NOV 16 — Did you know that Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal is the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) chairman? For those who said yes, can you name me one piece of news about the CPA that you've read about since he was elected in August last year?
I thought so. Of course, the first problem is that the CPA isn't all that well-known an entity in Malaysia in the first place. But surely part of the point of lobbying — or whatever it is politicians and diplomats do — to win Malaysia the chairmanship is to both increase the standing of the country in the CPA and vice versa. Despite Malaysia having the chair, there has hardly been any media buzz since Shafie first took up the post.
Perhaps it is because Shafie doesn't get the point of the association which was first set up to "provide more ready exchange of information and to facilitate closer understanding and more frequent intercourse between those engaged in the parliamentary government of the component parts" of the then-Empire. In simple terms, to make Commonwealth parliaments work better and more effectively.
Instead, after chairing the first co-ordinating committee meeting nearly a year ago in London, he proclaimed that the CPA would work to tackle poverty reduction, gender equality, the fuel and food crises and environmental degradation.
Anyone can see that the two paragraphs above are incongruous. The CPA is not a civil society NGO. At the same time, Shafie's secretary-general, Dr William F. Shija managed to be diplomatic about Shafie's plans that would "benefit young people in the developing world" but also highlighted instead the need for effective communication, voter education and information technology skills. In short, things which improve the democratic process.
This sentiment was echoed very strongly by representatives of the 53 CPA countries who are here right now in the UK for a two-week governance seminar. The sessions on the role of the opposition and engaging the electorate saw most of the audience voicing frustrations over the lack of avenues to make any positive impact, especially as members of the opposition.
With the exception of the "Occidental" members — the UK, Australia, Canada, etc — most Commonwealth countries face this problem due to longstanding regimes that have suffocated democratic space. In that context, the complaint that the opposition is toothless against ruling parties is not just a naive truism in representational democracy, it is a valid frustration.
To an extent, the UK-based panellists just didn't get it — it's not enough to simply say that one has to get the media onside and ensure that issues are raised and explored in the press. For many of these countries, the media are influenced or even controlled by the ruling parties.
Freedom of the press is both ideologically and functionally coupled to the idea of representational democracy. The people elect MPs and assemblymen not just to vote on Bills but to be their eyes and ears. The elected representatives' access to the media, and hence the public at large is a crucial part of any electorate's decision-making.
In his role as chairman, Shafie's duties include guiding all the work and policy of the CPA which is, lest we forget, an association of elected representatives. The CPA's inherent objective is to further the interests of elected representatives across the Commonwealth. To ignore the call from CPA members for a change in the mediascape would be a clear dereliction of duty.
Instead, Shafie has used his position to pressure CPA branches to condemn Israeli violence in Palestine, following the flaring up of the conflict in Gaza at the beginning of this year, which saw Dewan Rakyat meeting in a special sitting to unanimously resolve to protest Israel's actions.
Not that this in itself is not a noble deed, just like his promise to fight poverty and save the environment. But similarly, his objective should really be to empower elected representatives to stand for these or other causes in their own capacity, not to leverage their influence to achieve his own targets.
Ultimately, the sad fact is that Shafie has and will be unable to commit to the problems facing CPA members. A few members and staff remember how Shafie had to cut short a CPA visit to attend to his duties back in Malaysia.
Being a fulltime minister and an Umno vice-president are already huge strains on any politician's back. One can't help but feel that with the added CPA portfolio, something has to take the backseat.
On top of that, it is nearly inarguable that Barisan Nasional (BN) is not interested in releasing its grip of the media. In this way, his interests are already in conflict.
In any case, there is an argument that a member of Cabinet is not an ideal person to head the CPA. Parliament must seek to oversee, investigate and draw boundaries for the government, including its executive branch, which is where the conscience of a government backbencher becomes crucial.
Of course, not many BN backbenchers have ever been too critical of its Cabinet. But ideally, a senior backbencher should chair the CPA. This person would have the most motivation to empower members of the legislative with respect to government decision-making. Even with regards to media space, many backbenchers stand to gain plenty of publicity should the press be free to choose its news.
The CPA brings together a company of legislators elected by over two billion people. It has massive potential to make a positive impact in dozens of nations. But the body itself has no force of legitimacy. It is only through the democratic processes of these nations, that Shafie, or any other leader in the CPA can wield any influence.
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read the above. Now you understand why our govt tries to control the media and even the internet cos they do not want to be accountable nor allow us to think for ourselves. The prefer to control what we read, feed us information and limit our thinking so that they can go their merry way and be in power and do what they like while enjoying on tax payers benefit