The curse of the political frogs

COMMENT | In Malaysia, one does not need anthropologists to study the group of people we call politicians, or political analysts to study their motives. One needs a zoologist, in particular, a herpetologist who studies frogs, because political frogs are the most dangerous species in our political zoo.

Political frogs cause instability as they make people mistrust and despise politicians. They alter the political equation and neglect to honour the voting public that put them in power. They make political donors regret giving money to their cause. They create tension and discord among parties of their own coalition, and they make us weary of voting.

Among the animals in the Malaysian zoo are the solitary fox, lemmings which willingly do as they are told, cocks which make a lot of noise at certain times, bulls which imagine they are macho but produce a lot of rubbish from one end of their anatomy.

There are also double-headed snakes which will betray you with their hypocrisy, rhinos with their impenetrable thick skin which will charge at you when their sensitivities are pricked, pigs which treat women badly or willingly grab business opportunities for themselves or their cronies, and of course, the frogs.

Frogs are an important part of the food chain because they help to control the population of insects but in Malaysian politics, frogs are a political tool used by unprincipled leaders, to betray the public. Leaders who lack integrity and are desperate to enlarge their power base use frogs. It is all about power...