What is a winnable candidate in Malaysia?
According to the New Straits
Times, “The catch-phrase "winnable candidates" is gaining a lot of
currency since it was first bandied about over a year ago by Umno leaders.” Frankly,
I am not sure if I should be amused or annoyed by this strange usage of the adjective
“winnable”. My hunch is that Simon Winchester may actually frown upon this new meaning UMNO politicians have assigned to "winnable".
In my humble opinion, it’s
something of a misnomer to refer to someone as a “winnable candidate”. Winnable
refers to something that can be won, not someone who can win. A war or a battle
is winnable, an election or a parliamentary seat may be winnable, but a
candidate who can win is not “winnable”, unless he is like the infamous three
Perak MP’s: can be won over by money politics to change the government! J
So, back to semantics, does UMNO
want to field “winnable” candidates (who can be won over by money politics or
even PKR?) or candidates who can win?
