CORDOBA ALI | SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 12:10 PM:- The ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) is a popular party in this part of the world, where the people have great respect for the government of Malaysia.
But this is slowly waning away, with the scandals that has hit Prime Minister Najib Razak's regime in the recent months.
The respect the previous Malaysian regimes had, reached its highest point when the Malaysian flag was raised during the 'merdeka day' in Indonesia, an extraordinary event that took place in 2007.
This was during Abdullah Badawi's tenure as Prime Minister. He carried the respect of the Indonesian people, reviving the tarnished image Malaysia left after the jailing of Anwar Ibrahim, former deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance under the Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad regime.
Anwar had always been a popular figure in Indonesia.
His jailing and the cases against him were seen as politically tainted, and the Indonesian in their majority felt it was a gross injustice done to the hero of the masses.
Nevertheless, the people of Indonesia kept their respect for Tun M, and saw the reasons for renewed faith in Malaysia after the freeing of Anwar by Pak Lah.
Indonesia was rigged by the issues of corruption, and Bengalis as well as Riau felt the pressure from Jakarta which refused to grant them more autonomy and a larger share of the economic pie.
Riau is a major oil and gas producer, and provides other natural resources to the government installed in Java.
As a form of protest, pictures of the Malaysian flag at full mast, hosted in Bengkalis town the protester standing next to it went viral on the Internet in Indonesia in 2005.
The removal of Pak Lah and the coming of Najib as the new Prime Minister in 2009 was seen as a transition period by the Indonesians.
There were still hope of an Anwar comeback, perhaps as a move to thaw the souring relations between the two Muslim majority neighbors over issues of foreign workers bullying, the Ambalat Islets and other encroaching issues.
With Anwar out of the picture following the 2013 defeat of the opposition pack, the Pakatan Rakyat in the elections, and his recent jailing on a sodomy count, the tide of public opinion in Bengkalis turned against Najib.
The 1MDB issue, coupled with the RM2.6 billion-donation-by-a-secret-donor-to-fight-ISIS, are at the roots of the spinning machine that is weaving a web of mistrust in the minds of the people.
From Jakarta, to Pekan Baru and Bengkalis the conversations at coffee stalls are about the incredible story of Najib using his personal private banking account to receive a massive US$700 million in cash, from a bank in Singapore.
No doubt it is, the tongues are wagging and accusations are flaring against Najib from left and right, while some are still showing a degree of support to the Malaysian PM.
One thing comes out clearly from the coffee shops, and local offices, in Bengkalis: Najib is now seen in a different light, with people commenting that he is a master spinner or a trickster.
Never has a Malaysian leader in office seen so much negative coverage in Indonesia, starting with the old cases that does not seem to be going away and the new ones that has piled up on his shoulders.
Another one pointed out that the Malaysian leader's problems were not going to be resolved, because of the heavy spinning, and the wheeling and dealing that is going on within the UMNO.
The division within the party, seen in Johor, has spilled to Bengkalis where the people have associated themselves with Malaysia for decades.
The firing of Muhyiddin Yasin, the dismissal of the Attorney General Gani Patail and the sticky 1MDB issue with the money trail allegedly pointing to the leader's account, has gone down badly in Riau.
Many of the kampung folks in the state have an emotional link to Malaysia.
it is not rare to find someone who has a brother or a cousin who holds the Malaysian Permanent Residence (PR).
Some even have a father or mother who hails from Johor for example, but living in Indonesia for years because this is the place they call home.
The sentiments on Bengkalis Island is that the Najib regime is damaged, but the surprise is the people do not understand how the latter is still clinging to power.
For the Malay-Muslim community of Riau, where the people speak Bahasa Melayu and watches TV3 shows and news reports, the hopes are dimmed by the recurring scandals with the added fact that it does not appear that it will be resolved soon.
Malaysia, for many, is an iconic nation seen as exemplary with its economic progress and apparent social justice (at least towards the Malay-Muslims) appreciated by the Muslims in general.
They see Tun Mahathir as an icon, who led Malaysia to greater heights, though they are not supportive of his actions against Anwar.
Malaysia's attachment to Islam, the promotion of moderation and the political domination of the Malays are also seen positively by the Riau citizens in particular.
However, Najib's rule suffers negative sentiments from the sleepy townships and villages, sentiments that persist as long as there is no final resolution to the problems plaguing the current regime
