LETTER | Recently, I watched a documentary on France in the aftermath of its revolution in 1789. It was more of trying to refresh the European history I learned in school after seeing the zeal of post-May 9 general election being gradually dwindled and now almost dissipated.

The history taught us that the revolution’s short passion for “Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity” unfortunately led to nothing much but a prolonged period of chaos, endless Napoleonic wars and the restoration of the monarchy. Many died in vain and true reforms had hardly materialised until much later.

With that, many are now saying reforms and changes are never easy. Therefore, we must give Pakatan Harapan more time and more understanding.

Unfortunately, Harapan has not learnt from history, despite in a much enviable position than France after the revolution. Reforms and changes are not taking place not because the opposition and the reactionary forces are strong. It is because Harapan is regressing, engaging in infighting and abandoning the ideals lock, stock and barrel.

The fissures have clearly appeared between the component parties in Harapan as well as within each party. Instead of practising democracy where executive actions are monitored and circumscribed, it is the other way round, not unlike the previous regime.

We can see the same inept policies and practices of the old being put in place again – the same antics that failed us miserably in the past. We are also seeing those who have not contributed much to the cause of Harapan being rewarded with positions of power and responsibility while those who sacrificed much were being side-lined, much to our chagrin.

We recognise our former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak was a big problem. But have we forgotten the numerous problems that existed before him?

Have we forgotten why Pak Lah was so popular when he first took office as PM? I think even then the people have already grown frustrated with the baloney that was going on. It looks like we are going to repeat the same old things that gave rise to those problems in the past.

If Harapan politicians can’t honour the agreement among themselves, how can we ever expect them to honour their manifesto promised to the people? Is there any wonder why we are getting nowhere?

Instead of being humble, Harapan turned arrogant, intransigent and aggressive in their defence of the indefensible. They were rude in their defence against the use of fake degrees and false representations. They are stubborn with their defence of policies which are unlikely to work. They are doing all this with impunity simply because there is no effective and capable opposition left.

It looks like Malaysia has gone full circle after much struggle and sacrifice. Many of us may not even know what is going on now in the government if not for Sarawak Report and the contributions of some activists in the social media. So much for transparency and good governance that Harapan is roaring about.

They talked and condemned so much on opaqueness, corruption, cronyism and patronage. But they have largely side-tracked why and how a two-ringgit company was given a big contract by a state government without open tender and why and how a lottery company was used to sponsor our top-notched police personnel to go on a “study tour” on illegal online gambling.

Now the worst has come. Harapan is now recruiting and accepting MPs from the opposition, some of whom were known for their archaic views. Some within Harapan have supported the move, arguing that these politicians must be allowed the opportunity to repent and change. But why didn’t they change and repent before the general election? Anything that happens after power has changed hand must be taken with a heavy pinch of salt.

It is clear to me that those who supported the admission of former Umno MPs into Harapan are doing it for their own political survival and manoeuvring, not so much for the good of the country and its people. In what way could seven additional former Umno MPs help Harapan to become a better government? Also, why get cold feet when Harapan is about to face another by-election, thinking that the Malays will not support them? Harapan has one term to prove itself even if it loses Semenyih. Why procrastinate and waver between reform and pandering?

How could we ever have sympathy for Harapan because of their inexperience when problems are being generated out of their insatiable desire for power and to dominate one another within the coalition? How could we ever understand the difficulties and the daunting challenges they faced when all we see are infighting, incompetence, old habits and arrogance among Harapan politicians?

Harapan must get its bearings right. It is pointless to keep saying Umno-BN was worse. Firstly, Umno-BN is not Harapan’s teacher. Secondly, Harapan should strike to do better, not comparing who is doing worse.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.