Khairy Jamaluddin: a Sketch of a Young Man As a Politician
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PP3739/12/2006 ISSN 0127 - 5127 / RM4.00 / 2006:Vol.26No.8 Aliran Monthly : Vol.26(8) Page 1 COVER STORY Khairy Jamaluddin: A sketch of a young man as a politician Foreign-schooled, Oxford-educated, journalist, television show producer, and investment banker by Khoo Boo Teik uring the heady days of 1998–99, many DD apologists for the regime repeatedly asked, DDD ‘Will the real Anwar Ibrahim stand up?’ The question was asked with feigned wonderment as if the possibility of an inconsistent politician had struck the questioner for the first time. The truth of its answer, though, wasn’t important. The point of the question was to insinuate that ‘DSAI’ (Dat Sri Anwar Ibrahim) was an opportun- ist and to discredit Reformasi for supporting some- one of dubious virtue. Remember that. Now think how Khairy Jamaluddin (KJ) looms as a central, if shadowy, figure in the spat between Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad (TDM) and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Khairy: The master manipulator whom Mahathir blames for 4th Floor’s sway over 5th Floor Badawi. Khairy looms as a central figure in the spat between Mahathir and Abdullah. Aliran Monthly : Vol.26(8) Page 2 EDITOR'S NOTE Our cover story focuses on Khairy Jamaluddin, a man of many ‘talents’. But who is the real Khairy? CONTENTS Were he not the premier’s son-in-law, would he have much in common with Abdullah Badawi, wonders Khoo Boo Teik. COVER STORY ••• Khairy Jamaluddin 222 While Khairy hogs the headlines, A J Patrick pays tribute to a towering Malaysian, the late Tan Sri B C Sekhar, who not only advanced research into natu- FEATURES ral rubber but was also extremely concerned about ••• Tan Sri BC Sekhar 888 plantation workers. K George, for his part, points ••• Workers, Know Your Rights! 111111 out that Malaysian workers are often unaware of ••• The Pope And The Legend Of labour law provisions and goes on to enlighten them The Sword 151515 about their basic rights. ••• Buying ‘Goodwill’ – RM4 Billion Meanwhile, the fallout from the Pope’s remarks quot- Worth Of It 212121 ing a medieval emperor continues to be felt. Uri ••• A Season Of Shame For The USA 252525 Avnery asks three questions: Why did the emperor ••• A Man Wronged – Part 2 272727 say those words? Are they true? And why did the Pope quote them? ••• Nazri, Here Are The New Facts 323232 ••• Let The Truth Surface 363636 On a lighter note, Khoo Boo Teik reviews a book on ••• Nazri, Cabinet Not Interested a subject close to our hearts – or rather stomachs: In JusticeJusticeIn 404040 Penang food, one of the few things here we can claim to be world-class! Anil Netto dives into another publication, the Au- REGULARS ditor General’s Report, and discovers that ‘good- ••• LettersLettersLetters 262626 will’ has its price: RM4 billion over four years, to be exact. OTHERSOTHERSOTHERS Wong Soak Koon is troubled by events further afield, ••• Subscription Form 181818 in the United States, where many seem to be willing ••• Book Review 191919 to condone a shameless disregard for due process. Someone who was on the receiving end of similar shameless disregard was Tun Salleh. We publish the second part of his rebuttal of the charges lev- elled against him. He also lobs new facts for Nazri Aziz to deal with. But P Ramakrishnan, in a damn- Published by ing article, concludes that Nazri and the Cabinet are simply not interested in justice. Aliran Kesedaran Negara (ALIRAN) 103, Medan Penaga, 11600 Jelutong, Penang, Malaysia. ALIRANALIRANALIRAN is a Reform Movement dedicated to Tel : (04) 658 5251 Fax : (04) 658 5197 Justice, Freedom & Solidarity and listed on the Email : [email protected] roster of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. Founded in 1977, Aliran welcomes Homepage : http://www.aliran.com all Malaysians above 21 to be members. Contact the Hon. Secretary or visit our webpage. Printed by Percetakan Tujuh Lapan Enam Sdn. Bhd. No. 16, Lengkangan Brunei, 55100 Pudu, Kuala Lumpur. Aliran Monthly : Vol.26(8) Page 3 There’s an- Put these together and there’s KJ other KJ: rap- the ‘MyTeam’ manager, the ‘Mat idly rising First Rempit’ patron, the basher of the Son-in-Law, Penang government and, not least, go-getting the ‘Out of the Cage’ columnist for UMNO Youth the New Straits Times. Deputy Presi- dent, and im- Try a different way of seeing posing tower things. Compare KJ with Anwar of power pos- and Mahathir when the latter two sessed of an were just immersing themselves in octopus-like politics. reach of influ- ence. Beside them, KJ looks young, too young to merit a serious evalua- This KJ is the tion as a politician, and too early Raja Petra has done more than anyone else to track ‘boy wonder’ into his career to know just where KJ's comings, goings, doings and undoings protagonist of and how things are going. The Khairy Is it surprising, then, that no one Chronicles whose ‘no holds barred’ UMNO’s tents from the Abdullah camp has producer, Raja Petra Kamarudin asked, or will ask, ‘Will the real (RPK), has done more than any- Naturally KJ and his allies will Khairy stand up?’ one else to track KJ’s comings, go- dispute the point about an obso- ings, doings, and undoings. This lete Malay nationalism. After all, Looking for KJ KJ is the master manipulator UMNO is strong again and many Mahathir blames for ‘4th Floor’s of its keris-waving leaders cling to One supposes that ‘KJ’ himself sway over 5th Floor’. an unfinished agenda. would rather not face that ques- tion in public. After all, any un- If RPK or Mahathir is to be be- KJ himself didn’t doubt UMNO’s wanted publicity from the tussle lieved, this image of KJ must be relevance. He shopped around, between PM and TDM could be fearsome to encounter. politically speaking, but rejected costly. Witness the forced sale of PAS and Keadilan. ‘When all his ECM Libra shares and his tear- Yet another image those around me in 1999 ran ful denial of the slur on his pri- away,’ he wrote, he entered ‘the vate affairs. There’s no compelling reason to big tent that is UMNO’. accept just one of these images. A Still, having gone public and politician, as the Chinese say, Five years later, KJ was deputy high-profile, KJ can’t avoid being speaks out of both sides of the chief of the lesser tent of UMNO split into different images, mak- mouth, and in mass politics an Youth in circumstances publicly ing one wish the ‘real KJ’ would aspiring leader seeks to be all related by Abdullah: ‘Hisha- stand up, if only to ease our con- things to all men. muddin says, “The Youth have fusion. decided, I have decided, I want to Yet, this much is already appar- nominate Khairy for Youth There’s KJ as the foreign-schooled, ent of KJ. He seems to represent deputy head, Pak Lah don’t dis- Oxford-educated, journalist, tel- the future; yet his recent politics turb, this is Youth affairs”.’ evision show producer, and in- was stuck with a Malay national- vestment banker. This image of a ism that Mahathir made obsolete In UMNO Youth’s history, KJ’s suave, urbane, corporate-savvy before he retired. KJ is careful to rise was not as spectacular as and liberal KJ is easy, that is, sim- remain in the public eye but his Anwar’s defeat of Suhaimi ple and non-threatening, to be- ways are so self-absorbed he can’t Kamaruddin for the UMNO hold. cut a truly public figure. Youth presidency in 1982, barely Aliran Monthly : Vol.26(8) Page 4 up and be counted. You took the plunge because you have some- thing to say. Say it. Do it. And never stop fighting until the fight is done. Light the fire.’ Such a homily might more suit- ably have been delivered by an older person. Here it’s part of KJ’s defending his decision to be a poli- tician with no sense of irony: ‘We owe it to this great profession [sic] to make it the career of choice for the best, brightest and most prin- cipled.’ Hishamuddin: The Youth have decided, I have decided... Pak Lah don’t disturb, this is Youth affairs Whereas C.H.E. Det’s essays were original, refreshing and bold, KJ’s a year after Anwar had joined wouldn’t learn the writer’s iden- insights in ‘Out of the Cage’ UMNO. tity. But one encountered a coher- scarcely rise above platitudes: ent Malay worldview and an ar- ‘Politics is not about power, posi- But, by 1982, the ideological im- ticulate young voice of Malay na- tion or personal wealth. Politics pact, organisational assets and tionalism. The C.H.E. Det essays is a process in which we can make popular standing Anwar had ended a quarter of a century be- a difference to others. Politics is gained from leading ABIM, pro- fore KJ was born. that fire in your belly that makes testing in Baling, languishing in you want to change the world. Kamunting, and heading the anti- A regular reader of ‘Out of the Politics is about the contestation Societies Act movement had made Cage’ will soon notice that KJ’s of ideas.’ him a youth of international column in NST is mostly about KJ prominence. – how he’s grown up in politics, Evidently, one can stay out of the his sponsorship of MyTeam, his cage without thinking outside the KJ in 2004 was still best known as problems with Mahathir, and so box.