The making and breaking of political legacies

Najib Razak was just 23 years old when his father, the second prime minister of Malaysia, passed away due to leukaemia.

The death of Abdul Razak Hussein turned Najib into an immediate candidate for his parliamentary seat of Pekan, despite his age and the widespread perception of him being still wet behind the ears. 

Several decades later, Najib was appointed as the sixth prime minister, replacing Abdullah Badawi and continuing his father's legacy in Malaysia's political arena. 

Today, he is behind bars, serving a 12-year jail term for corruption and criminal breach of trust which has thrown into doubt the continuation of his family's political legacy. 

He and his wife, Rosmah Mansor, have four children, three of whom were appointed to positions in Umno during the party elections in March.

But their efforts to rally support do not appear to have generated much in the way of results.

Independent observer Akwa Mahzan said political legacies depend on sympathy for a figure due to two main factors: the individual's personality, and the struggle carried throughout his or her political career. 

"When it comes to political legacies or politics that continue from parent to child, it's all about who is good at gaining sympathy," he said. 

Speaking to MalaysiaNow, he gave the example of Nurul Izzah Anwar, the daughter of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim whom he said gained support due to public sympathy for her father's "reformasi" movement. 

"For Khairy Jamaluddin, it was because he is the son-in-law of Pak Lah, who is now in poor health," he added, referring to Badawi by his nickname. 

"Najib, on the other hand, gained public sympathy due to his criminal cases."

According to Akwa, though, Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was an outlier in this regard. 

"People don't feel sorry for him," he said. "In fact, they see him as having committed an act of betrayal." 

And, like the children of Najib, Akwa said, Zahid's daughter Nurulhidayah Zahid appeared unable to continue her father's political legacy. 

"This was clear in the defeat she suffered in the race for the position of Bagan Datuk Umno women's chief, even though her own father is the MP for the constituency," he said. 

"She won at the central level but lost in her own father's backyard." 

Types of legacies

While the child of any politician would be able to continue the influence of his or her parent in the political arena, Akwa said, the extent of their success would depend on whether or not they were rejected by the people – even in areas where their parents had served for a long time. 

He said such sentiments were difficult to control and expand on. 

"In the case of Nurulhidayah, she was unable to shrug off previous controversies such as her open remark that women are not born to be leaders, and not to mention the fact that her father is embroiled in dozens of corruption cases in court," he said. 

In Malaysia, he said, political legacies normally fall into several categories. 

First is the relationship between parent and child, such as that of Nurul Izzah and Anwar, as well as her mother, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.

Muhammad Faiz Fadzil, meanwhile, the son of former PAS president Fadzil Noor, is now with Amanah and contested the Permatang Pasir state assembly seat at the 14th general election in 2018. 

Then, there is the relationship between in-laws, like former Umno man Khairy and his father-in-law, Badawi. 

While Badawi himself has long since retired from politics, Akwa said Khairy's legacy had room to expand due to his track record while holding important government positions.

"Who does not remember his success, whether as the youth and sports minister, the health minister, or in any other government portfolio?" he said. 

"These positions were given to the right person, and that legacy can still continue." 

Akwa also pointed out the relationship between the children of politicians, citing the so-called "DAP dynasty" among the children of party veteran Lim Kit Siang. 

"How would we describe political legacies of this nature?" he said. "From the father, or otherwise?

"If the people elevate an individual as their representative in the government, it is not nepotism but democracy, because these people still voted. 

"But we can look at what kind of a victory it was, whether it was by a slim margin or a landslide. Legacies are well and fine, but if you contest an election and no one knows, that won't work, either." 

He said this was what happened to Faiz, who lost in Penang at the 2018 election. 

"Either the legacy didn't arrive, or it was misplaced," he said.