Penang is still the right “market” for MUDA. It just needs to step up its game

Nearly three years after being trounced in the 2023 state elections, Muda appears subdued - particularly in Penang. 

The party fielded 19 candidates in the elections—three of them in Penang—and all of them lost to the point of forfeiting their election deposits. The party had previously fielded a parliamentary candidate in Kepala Batas in the 2022 general elections, Danial Abdul Majeed, who lost in a three-way contest to PAS-Perikatan Nasional. 

However, Danial managed to keep his election deposits, winning 14,214 votes, without a doubt thanks to the backing of PH voters in the constituency.

Suffice it to say, the young party had a rocky start in Penang. However, all is not lost for the party yet. 

Right market, right ideology

While Muda’s critics might say that the party would never be able to re-establish itself in Penang (or in other states) - I would say to the contrary that the party has the potential of establishing itself in the Pulau Mutiara.

Why do I say so? Because the party has the right sets of ideologies, and Penang is the right market for the party to sell its ideas.

Muda underwent a rejuvenation exercise last year- where it embraced social democracy as its guiding ideology, putting rest to speculation on what ideology it espouses. The party also adopted needs-based affirmative action policies, especially in the education sector - which is a bold move given how unpopular the position is among certain quarters.

By adopting these ideas, Muda should be able to see itself being received well by non-Malays, who are the majority in Penang, as well as liberal or moderate Malays here.

Muda has the right set of ideas that is direly needed for Penang - which I believe deserves a much better class of opposition parties. PN - especially PAS -  is way too extreme in engaging in ethnoreligious politics. 

We have seen how their MPs accused Lim Kit Siang's family of ties to communist leaders and engaged in ridiculous moral policing by admonishing a shopping mall for openly selling alcoholic beverages on its grounds although there are no state or federal laws that prohibit the malls from doing so.

And their non-Muslim tokens, sorry allies - like Gerakan and the Malaysian Indian People’s Party (MIPP) are proven to be incapable of reining PAS’s extremism.

Their state assemblymen have been subpar in their performance in terms of providing checks and balances to the state government on a myriad of issues - except for Seberang Jaya assemblyman Izhar Shah Arif Shah. Apart from water issues, land reclamation issues and Islamic affairs, the PN assemblymen could not do much to keep Komtar in check. 

PAS-PN’s politics and their vision of how a society should be run are incompatible with a state like Penang that takes pride in its rich multiracial identity. The state deserves opposition parties that celebrate its diversity and could champion progressive, moderate politics.

This is where Muda comes into the scene.

What should Muda be doing in Penang now?

Before I go further, I need to clearly state here that I am in no way accusing Muda of being completely absent in Penang. The party is still here, and it has been helping the public in times of disaster such as the floods that hit Penang last year through aid missions and would occasionally issue statements on the happenings in Penang and also the country. 

However, I view that the party should be doing more to make its case for representation in Penang now.  There are Penangites (especially non-Malays) who are unhappy about the state of politics in Penang, but they could not bring themselves to support PN - whose politics are antithetical to their values. Penang Muda should be keeping their eyes on these undecided voters.

Penang MUDA’s leadership cadre should publicise its stances on local issues in Penang such as the state’s obsession with building more roads that would pave the way (no pun intended here) for more traffic congestion, public transportation issues, local council elections, land reclamation policies, fishermen affairs, green spaces, hillside developments, heritage preservation, food security issues, poor urban planning, pollution, and absolute poverty problem in the state. 

At the end of the day, a sound, realistic manifesto for Penang should be formulated from research done by the party on these issues.

State party leaders should utilise their social media accounts by regularly posting commentary videos on any policies introduced by the state, and provide suggestions on how Komtar can improve its quality of service delivery as the state opposition instead of merely acting as armchair critics. 

Compliment the policies if they are good, and call out the policies if they are bad. There should be no room for self-censorship from Muda. You have free speech rights, use it as long as your commentaries are factual and not defamatory.

Penang Muda leaders should also attend Penang state legislative sittings as observers and closely follow public interest issues raised throughout the sessions. These sessions are a goldmine for content creation on policy discussions if they can play the game well. 

Apart from doing these things, the party should also continue networking with the existing civil society groups. Engage with well-established NGOs like ALIRAN, Penang Forum, Penang Heritage Trust, JEDI Network for Ecology and Climate, Penang Forum and Consumer Association of Penang. 

Use the avenues that these groups would be able to offer by co-hosting public forums that would promote MUDA to Penangites. They should be able to send representatives to speak up on forums hosted by these groups on state issues. Hold a mega forum in the state and publicise it well to get at least 500 to 1,000 people to attend it and listen to what the party can offer to Penang first-hand.

They should also network with ethnic-based associations like clan associations or business chambers which can help them formulate economic development policies as long as they do not deviate from their social democratic ideals.

Focus more on Penang

Of course, national issues are important - but Penang Muda has to leave it to its top brass - particularly acting president Amira Aisya Abd Aziz and founder Syed Muar MP Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman to speak up on them. Penang Muda leaders should be focussing on addressing Penang issues more. 

Additionally, the party needs to look out for holding public fundraising as well as seeking donors who are not tainted enough to put the party in a bad spotlight. 

Last but not least - the party should be working on creating the best candidates to contest in seats that are suitable for MUDA to penetrate. I have to be honest here, the party has erred in fielding problematic candidates in the 2023 state elections which placed the party under hot soup by the public. It cannot afford to repeat the mistake.

If Penang MUDA can accomplish all these things, I am optimistic that the party will be able to win some seats in the near future or even after a few election cycles.

Yes, the party would have to go through a long, tumultuous journey to be elected in the state - where they would have to brace for repeated election losses.

They should look up to Penang DAP, which went through that journey for decades as an underdog that was facing the behemoth that was Gerakan-Barisan Nasional. Thanks to the resilience shown by leaders like the late Karpal Singh, Tan Sri Lim Kit Siang, Chow Kon Yeow, Dato’ Seri Chong Eng and Dato’ Seri Phee Boon Poh - the party has now become an unshakable political force in this state.

Penang MUDA needs to learn from DAP if it wants to play the long game and survive in Penang. Winning a seat or two in the state assembly will require a lot of trial and error, but it would be a worthy struggle. 

After all, Penangites need them. It is just that they are yet to see what the new Penang MUDA is all about. And Penang MUDA is yet to show what they are all about.  - February 5, 2025