained but more concerned about popular opinion by the electorate - a concept that UMNO/BN has failed miserably at grasping, in light of the Perak constitutional crisis.
Furthermore, it is often bewildering to hear of UMNO's intention to eradicate money politics within the party but see someone guilty of the same to be able to contest and win a party position. On the issue of respecting and upholding political conventions, perhaps Mr. Jamaluddin should set a good example today by quitting his position as UMNO Youth Chief for his involvement in money politics by the UMNO Disciplinary Committee?
It is noteworthy that Mr. Jamaluddin should learn to keep up with the times. On 2 March 2010, YB Lim Kit Siang expressed his unequivocal support for DSAI to remain as Opposition Leader. Likewise, DSAI mentioned that he has no problems with YB LKS taking over as Opposition Leader. There is no issue of real contention here, contrary to what Mr. Jamaluddin purports.
