Do we fear Perkasa? — Art Harun


by Art Harun
Breaking Views
Malaysian Insider
September 17, 2010

SEPT 17 — I refer to a post at Rocky’s Bru titled “The irrational fear of Perkasa”.

Perkasa.

What does that name evoke? Fear? Unlikely.

To me and many others, that name is almost comical and tragic at the same time, quite in the same mould as Roberto Benigni’s “Life is beautiful,” only that the later was poignant and sorrowful, rather than tragic.

Perkasa is comical in the way it — through its leader, Datuk Ibrahim Ali, and its various extras whose names I do not even care to remember — went around calling people who do not agree with its views names. YB Khairy Jamaluddin knows about this well. Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz also knows about this very well.

Whenever Perkasa’s views are opposed or criticised, Perkasa has been unable to counter such opposition or criticism. When Perkasa cannot rebut another’s opinion, what would it do? Yes, it will attack the person who expresses the opinion rather than the opinion itself.

And so, Khairy Jamaludin was a “stupid”, “crazy”, “feeble-minded” and a “confused child”. According to Datuk Ibrahim Ali. And not to mention “mentally ill.”

Just look at one full sentence by Datuk Ibrahim Ali about YB Khairy, “This is the talk of a stupid, brainless person. He is talking like a crazy person.”

Then, who could forget the “s***, s***, s***” Al-Jazeera interview? In full view of an international audience, Perkasa’s real ugly, uncouth, unrefined and even uncivilised nature revealed itself. It was comical.

And it is tragic. It is tragic because the international community may think — and I am sure they do think — that Malaysians in general are as uncouth as these Perkasa creatures. And that, my friends, is an insult to Malaysia and to all Malaysians.

It is also an insult to the prime minister because, as I am told, he has a voracious appetite for knowledge and is an avid reader. And what an insult would be to the prime minister if the international community thinks that Malaysians are generally uncouth because of that Al-Jazeera interview with Datuk Ibrahim Ali.

Ah, let’s not forget about all the police reports.

That Perkasa is only able to shout and scream slogans and misleading statements about rights which do not exist is exemplified by its inability to accept YB Nurul Izzah’s polite, but firm, invitation to debate on the purview of Article 153 of the Federal Constitution.

Perkasa’s response — and no less than Minister Datuk Seri Sharizat Jalil’s response (I am addressing her as a Minister in a loose sense) — to YB Nurul Izzah’s clear articulation on the subject matter was taken right from the first line of the first Chapter of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s guidelines to a discourse, namely, twist and hijack the issue.

This they did by saying YB Nurul Izzah had “challenged” Article 153. When, in fact, she did nothing of that sort.

By twisting — and thereby, hijacking — the real issue, they hoped to make YB Nurul look bad. To challenge Article 153 would make YB Nurul anti-Malay “rights” and, therefore, anti-Malay. How convenient.

This tactic has been employed so many times. Ustaz Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, the former Perlis mufti, of course, is branded as a “Wahabbi” and therefore anti-Islam. Datuk Zaid Ibrahim is, of course, an “alcoholic” and therefore is unfit. Haris Ibrahim is a “liberal-secularist” and, therefore, he is also anti-Malay, anti-Islam and anti-whatever.

What YB Nurul was trying to do was to set out the REAL provisions of Article 153. She never challenged it. To challenge it would mean she was asking that that article ought to be repealed or amended. But she was not doing that.

Since she “challenged” Article 153, according to these real smart people, she has committed an offence. The standard offence nowadays is, of course, the dreaded “S” offence. No, it’s not sodomy. It is sedition.

And so Perkasa had to lodge a police report against YB Nurul. And then they would take pictures of themselves while holding the police report.

That’s the standard operating procedure.

The new IGP should come down hard on this kind of police reports. It wastes the police’s time and the tax payers’ money. The police have many other more important things to do. Like investigating murders, corruption, breaches of trust, drug trafficking and taking care of the traffic during the festivities. Not to spend time on all these totally moronic police reports.

But then again, that’s Perkasa. Nothing more and nothing less.

And now, YB KJ, Minister Nazri, Minister Khalid and Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, the secretary general of Umno, have come out to distance Umno from Perkasa. These are big people. Not some cikus from Umno. Can we take it, then, that Umno now does not want to be associated with — and is not associated with — Perkasa?

I think we can make that conclusion.

Well at least I will make that conclusion, personally.

The prime minister wants change. He wants to transform Malaysia and the Malays in general. He wants the Malays to stop being spoon-fed, and to promote meritocracy. Of course he is not doing away with affirmative action just yet, because he recognises the needs for such actions.

However, I believe the prime minister wants to change the way the affirmative action is being implemented. He wants to introduce a semblance of accountability to it. A certain level of defined methodology rooted in meritocracy.

But I also believe he is facing a revolt from within his own party about what he wants to do, particularly the way he wants to redefine the affirmative action and its methodology. Sometimes, the perception is that even his own deputy is against him on this.

And of course we have Dr Mahathir, who is dead against the prime minister’s well-intented moves. And Perkasa — like Dr Mahathir — is also dead against it. In fact, personally, it is my perception that Perkasa is just echoing Dr Mahathir.

No, not echoing. Parroting him. Yes, that’s more apt.

So, it is high time that Umno, as a party, puts a stop to these insidious counter-movements against its own president, who happens to be our prime minister. He needs full support of Umno for this much needed — if a bit radical to the Malays — change which he intends to introduce. And he also needs support from the Barisan Nasional component parties.

This support has not been forthcoming. MCA is too lame to do anything. MIC is mired in internal problems. As for the others, I do not even know their names to begin with.

The statements by YB KJ and gang wouldn’t have come at a better time for the prime minister.

However, I note with a bit of puzzlement, that no such statement has been forthcoming from the likes of Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Husseun, Datuk Seri Shafie Afdal, the Wanita Umno chief, Datuk Seri Rais Yatim and other top leaders of Umno.

And so it makes me wonder what Umno’s official stand on Perkasa is.

But one thing is clear.

To many, Perkasa is not feared. Let alone irrationally feared.

What is feared is what Perkasa and its ilk represent.

And I don’t think there is any need for me to spell out what they represent.

  1. #1 by undertaker888 on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 10:53 am

    perkasa is like a badly done cartoon on TV. do we fear perkasa? absolutely. we fear the things that come out from the mouth will tarnish all malaysian as a whole. we fear he is making a cartoon out of us to the whole world to see.

    simply no class, perkakas.

  2. #2 by k1980 on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 10:59 am

    Chua SL, the chinese perkasa, is more to be feared, especially by the ladies. Imagine being locked in a hotel room together with that viagra-crazed old geezer—- aaargghh!

  3. #3 by asia on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 11:07 am

    The Reid Commission Report original stated article 153 to be review in 15 years.

    There is a written record lie in UK Parliament 1957 record stated that the Federation of Constitution 1957 proposal meeting/discussion in UK Parliament hall stated that the Alliance have update the condition of review of article 153 Not in 15 years but agreed to be reviewed from times to times.

    It is 100% written record in the UK parliament.

    Remember Malay alone would not be granted Malaya independence from British.

    Without the support of Chinese and India the British would not granted Malaya Independence.

    The Alliance formed by Malay, Chinese and India majority the British granted the Malaya Independence.

    After independence this land belong to the new self-government/owners formed by Malay, Chinese and India.

    Anyone of them have the absolutely rights demand equality in this land which they granted from the British administration.

    Demand and get it.

  4. #4 by Taxidriver on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 11:21 am

    Ibrahim Ali has the mentality of a rascal. Because he is wearing a protective coat called ‘Ketuanan Melayu’, he has become too arrogant knowing that he is untouchable. This is why he is continuously churning out seditious remarks and insults against other races. To peace loving Malaysians, Ibrahim Ali is an outcast. His Datukship should be stripped off to save the Palace and rakyat from further embarrassment.

    Here is where IGP Ismail Omar can show the public the type of man he is. The next time Ibrahim Ali makes a racial slur, haul him up and charge him under the SA.

  5. #5 by boh-liao on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 11:27 am

    “I BRA him” – Do U find this statement lucu?
    “I BRA her” sounds more sexy

  6. #6 by yhsiew on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 11:33 am

    ///Do we fear Perkasa?///

    We don’t but Najib does!

    Perkasa = UMNO

    since some 80% of the 300,000 Perkasa members are from UMNO.

    If Najib rejects Perkasa, that means he rejects his own party and that will affect his grip on the party’s presidency .

  7. #7 by Jeffrey on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 11:39 am

    ///The prime minister wants change/// – Art Harun.

    I think so too. I won’t say it is for altruistic reasons. It is for pragmatic realpolitik motives. APCO’s advice -1 Malaysia, NEM & GTP- is not only what the country needs but what BN also needs to cling on to power, longer term. Without, the country will slide further down from even the present middle income trap so to speak – not to mention the growing momentum of dissatisfactions by Non Malays, the more educated and urban Middle class Malays and even rural Malays that have come to see the NEP, as it is presently implemented, being a ruse to enrich only the politically connected Malays and their cronies and generally the younger set of voters. These comprise the mainstream.

    Notwithstanding delineation of political boundary lines to give preponderant weightage to rural Malay votes (gerrymandering), the performance of BN as a whole is very much dependent on the mainstream support. The convincing electoral victories of TDM’s BN in 1995 GE and Abdullah Badawi’s BN were very much due to majority mainstream support. The same way Abdullah Badawi’s BN’s loss and PR’s victory in 2008 GE (political tsunami) was due to to a significant swing of mainstream support to Opposition. There is a growing demand and clamour for inclusive politics, the mantra of the day. Najib is aware of that. Dissatisfaction will grow even more if economic challenges facing the country, in part due to global events, and in part the debilitating effect of the NEP, are not addressed. He knows that unless BN changes course and UMNO re-invents, the ruling coalition will be swept away into irrelevancy with the onward march of Malaysian mainstream thinking. So Najib, under advice, came out with 1 Malaysia, NEM & GTP as a platform for his administration. Once having done so, he is married to it. He sinks or swims with it. His record will be adjudged by its success or failure. There is little room to reverse when he stakes his political credibility to it.

    Naturally the resistance to change will be strong within his party/coalition. They are after all defending their own vested interests. That is why many within cabinet and party & coalition are not coming out to defend his1 Malaysia, NEM & GTP in the face of opposition from Malay based NGOs like Perkasa led by the former premier Tun Dr Mahathir (TDM).

    So Najib is fighting on all fronts, against all odds, against his own party warlords, own ministers who resistant to change and against the Opposition and its accusations that he is prevaricating and not sincere about change.

    The man is trying to find a tempo that balances between being immediately kicked out by his party’s reactionaries coalescing against him and his agenda or being kicked out along with the whole UMNO and BN in the next GE or the one after next!

    Kicking off an administration with a political baggage and surrounded by many others who oppose his engender his position is basically weak. He engages his opponents in a fighting style that is not confrontational and open with the high kicks and flashy show moves aiming for a knock out blow. He perceives he will be knocked out instead by multiple opponents. So he relies on lieutenants like KJ, Nazri & Tengku Adnan to do all these open kicks whilst he himself obliquely tries to strategise back door Tai Chi and Aki Do moves…(There are examples incovenient to mention here). I guess when dealing with a formidable foe like TDM famous for bold open and confrontational fist fights one has to innovate the fight game in another way. The danger is that it will be interpreted as weakness and lack of resolve which loses support. That’s another balance he has to find and strike.

  8. #8 by boh-liao on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 11:42 am

    Y fear Perkosa?
    Aku BRA him, lucu n entertaining
    Better fear DAP: D Klang DAP division’s Socialist Youth meeting turned ugly when some members became embroiled in a heated exchange, which led 2 chairs being thrown
    Wao lau, flying chairs!

  9. #9 by boh-liao on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 12:14 pm

    Both maha racists MMK n IA r strong supporters of NEP 4 Malays
    2 them, d recently highlighted 3 biscuit children will NOT b given any benefits dat ultra rich Malays receive under NEP
    No eat rice only eat biscuit or soil (pretend 2 b chocolate), so what, too bad lah
    Who ask U 2 come out fr d wrong womb n hv d wrong kulitfication in 1M’sia?
    Who ask your parents not 2 bcome muslim n Malay? Everyone knows how what
    Consult d condemn-ancestor tea guy lah, U know
    What lah U ppl, got easy jalan no want 2 take advantage of, want 2 suffer, so silly 1
    Then want 2 blame MMK, IA, n UmnoB, so bad 1, jialat, NAH!

  10. #10 by Taj on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 12:54 pm

    UMNO is torn by dissension. BN is not united. It is a government that had got its fundamentals all wrong and is plague by corruption of moral. And it’s leadership is fast running out of ideas on how to manage this country effectively.

    This government is like a big giant with weak legs and has also grown a cancer. This giant is walking wobbly and it is holding our country in its hand. Are we to allow our country to fall with it.

    How much longer must we suffer the incompetency of this government? Should we not hand the management of the country to those who are more fresh and capable? Do Malaysian dare to make a change for the better?

  11. #11 by dcasey on Saturday, 18 September 2010 - 1:32 pm

    Do we fear Perkasa? Heck no. Who ever has that in mind ought to have his head examined. Perkasa has that “special position” amongst Malaysians that I can only describe by drawing an analogy. The analogy is like this… when a rascal holds a dead stinking rat in the middle of a crowd, what does the crowd do? They cabut in all directions in the blink of the eye. Now when the rascal hold Perkasa up in the air in the middle of the crowd, these people (half of which are UMNO top honchos) cabut in no time. Funny thing is our PM is still stuck to the ground….has he lost his senses or maybe the stink is perfume to his nose?

You must be logged in to post a comment.