By Hussein Hamid

I am an individual.

The state of affairs now seen on our country leaves us with no other conclusion then that UMNO has failed. It has failed in its effort to justify their demand that we Malaysian should allow them to continue for another fifty years with their tinkering of our democratic values and principals as a trade off to the ongoing development of our country and the yet to be achieved uplifting of the Malay race to be a developed ethnic community. Two remarkable and truly laudable goals — economic development and the rise and rise of the Malays – but arguments that are fundamentally flawed.

The Government insists that the particularity of Malaysian Politics, its multi ethnic divides and its religious enclaves make a need for the ISA to be enforced arbitrarily over its people. It continues to dominate over its people who live defenseless under its shadows. And in all this there is no political accountability in what they do.

I say that the Politics of Barisan Nasional is no longer appropriate for our people, for our country. I say that a multi ethnic, multi party democracy is what we need. We no longer want a trade-off between democracy and development. Between freedoms to demonstrate responsibly as against what the Government perceives as our inability to do so without causing riot and chaos in the streets.

We no longer tolerate domination of the affairs of our country by UMNO. We reject that premise. We say that the failure of the Malays to advance their cause can be linked directly to UMNO. I say that what obstacle that have been put in place to prevent the coming together of the races and to prevent the ability of the opposition to effectively governed in the state that they were elected in are just the mechanism by which UMNO uses to impose political and economic hegemony over its own people. And their repeated accusation that we as nation are not politically mature enough to weather the complexities of multi ethnic politics is wearing a bit thin. It is time that Barisan stop being patronizing us and begins to understand that the country needs to be return to its people. There is no more need to seek for the Malays historical dispensation on the grounds of a colonial legacy that is flawed. The time for that no longer holds credence with the Malays or the others.

The current situation that we are in now is a damming indictment of the failure of UMNO. It has also resulted in confrontation between the Government and its own people in which the state has in some fundamental way been steadily losing.

You must understand that power only comes from the people that allow its leaders to govern them if they so desire. The people have a political role to play not as Chinese, Indian or the others but as autonomous individuals.

The people are matured politically do not want to be patronized. Look at us as individuals rather then as Malays, Indian, Chinese and others.

You can claim your right to rule as decided by the ballot box in the last election – but the people will hold you politically accountable on the premise that the relationship between the constituent and its representative is ultimately that between you and me – the rulers and the ruled on a one to one basis. Your disregard for this premise is at your own peril. Understand also that the structures and instruments of democracy are not yours to abuse in pursuit of your own vested interest.

We no longer accept your interpretation of your desired ‘ideal polity’ to serve your own purpose. We demand a change to a higher and morally superior political order. Do not use the flawed multi partyism of Barisan as a weapon to subjugate Pakatan because you know that Barisan in itself is not a shining example of a liberal democratic order. We know that what you practice bear no relation to the political reality you profess to champion – Democracy. May you have the intelligence to understand that for UMNO the beginning of the end started at the last General election and will run its course by the time of the next. Amen.