Sorry, which majority again?

The better our understanding of democracy, political government and people power, the more we can contribute to nation building.

WHEN we say democracy, we say that “it is the government of the people, by the people, for the people”.

This sounds very nice in textbooks and speeches, and those who hear them simply love to clap to show that they approve of it.

Approve of what actually? Of course we would expect the elected government to represent the people’s general interest, especially in safeguarding and increasing the general welfare of the people in critical aspects of their lives.

We would not expect the elected government to discriminate unfairly on the basis of ethnicity, religion, economic class or partisan affiliations. We would expect the government to implement affirmative actions for its citizens who are intrinsically disadvantaged in various ways and areas.

This is both a compassionate and sound socio-economic move. If the existing laws are naturally unfair to the disadvantaged, we would amend the laws. So too if a certain law is unfairly advantageous to a certain segment of the population at the expense of the other, we would amend them. The goal is to ensure harmony, economic fair play, a level playing field of opportunities and a spirit of nationhood.

It becomes ugly and unjust when the political government affords opportunities only to those who are its cronies, party supporters or a segment of the population which it needs for its political base at the expense of the others.

While such an act may sustain its political base, it will in the long run cause a crack in the base of the nation. It is due to such concerns that the people must forever be vigilant that the government is indeed “of the people”.

The question remains though: Is it factually true that the “government is by the people” or is it a democratic myth?

The answer depends on how you want to look at it. In our democracy, the federal government is formed by the majority coalition of elected members of Parliament or in the case of the states, by the majority members of State Assembly.

The Pakatan Harapan government, for instance, is a coalition of the elected members who happen to belong to several political parties – PKR being the party with the largest number of elected representatives (47) and Amanah being the smallest (11).

Let’s look at the concept of “majority” in the context of our discussion. Majority here does not refer to the majority of the population but to the majority of the voters who actually voted. For example, Pakatan Harapan won about 53% of the votes, which is about 5.6 million votes. Therefore Pakatan Harapan won a simple majority of the votes actually cast.

In this game, the political government is said to be the government by the majority of the people, which is factually not true. The fact is that it is the majority government by the people who actually voted. This is because the number of Malaysians who are eligible to be registered as voters is about 18.3 million.

Seen from this context, the political government is elected by 28.6% of the eligible voting population (5.6 million divided by 18.3 million), hence a government by the minority of the population and even of the eligible voters.

This is factual democracy. This kind of situation happens almost every time in general elections everywhere. I am highlighting this to show that political parties can be the government by not even getting a majority of the eligible voters if the voters do not register.

This also shows something significant – the majority of the population do not really believe that politicians are important in their lives. If they did, they would have voted or at least registered as voters. I would thus propose that the majority of the actual population has a momentary tolerance for politicians.

This mathematical fact is important because it explains the political psyche of political parties and why they behave the way they do. It also explains the “for the people” part of the saying, namely for which people. However, it is too complex to be discussed extensively in this article.

Briefly, however, a few things can be observed. The first is that if the voting is done along religious, ethnic or economic class lines, it would be reasonable to expect that the elected government would prioritise the wishes of those who voted it into power.

For example, if the government won on religious lines, you can expect the elected government to prioritise religious policies and favour the religious groups. This is simply because they want to maintain and solidify their political support base. However, do not expect this type of government to come up with workable and effective economic polices because that is not what you voted for. You get what you vote for.

Secondly, it is important to realise that the duty of the people in nation building and their role in democracy does not end on voting day, which is the beginning of managing the country together with their respective elected representatives. You voted for them based on their manifesto and potential and what you had hoped for in them. You have four years at least before the next election to ensure that you constantly remind and assist your elected representatives to implement the policies you had hoped for.

Thirdly, you must constantly be aware that politicians will always play politics the way doctors always practise medicine. Constant politicking will have a negative disruptive effect on the progress of the nation and will destabilise economic and social settings.

Let us remind ourselves that we have already wasted 20 years of resources which could be channelled towards nation building due to intense politicking since 1998. The people should therefore constantly voice out that politicians should, after being elected, behave like statesmen who are churning out policies and take actions that benefit the people.

Fourthly, the people must realise that their role is actually the most important role in determining the direction and progress of the nation – the civil society, pressure groups, associations and so on. Putting aside most of the party members, the other segments of the population ought to be united and engage in mutual consultations to come up with various policies, ideas and programmes. These can then be proposed to the government of the day.

The majority who did not vote are the apolitical ones. Now that the elections and mad politickings are over, they should get into the business of ensuring that the nation progresses in such a way the every citizen who wants to can live a dignified life.

So, whenever you say that democracy is a government by the majority, ask yourself: “Which majority?”