“Islam Hadhari is a cruel hoax perpetrated by Abdullah Badawi on the citizens” – M Bakri.

How so, even if – and regardless whether neither government nor the people practise it?

In the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation APEC Business Summit, the President of the country in which Bakri is living comfortably does not share this opinion.

Bush praised Badawi for promotion of the principles of Islam Hadhari as an ideology to counter Islamic extremism and terrorism worldwide.

It seems to me that Bakri’s whole article is devoted to attacking Abdullah Badawi, as a man and his credentials as a muslim, which, as a matter of personal opinion, I find a tat personal and boring – this unremitting Pak Lah bashing.

From whence this personal antipathy comes from which I detect in all his writings?

Though entitled to his opinion and freedom of speech, our Californian surgeon will do well to remember that extreme personal antipathy for another boomerangs and destroys a man’s sense of values and his objectivity.

“…//…Even his senior party men calls him a coward with no bolas and we should not follow him. What more the man in the street?…//…” – sheriff singh

That is true. However to the man in the street, ask yourself, are you happy with a leader whose senior party men look up to? What kind of party are we talking about? (He tried to appoint people sometimes without regard to race and religion. Brendan Pereira headed NST. According to grapevine, he approved Brendan Pereira’s departure after considering the pressure from within Umno. BP was criticised at the party assembly. You think they bothered about alleged plagiarism or some extraneous issue like the inappropriateness that BP, a non-Malay headed an Umno newspaper – like some who also took issue with PM’s choice of Idris Jala as MAS’s CEO!)

Many are not happy with him because his rhetoric against corruption is getting on their nerves. Yes so far only the frys get fried, not the big sharks that are free to roam but there is now a little more guardedness even in this roaming because he has set the public benchmarks and aspirations, allow a freer environment of public discourse (not doubt in no small part attributable to Internet) by which civil society, opposition parties, alternative media sometimes even mainstream (like The Sun, and even UMNO’s NST) monitor the radar and expose the shenanigans and peccadilloes going on within the corridors of power. Worse part to these people, unlike predecessor of Operation Lallang infamy, party stalwarts are unhappy that he has been quite liberal on critics of the administration: Under his watch, Anwar was released, there were a lot of threats but no actual arrests of either DSAI, Tian Chua, Sivarasa or Sim (as yet) for embarrassing Judiciary and bloggers like RPK are still continuing their blogs rubbishing everyone in power. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said that at as far as he knew, there had been no detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA) after Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi took over as Prime Minister in 2003. Bernard said that this was a positive thing in terms of Rule of law when opening a human rights seminar for supreme council members of his United Pasok Momogun Kadazandusun Organisation. – http://www.malaysia-today.net/index.shtml

[You think Bernard Dompok ‘bodek’? He resigned from the Parliamentary Commiitee on Integrity – and was the only minister on record for not withdrawing his petition on aricle 121(1)A and the first to declare that he didn’t agree this an Islamic state].

Rakyat are unhappy because no walk the talk in relation to corruption – small frys get fried while big sharks are free to roam – but had he taken on the sharks, the sharks would have encircled and eaten him straightaway! And this Rule of Law stuff becomes a joke with the Lingam Tape, the going ons being bequeathed from last administration. Somehow before he could react, others took the initiative to form the Haidar’s panel and subsequently advised him. See how the system works!

Of course one can criticize : show more leadership and guts, that’s fair comment. But not all of us are Mahathir who thrives on strife.

And there lies the biggest problem where no one is satisfied : although he grasps the nation’s problems (‘World Class infrastructure Third World Mentality – Privatisation of public assets – piratisation of private profits’), nothing much could be done if one has to balance here and balance there (flip and flop here and there over PPP’s demands for seat or whether this is an Islamic or not Islamic State depending on the current and counter currents of pressure), do double and, if necessary, triple talk because of prioritization of political survival.…..There seems to be perception of insecurity as regards the grip on power.

But it takes all kinds. You and I, given position to do good, may try against all odds and go down fighting, at least earn the gratitude of the nation but not everyone, depending on personality, looks at things that way. Politics has a way of making one jettisons ideals for realities. You wait a life time to ascend to the pinnacle : its not easy to throw all away all by the impulse to do unsullied good.

(With no offence to Kit who may be an exception, It is not for nothing that the 40th president of United States – Ronald Reagan –in his infinite wisdom said this of politics and politicians (and I quote) – “Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first”. :)

When all are said, it may be asked, who can be at the helm of BN system and yet be an untainted great leader serving the nation? TDM? The term good leader in terms of altruistically serving the people and being at helm of such a system is an oxymoron lah! (Then again its not only our political system : are there many nations whose leaders have not conned the electorate to get elected and now ensconced in power, actually strenously tries to do good only for the nation or people without feathering his own nest? Name me a few.

To toniXe, yes, I would agree “ much more is at stake” but do you realistically think after his retirement or resignation for ‘non performance’ the next guy from that system would do and deliver better? He may be worse! Come on!

The problem is with the political system (not personalities), fat gloating, self feeding and entrenched, and difficult to dislodge like HIV virus within whatever surviving cells left in the body politic!

Why focus intensely on personalities from such a system and expect miracles? Can the union of a mongrel and stray wolf produce as offspring a good pedigree Labrador saving lives in the Alps? Be realistic.

It is also true what Jong said, that a public figure is public owned and always fair game for criticisms, but let our attacks be based wherever possible on a man’s record and policies, even his leadership style, poor or hypocritical or otherwise but not personal going to a level that he is not much of a Muslim, as I seem to get Dr Bakri’s drift….Sorry if I wrongly perceive this.

Feeling sleepy in the daytime; after meals; difficulty in concentrating. A sign of onset of diabetes type II generally!

You get a leader like TDM as leader of the pack, fully awake, on top of things and follow up on everything, having strength and dominating will and all attributes of a strong and effective leader to get all members of pack to follow his orders, would you think such leader (arising as he is from such a system) will necessarily bring reforms and change the country for the better or would he not consolidate and entrench the existing system deeper? :)

The fact is that Lee Kuan Yew (who leads a different pack) has never been in Abdullah’s shoes and therefore it is hard to imagine what he would do if it were. In fact it is doubtful he could even survive within such a pack. In the time after Malaysia’s formation his call for Malaysian Malaysia were matched by calls from UMNO to incarcerate him under the ISA but it was due to the grace and fairness of man like Tunku that he found a better way to resolve the problem by kicking Singapore out. But fair and graceful men never survived for long, he was blamed for not taking a tougher stance and for giving away a sizeable real estate, and he was edged and manoeuvred out in a manner that the Tunku himself never doubted resembled a well disguised coup d’tat.

FYI, it appears from todays report page 7 of The Sun Oct 23rd that Bernard Dompok’s statement – that there had been no ISA detentions since Abdullah Badawi took over – might be inaccurate.

The Chairman of Gerakan Masuhkan (ISA) (The Abolish the ISA Movement) or GMI – Syed Ibrahim Syed nor – said “that from 2004 to 2006, there were 48 new arrests and 73 renewed detention orders”. He said this year alone 4 people were arrested for allegedly spreading rumours of racial riots in Johor bharu, and another 5 for alleged involvement in Jemaah Islamish terrorist group (“JI”). Syed Ibrahim further explained that the arrests in 2004 were for alleged involvment in JI and a nuclear arms network, forged documents and passports, in 2005 for alleged involvement in JI and counterfeiting currency, and in 2006 for alleged involvemnt in the Sabah based Darul Islam extremist group, that there are all in about 90 ISA detainees at Kamunting Detention camp.

Dompok, when contacted for comment, was surprised and said, “I will have to look at it, maybe i will reply tomorrow”.