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In a desperate bid to garner support for Barisan National (BN) in the 13th general election (GE13), former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said, “Better the devil you know than the angel you don’t”.
Well, he should know better! The exorcism of Malaysia is entering the final stages of a ritual that has taken several decades. Once our souls are cleansed, why on earth should we invite BN to possess us again?
During
the weekend, Mahathir posted an article entitled 'The so-called
intellectual' on his blog. He appeared to relish the attention given to
his actions and thoughts as PM, but he candidly declared, “I am not an
intellectual but I admit that I use my brain more often than most.”
He mocked the British for their “affirmative action” policies when they selected him to read medicine in Singapore, despite having poor results in his Senior Cambridge Examination.
This false denunciation did not stop him from implementing his version of affirmative action policies. In fact, he used them to justify his racist policies made under the pretext of helping the Malays.
In an earlier posting entitled 'Change', Mahathir poured scorn on United States (US) President Barack Obama and also Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim, because both promised change. Mahathir criticised Obama for breaking his promises to the American people and he predicted that Anwar would fail the rakyat.
The gist of the piece was to beseech Malaysians to vote BN in the forthcoming election, but it is disingenuous of him to suggest that both Obama and Anwar are failures.
Mahathir
said: “Making promises during campaigns for elections is easy. Keeping
them is a different matter. The best hope is that people’s memory is
short. They would normally forget the promises... Now the opposition in
Malaysia have copied Obama (right) and is promising change”.
Mahathir is the one with selective memory. The government which he led for 22 years also made several promises but reneged on many.
We
are also to blame. Instead of questioning the government on its failed
policies and making them accountable for their actions, every year, some
of us welcome the sacks of rice, tins of Milo, sarees, outboard motors, shopping trips to Medan or Haadyai as inducements to vote for BN.
We have come to expect these offerings more than we believe BN’s promises that our lives will be improved. Are we suckers, masochists or just gullible fools? Surely 55 years of trying, and failing is stretching the axiom ‘try and try again until you succeed’.
Mahathir warned that the opposition would turn Malaysia into a welfare state; but hasn’t BN’s policies turned the nation into a nanny state? Moreover, Malays are already living in a version of the welfare state.
The discriminatory policies crippled the Malays and divided the nation. Malays lost the competitive edge and therefore, it is dishonest of Mahathir to insult the Malays by calling them incompetent and lazy. The simple truth, which some Malays refuse to accept, is that they have become dependent on handouts.
The young Mahathir encountered much poverty in the Malay community. To be fair to him, his experiences then, and later, when he served as a doctor, will have shaped some of his policies.
An
able and just leader would have helped everyone. Then, as now, poverty
knows no boundaries and is not defined by race or religion. How does
Mahathir the PM justify helping only the Malays? He did little to help
his own race. Many Indians are still very poor.
For decades, our lives have increasingly become dictated by Putrajaya and we have come to depend on subsidies. These are akin to the rakyat being given a sugar-coated pill. We may think we are getting healthier when in fact, the pill is really poison and the real benefits are being enjoyed by BN cronies.
No one can recall the opposition claiming that “everything” will be free, as Mahathir claimed, although we are aware that under BN, it is their cronies, who control companies which collect tolls for roads and control the prices for basic commodities, who become wealthy at our expense.
“The BN has listened to the people and has changed many laws and policies. All that the people need to do is to urge the BN to carry out whatever change the people desire.” Mahathir said.
If there was any truth in this, can Mahathir explain why the opposition is gaining ground, day by day, among the people? Can he suggest why pro-democracy marches are crushed by the government and agents of the state?
Can he suggest why the people organising these rallies are hounded? Can he also clarify why some opposition ceramahs are attacked by thugs who throw stones and hurl insults at the attendees?
It
is disingenuous of Mahathir to blame Anwar, for failing to effect “good
change” when Anwar was his deputy. As everyone knows, any change needs
Mahathir’s stamp of approval. As history has shown us, anyone who dares
to criticise Mahathir is hounded, perhaps till they are politically
destroyed and pose no threat. Anwar has experience of this type of
relentless persecution.
Perhaps Mahathir’s most laughable statements were: “Five years to give a trial as government is dangerous. Many things can be destroyed in five years. Besides the opposition as government will ensure there will be no return for the BN…”.
When
Mahathir looks into the mirror, does he see an old man who is
frustrated by half-finished business, or does he see someone who is
proud of his accomplishments?
Mahathir rules the country by proxy and probably wishes he had done Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s trick – when both Putin and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev swopped roles so that he (Putin) could return as President.
Mahathir is also keen to install his political dynasty and has been busy promoting Mukhriz Mahathir (right). If a man is not fit to speak up for himself, but has daddy to chip in a good word for him, then he is not fit for office.
It boils down to this: Mahathir, Umno and their cronies are afraid. Mahathir is fearful of the opposition taking over the country and implementing the 100-day changes, which they have promised. When they do that, BN and Mahathir will be seen as abject failures.
The task of the opposition is to undo 55 years of bad governance, favoritism, cronyism and nepotism, in five short years. It will be a dangerous period as BN will try to sabotage them.
The rakyat is gaining power. They are forcing the opposition and BN to heed their calls for democracy.
More importantly, there will be no turning back. The fence-sitters should not try and look for perfection in the opposition. Are they prepared to be hoodwinked by BN again?
Change cannot be effected overnight, but if the opposition fails to create a good impression, in the next five years of governance, the rakyat has a choice. They can form a new political party.
Well, he should know better! The exorcism of Malaysia is entering the final stages of a ritual that has taken several decades. Once our souls are cleansed, why on earth should we invite BN to possess us again?
During
the weekend, Mahathir posted an article entitled 'The so-called
intellectual' on his blog. He appeared to relish the attention given to
his actions and thoughts as PM, but he candidly declared, “I am not an
intellectual but I admit that I use my brain more often than most.”He mocked the British for their “affirmative action” policies when they selected him to read medicine in Singapore, despite having poor results in his Senior Cambridge Examination.
This false denunciation did not stop him from implementing his version of affirmative action policies. In fact, he used them to justify his racist policies made under the pretext of helping the Malays.
In an earlier posting entitled 'Change', Mahathir poured scorn on United States (US) President Barack Obama and also Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim, because both promised change. Mahathir criticised Obama for breaking his promises to the American people and he predicted that Anwar would fail the rakyat.
The gist of the piece was to beseech Malaysians to vote BN in the forthcoming election, but it is disingenuous of him to suggest that both Obama and Anwar are failures.
Mahathir
said: “Making promises during campaigns for elections is easy. Keeping
them is a different matter. The best hope is that people’s memory is
short. They would normally forget the promises... Now the opposition in
Malaysia have copied Obama (right) and is promising change”.Mahathir is the one with selective memory. The government which he led for 22 years also made several promises but reneged on many.
‘Are we suckers, masochists or just gullible fools?’
We have come to expect these offerings more than we believe BN’s promises that our lives will be improved. Are we suckers, masochists or just gullible fools? Surely 55 years of trying, and failing is stretching the axiom ‘try and try again until you succeed’.
Mahathir warned that the opposition would turn Malaysia into a welfare state; but hasn’t BN’s policies turned the nation into a nanny state? Moreover, Malays are already living in a version of the welfare state.
The discriminatory policies crippled the Malays and divided the nation. Malays lost the competitive edge and therefore, it is dishonest of Mahathir to insult the Malays by calling them incompetent and lazy. The simple truth, which some Malays refuse to accept, is that they have become dependent on handouts.
The young Mahathir encountered much poverty in the Malay community. To be fair to him, his experiences then, and later, when he served as a doctor, will have shaped some of his policies.
An
able and just leader would have helped everyone. Then, as now, poverty
knows no boundaries and is not defined by race or religion. How does
Mahathir the PM justify helping only the Malays? He did little to help
his own race. Many Indians are still very poor.For decades, our lives have increasingly become dictated by Putrajaya and we have come to depend on subsidies. These are akin to the rakyat being given a sugar-coated pill. We may think we are getting healthier when in fact, the pill is really poison and the real benefits are being enjoyed by BN cronies.
No one can recall the opposition claiming that “everything” will be free, as Mahathir claimed, although we are aware that under BN, it is their cronies, who control companies which collect tolls for roads and control the prices for basic commodities, who become wealthy at our expense.
“The BN has listened to the people and has changed many laws and policies. All that the people need to do is to urge the BN to carry out whatever change the people desire.” Mahathir said.
If there was any truth in this, can Mahathir explain why the opposition is gaining ground, day by day, among the people? Can he suggest why pro-democracy marches are crushed by the government and agents of the state?
Can he suggest why the people organising these rallies are hounded? Can he also clarify why some opposition ceramahs are attacked by thugs who throw stones and hurl insults at the attendees?
It
is disingenuous of Mahathir to blame Anwar, for failing to effect “good
change” when Anwar was his deputy. As everyone knows, any change needs
Mahathir’s stamp of approval. As history has shown us, anyone who dares
to criticise Mahathir is hounded, perhaps till they are politically
destroyed and pose no threat. Anwar has experience of this type of
relentless persecution.Perhaps Mahathir’s most laughable statements were: “Five years to give a trial as government is dangerous. Many things can be destroyed in five years. Besides the opposition as government will ensure there will be no return for the BN…”.
The choice is with the rakyat
Mahathir rules the country by proxy and probably wishes he had done Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s trick – when both Putin and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev swopped roles so that he (Putin) could return as President.
Mahathir is also keen to install his political dynasty and has been busy promoting Mukhriz Mahathir (right). If a man is not fit to speak up for himself, but has daddy to chip in a good word for him, then he is not fit for office.It boils down to this: Mahathir, Umno and their cronies are afraid. Mahathir is fearful of the opposition taking over the country and implementing the 100-day changes, which they have promised. When they do that, BN and Mahathir will be seen as abject failures.
The task of the opposition is to undo 55 years of bad governance, favoritism, cronyism and nepotism, in five short years. It will be a dangerous period as BN will try to sabotage them.
The rakyat is gaining power. They are forcing the opposition and BN to heed their calls for democracy.
More importantly, there will be no turning back. The fence-sitters should not try and look for perfection in the opposition. Are they prepared to be hoodwinked by BN again?
Change cannot be effected overnight, but if the opposition fails to create a good impression, in the next five years of governance, the rakyat has a choice. They can form a new political party.
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