Selangor\’s trip to Abilene

I have written previously about the ‘trip to Abilene’. After Perak, the Pakatan Rakyat governments of Selangor and Penang now seem ripe for such a trip.

To review, what is this ‘trip’? According to Jerry Harvey, one of my teachers, this happens when any group of people unintentionally goes on a journey which they all know that they will not like or to which they agree consciously.

On reaching their non-agreed but implicitly approved destination, they assign blame to one another for the ‘irresponsible action’. Usually the blame takes the form of identifying a small group of ‘decision-makers’ pushing forward and punishing one ‘scapegoat’. Sounds familiar?

Harvey argues that this happens to all of us and all the time, whether we are in small or big groups. The only problem is we do not have a rational model to understand and explain such behaviour. His book, ‘Abilene Paradox and Other Meditations on Management’, tries to do this. I worked for Harvey when he was finishing this book.

Observing and appreciating this conundrum from the ‘other side’, premier Najib Abdul Razak and his Selangor Umno colleagues have declared the state a war zone in political terms.

Najib’s intention is to take back Selangor; and his demonstrated leadership model of the ‘takeover’of Perak makes me believe that his threat or war cry must be taken seriously.

Where does the Selangor government stand in all of this? I believe that it is also taking a trip to Abilene and early symptoms are now visible. The proposed ban on the sale of alcohol in Muslim-dominated parts of the state was the second symptom of the problem.

Selangor PAS commissioner and exco member Hasan Ali directly attacked another exco member by name and asked for his removal from his portfolio.

The problem is that Selangor PAS wants a ban on alcohol sales in areas that are under local government jurisdiction. The first sign of trouble was when one local authority passed a motion on this.

On the other side of the divide are PAS moderates like Dzulkifli Ahmad and Khalid Samad who propose other ways to teach the young how to manage their lives without developing a taste for beer. If any chooses to follow my simple example, choose root beer and ginger beer instead.

Bring in discipline

What is the real problem in Selangor or Perak or Penang then? The so-called ‘Pakatan’ has (or had in Perak’s case) a government but not a set of agreed values for good governance.

Governments cannot govern in isolation. They need to collaborate with other players – the private sector on the one side and the community on the other side. Unless the three parties act in concert; much like in a symphony orchestra, they cannot provide good governance.

In case the Selangor government has forgotten, there was an explicit basis on which we the people threw out the corrupt Umno-led government. It was a clear and thoughtful conscious action to support the PKR cry for good governance that saw even PAS candidates being voted in.

They include popular role models like Khalid (Top) , who walked into a Shah Alam church for a dialogue, and Dzulkifli (Bottom) who has written rationally on many issues.

Mr Menteri Besar, it is not good enough to say that the sale of alcohol will not be banned in Selangor. Please take leadership of this issue and observe the principle of ‘rule of law’. If Hasan cannot agree to disagree agreeably, tell him to resign his seat and give the exco post to a more deserving candidate like Khalid, who is rational and reasonable.

What I would really like to know is how you, as chief executive of the state, are going to create a solid framework for a whip and discipline in Pakatan. I know you are a loose coalition of unlikely bedfellows but you are the state government – voted in to run the state and move it towards good governance.

Please provide the requisite leadership or you all will be replaced in 2013. There is no reason to get distracted; please keep your focus. You started well in handling the problem with your first executive councillor by even getting the Sultan involved in seeking a solution.

My sincere prayer is that Selangor government will take executive charge of real issues and concerns of the people. Stop squabbling like little children over petty issues. May God bless the nation with good governance!