Oh No !! What Have I Got Myself Into?


By Hussein Hamid
steadyaku47

In the beginning UMNO and MCA had a tacit understanding that the Malays will have control of Political Power while the Chinese – the Economy. This arrangement brought with it all the intrigues and excesses that springs up when the Malays were in control of licenses and contracts that the Chinese business needed to do businesses and in return the Chinese made contributions during elections (that is how they became known as buy elections !!) up front services fees, kick backs and went into joint ventures with Bumiputra Companies and gave ‘directorship’ to Malays in Chinese owned companies.

Politics. Patronage and Profit.

This is the thing I cannot understand. Mahathir was not able to see where this lethal combination of Politics, Patronage and Profit will lead to? He is suppose to be quite smart. Was he under the mistaken belief that he would be able to ‘manage’ the situation to his personal advantage? Which in hindsight he did because to stay in office for 22 years required a degree of focus and commitment to a path that dismiss all other considerations except his own agenda. As he dispensed favors and punishments to those whom he thinks deserve them, Mahathir consolidated power within himself at the expense of our country and its Government. At the expense of personal freedom and an independent judiciary. At the expense of allowing its people to live in a decent and fair society. At the expense of UMNO whom he left in its death throes. Like a fish struggling to live out of water UMNO is so used to Money Politics that without it, it cannot survive.

In the last year of his rule Mahathir suddenly realized that the path he has put UMNO on would eventually cause its demise. Cause it to lose the unquestioning support of the Malays. Without the support of the Malays, UMNO cannot survive – and if UMNO cannot survive all the excesses under him would be exposed and dissected by those that will come after UMNO. What could he do to save UMNO?. In an inspired moment (as inspiring as Abdullah’s appointment of Zaid to the cabinet) Mahathir choose Abdullah to succeed him. Hoping against hope that what he could not do, Abdullah could. Abdullah could not. Like many inspired moment, however intuitive but not thought through clearly, it failed because the rot has set in too deep – as the chinese say – when a fish rot, it starts with it’s head. Mahathir was UMNO’s head – and after 20 years nothing much can be done short of giving time for all the rats to leave the sinking ship….though it must be said that even now, there are still rats swimming towards the sinking ship !!

And now comes Najib the anointed end game of the RAHMAN theory. Najib is an accumulation of errors. From the time he was Mentri Besar of Pahang to what he is now – what he has done in his personal and political life should preclude him from holding that high a public office. But while Anwar is for now the leader of the opposition, Najib must now be Prime Minister. But how can he be Prime Minister when he does not know how? Like Mahathir he only knows of Politics, Patronage and Profit. But unlike Mahathir he does not have the ability to ‘manage’ these three variants as Mahathir did. Najib has a public that will follow his every footstep, his every deeds. The internet will ensure that. The Malays do not forget too easily nowdays – and do not forget the other races – just go to the internet and all will be reveal in detail.

Just think Najib. In October 1987, Ops Lalang saw the arrest of 106opposition leaders and social activists under the Internal Security Act and the revoking of the publishing licenses of two dalies, The Star and the Sin Chew Jit Poh and two weeklies, The Sunday Star and Watan. Did you see how the arrest of just one activist, Wong Chin Huat created such an uproar? Mahthir can arrest 106 under the ISA – you cannot.

In the 1990 General elections, for the first time UMNO was confronted with an opposition of sorts – Semangat 46 with PAS and DAP (Gagasan Rakyat). UMNO/Barisan won only 53.4% of the votes. Now you are going onto the next GE with Pakatan Rakyat already in control of 4 States (ok lah we will give you Perak for now !!) and 82 seats in Parliament. Camna? Think got chance to win?

Mahathir dismissed two DPM and lost one to Anwar. Do you think you can shake off Muhyiddin? He will be sitting on your shoulder – not looking over your shoulder – sitting on your shoulder. One mistake and tiada maaf bagi mu !!!

None – I repeat none – of the PM before you was ever remotely involved in anything resembling the following before they became PM.

  1. Razak Baginda.
  2. Altantuya Shaariibuu.
  3. Perak.
  4. Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

And I am being very economical and charitable with this list because any one of those cases would have prevented any UMNO member from contesting even at Cawangan level. Setuju tak?

I remember my days with MNI about 30 years ago when I was Regional Supervisor of the northern region based in Penang. The first thing our CAO (Chief Administration Officer) or the Accountant did when they came on a surprise visit to the branch office was to check the Petty Cash. May the Lord have mercy on me if it was short by any amount.
Accountability Najib. Accountability.

So how are you to regain control of UMNO and start the clean up before the next GE? To start with I would suggest that you should look at your priorities within UMNO first. Tranparency. No Money Politics. No nepotism. No Deceit. No greed.

What should UMNO’s priorities be?

It should be the establishment of “a society that is just and a nation that is democratic, progressive and united”. UMNO should be focused on promoting social justice, economic justice, eliminating political corruption and human rights issues within a non-ethnic framework –and that it will upholds the rights and interest of all Malaysians…. oh oh that sounds quite familiar. Almost the same as what PKR wants to do…..aisehman this is cannot…you will have to talk to Anwar, Kit Siang , Karpal or Tok Guru on this but I am sure the guys at Pakatan Rakyat would not mind that much if UMNO wants to work
together…but must be sincere lah. No projects, no negotiated tenders, no pink slips, no close one eye.

  1. #1 by Jaswant on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 5:58 am

    I’m sorry, YB. Your choice of articles to put up for comments lately has not done justice to you and your cause. If Hussein Hamid’s article is any indication, Pakatan needs to attract fresh blood (deleted)

  2. #2 by Joshua on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 6:16 am

    Is this something to do with AliBaba and the failed lopsided deals and so come the 40 + robbers and so we have profligacy of RM30 trillions and more?

    Who ae the mastermind in this?

    pw: Sarah laurasia

  3. #3 by mata_kucing on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 8:47 am

    Mahathir knew what he was doing alright. It’s not about BN or Umno for that matter. It’s all about building the family wealth using ill gotten wealth and patronage through political power. How else do you explain his sons amongst the richest in the country? And to hide his intension and avoid criticism, he also made a few cronies rich in the process. The facts are in front of our very eyes.

  4. #4 by limkamput on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 10:07 am

    Part of what I wrote much earlier in January 2009 in my blog:

    “….If we have a political system and a civil service that is dominated by a single race, then whatever the issues, be it abuse of power, cronyism, corruption or sheer incompetence, those issues will inevitably be equated with racial undertone. Hence, Kugan’s case may be viewed as one race bullying another race when the actual cause could be the abuse of power and the total lack of training or professionalism among those responsible. Similarly, it is my humble observation that some of the government’s ill-conceived privatisation programmes that have enormously benefited the Malays and the non-Malays alike, but the general feeling was one of racial discrimination and unfairness.

    The government must honestly and sincerely embrace multiracialism and promote a more inclusive civil service. The era of lip service and forming pseudo organisations (this piece was written in response to Lee Lam Thye’s suggestion to form the Institute of Race Relations in Malaysia) aiming at truncating the clamour for change and inclusiveness is over. Racial unity and integration can not be promoted by formal institutions or by asking people to give up their identities (giving up vernacular schools for example) for some illusionary notion of commonality (like 1 Malaysia which has no meaning to many). National unity and integration is brought about by genuine desire of individuals to sacrifice a little of themselves in exchange for the greater common good that they can see happening in the society and country they live in”.

  5. #5 by a2a on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 10:15 am

    UMNO is racial and corrupted party in their blood and their core.

    1Malaysia is just an act, their party members is not committed to it but just an act to cheat the Malaysians.

    Racial and corruption are UMNO blood and its core, they can’t live without it.

    The only way to free Malaysians from racial and corruption are

    let PKR win the ELECTIONS who committed to anti-corruption, justice, and democracy.

  6. #6 by Joshua on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 10:27 am

    “Ali Baba brings the body home and, with the help of Morgiana, a clever slave-girl in Kassim’s household, … and finally ….And so Ali Baba fell in love with Morgiana, and hence frees her and marries her.”

    So in Malaysia, what choices have we got?

    Instead of Morgiana, lets have BabaLi for once in a new system of IGGG under Joshua Kong.

    pw: Domenick deiced

  7. #7 by wanderer on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 11:04 am

    T Mamak has Indian blood in his viens, obviously, he outsmarted the carefree true malays….while they were napping, he did
    a “I am your messiah!” on them.
    This false messiah next move is to get his siblings to climb the elite UMNO ladder, to continue with his evil plans…wake up, my malay brothers or you will be mamaked for good!

  8. #8 by johnnypok on Sunday, 9 August 2009 - 10:05 pm

    The old fox must have thought he could still manipulate his way forever. AAB let him down, and now NTR greatly disappointed him. Unfortunately, time is running out, and all he can do now is to spew whatever venom he has left, maybe no more poisonous.

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