By Prof Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi

In 2021, Malaysians must make a serious decision about Umno.

This seems a strange statement to make after Malaysians unanimously rejected Umno and Barisan Nasional in the 14th general election and waited expectantly for the oldest political party in the country to die a sudden death.

That was in 2018. However, 2020 brought a strange twist of fate and now in 2021, I, of all people, will have to ask Malaysians to consider whether they should give Umno a second life within the old spirit of multicultural cooperation that was its trademark and political heritage before Tun Mahathir destroyed it and made it a Malay elite cash cow for their own purposes.

Umno must also do its own soul searching in 2021. It must ask itself whether it would uphold the spirit that made it great for half a century and as the backbone of Malaysian politics, or, it must throw itself in cahoots with two political parties of which one has an extremist ideology of survival at all cost whilst the other wants a puritanical religious morality skewed to one race and group interest unfit for a modern world.

The Talibanization of Malaysia has begun with the insult to Indians in the mabuk todi incident, the closing of non-halal shops in supermarkets, the no Merry Christmas icing on cakes, the no Miss or Mrs Pageant Plus for ladies of special sizes and the zero funding for vernacular education, except for one race.

Which way will Umno go? Recently, we hear some Umno leaders opening the door for a new coalition idea that would have Umno as a main player.

Like most Malaysians, I have a love-hate relationship with Umno until I found wisdom in age, challenges and concerns for my Malaysian brethren' future.

Why should I, a Malay and a Muslim, care about the dark future for 39 other ethnic and many religious groups in the country?

Well, first and foremost, the Islam I learned from reading the traditions of Prophet Muhammad clearly stipulated that no injustices must be done to all men, including to non-Muslims.

I stand apart from my fellow Malays and Muslims who think that it is the duty of a Malay and a Muslim to defend the dignity of Islam and my race at all cost… regardless.

Secondly, as a Malaysian, I believe this country is for all citizens sealed in a relationship of 'persaudaraan' or family in order to survive the challenges of a global future.

There is nothing pious or patriotic in my decision and stand. I just want to treat all people with due dignity as I would like them to treat me and my family. Is that so difficult to fathom?

Well, yes…but what about supporting Umno once again…are you serious?

Many have asked me that shocking question, including my own children.

I said that I am both an idealist and a pragmatic man who separates the actions of the individual from the entity of the organization.

Firstly, Umno is not Najib, Ku Nan or Zahid. It is not even Tun M, it never was. Tun M is Tun M. Najib is Najib and Ku Nan is Ku Nan.

After Umno lost all its idealist leaders like Tun Razak, Tun Dr Ismail, Dato' Onn and Tunku Abdul Rahman, the new leadership of Umno came from what I call 'the Gurkha' group, a group of Umno members who are street fighters and kaki pengikut whose role is to shout, bang tables, show keris now and again and rabble rouse their way to support from a gullible Malay audience in battle cries after battle cries.

This new group of leaders have no ideology, no vision for the country and have absolutely no desire to help anyone but themselves, their wives and their children at the expense of the Malays and Malaysians who kais pagi makan pagi, kais petang makan petang.

My argument for opening the possibility and necessity of allowing Umno once again to lead a BN-like coalition of the first three decades is predicated on the events of history.

When PH won at the votes of mostly non-Malays, Malaysia burned with hateful WhatsApp messages from Malay professors, teachers, ustazs, lawyers, doctors and most uneducated and the highly educated society that spelled certain disaster for Malaysia. The transition from ethnic politics hinges on a new kind of education construct and that cannot see the light of day if there is no strong Malay presence that see a different future for Malays and Malaysians in the global arena.

Secondly, I ask Malaysians to separate the man from the activities or things that was done. Shall we condemn the whole existence of someone like Tun M or even Najib because of a few things that they have done that were illegal and disastrous to Malaysians? Yes the deeds were wrong and must be punished but is that reason to reject the whole person?

Similarly we must separate Umno or MCA or MIC from the rapacious appetite and selfish desires of certain leaders that come and won't go easily or quietly.

We must remember the peace that BN and the Alliance had provided with only two scars of racial unrest. I call that a pretty good record. If there were any Malaysian who would condemn the BN and Umno for these two scars, then I say let the first man with no sin throw the first stone. I believe if we ever found out the real perpetrators of the two racial unrest, or the kidnappings of our beloved Raymond Koh and others or the murderers of Teoh Beng Hock, we must punish these individuals. But do not punish the history of parties like Umno, MCA or coalitions that worked as true Malaysians.

In life we must give a second chance to all. Sometimes even a third or a fourth. For my own children, there is no number of times that I pose as a limit to forgiving them or striving to help them.

What is the alternative for not supporting a new coalition with Umno possibly as a major player? We are set to lose our very liberties with individuals and academics who are desperate, arrogant and selfish enough to seek emergency powers and destroy the dignity of parliament.

We must also brace for the actions of religious extremists bent on destroying shrines, hunting down innocent people with 'abnormal sexual habits' and encourage separation between faiths because only one faith is clean while the others are considered dirty, foul and immoral.

Finally, some will say that my choice boils down to choosing the lesser of two evils. I say let's not stereotype or condemn a whole entity just because of a few bad leaders. In doing what is best for all, we must look to a different approach to our problems and tackle them one by one and step by step.

If we close all avenues, then we trap ourselves into a single-only solution that I believe will destroy the nation.

In many ways, it is not Umno that is at the crossroads, it is us Malaysians who have a chance to reset the nation as kingmakers of our promised future.

Thus, in 2021, we must all clear our minds, open our hearts and reset the chess board for a new game plan of Malaysian politics!

(Professor Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi is Professor at a local university.)