By Othman Wahab
June 05, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JUNE 5 — Such is the fate of Malaysians that we have to stomach insults and condescension on a daily basis. If it is not Datuk Ibrahim Ali, it is Datuk Hishammuddin Hussein or Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin or Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
At least one of them will insult our intelligence on a daily basis. In a speech to mark the Yang diPertuan Agong’s birthday, the prime minister warned those who caused disunity and stoked the embers of discord that their time is up. His administration would come down hard on them.
Seriously, does he expect us to believe this? Perkasa and Ibrahim and Utusan Malaysia have cornered the market on creating discord in the country and nothing has happened to them.
Surely the PM would agree that publishing and spreading lies of a Christian takeover of the country has to be punished. But his administration did squat even as Ibrahim Ali threatened to undo years of nation building by threatening to ignite his brand of Crusades against Christians.
But the PM and his officials must believe that Malaysians are stupid so he can sound tough and commanding. And just as you thought that you will be spared more gibberish, along comes Muhyiddin, in the same league with Ibrahim Ali.
He declares pompously that PAS is straying from its Islamic principles. How did he reach this earth-shaking conclusion? Because the Islamist party’s elections led to the victory of some so-called moderates over the conservatives and because PAS was willing to work with DAP.
This guy must really believe we are stupid. And therein lies the problem of Umno; they actually believe that we are dumb, brainless.
Firstly, Umno leaders should not lecture PAS on Islam. For that matter, any politician whose party has embraced corruption, racial chauvinism and injustice has forfeited the right to sit on a moral high horse.
Muhyiddin and his Umno colleagues have embraced money politics so wholeheartedly that they have forgotten the beautiful thing called democracy and the power of the vote.
The power of the vote is what pushed Mat Sabu and a few others to the fore. Whether he will be able to do anything for PAS is untested but you can bet that PAS delegates will punish him if he does not walk the talk.
This concept of democracy seems alien to Muhyiddin. If PAS works with DAP and not Umno, it is because the party rank and file want it that way.
I suppose the frightening thing about this is that PAS members are more willing to work with non-Muslims rather than their brethren. Why is this so?
My advice to Najib, Muhyiddin and company is to realise that Malaysians have grown up. You insult our intelligence at your peril.
* Othman Wahab reads The Malaysian Insider.
#1 by yhsiew on Sunday, 5 June 2011 - 8:38 pm
///the prime minister warned those who caused disunity and stoked the embers of discord that their time is up///
More correctly, the prime minister warned non-Umno persons who caused disunity and stoked the embers of discord that their time is up.
#2 by Bigjoe on Sunday, 5 June 2011 - 8:46 pm
Notice Muhiyiddin is the LEAST emotive of all the critics of PAS election. He is extremely dismissive and instead go about either plugging UMNO/BN OR blaming people for afraid of imaginery crime they see around them happening every day.
He is only confirming that Najib is in deep trouble and he is waiting for him to self-destruct.
#3 by ENDANGERED HORNBILL on Sunday, 5 June 2011 - 9:49 pm
Najib is such a sick joke.
Muhyiddin is plain silly.
Ibrahim is incorrigibly loud and stupid.
The rest – just dump them in the next GE. Simply not worth tuppence.
#4 by Jeffrey on Sunday, 5 June 2011 - 10:25 pm
///You insult our intelligence at your peril/// – Othman Wahab
PR can take the cue for coming GE – new tag line “Never insult the intelligence of Malaysians”.
Anyway politics has always been an art of deception: since when has it ever been a quest for truth?
Defining one’s political adversary before it can define itself – “framing your opponent” – is one of the oldest political strategy. Thats what the media, image, political consultants teach their political clients to do.
Hence the results of the recent Pas’s polls have been immediately defined as Anwar’s or LKS’s voice, not Ulama’s voice hence PAS, so the logic proceeds, not Islamic. Now distort one’s opponent’s political position – that’s another strategy in the array of political tricks.
The question of insulting intelligence strictly does not arise because to persuade for votes, and if needs be, to distort and misrepresent your opponent’s position is all part of the tricks in politics used at every level of political battles, from grassroots to campaign. There are other tricks/strategies. Some are clever. Some are commonsense and some are downright despicable but never mind, that’s the rule of engagement and telling the truth is definitely not in the agenda: insulting the intelligence of those who know is an accepted if discounted fact in this game – as long as greater number of those who do not know give the votes, and thats what is hoped for.
#5 by wanderer on Monday, 6 June 2011 - 1:50 am
This Eunuch PM talks through his blowhole, while resting his hallow head on Ros’s pair of health lungs.
How could we take this liar seriously!
#6 by ekompute on Monday, 6 June 2011 - 3:49 am
QUOTE: “At least one of them will insult our intelligence on a daily basis. In a speech to mark the Yang diPertuan Agong’s birthday, the prime minister warned those who caused disunity and stoked the embers of discord that their time is up. His administration would come down hard on them.
Seriously, does he expect us to believe this? Perkasa and Ibrahim and Utusan Malaysia have cornered the market on creating discord in the country and nothing has happened to them.”
Well, for all you know, he was actually pointing at Perkasa, Ibrahim, and Utusan, so let’s not be so sensitive, LOL. Only problem is this guy has lost his credibility… not a credible leader, I would say.
#7 by waterfrontcoolie on Monday, 6 June 2011 - 8:41 am
On the one hand , they say we have enough capacity in electric generation and yet they gave Syed Mokhtar another IPP at 25 cents/ unit! In spite of all the hoha, are they running away from the next GE? It surely must be! After all the negative reactions over the IPPs and Toll Contracts, they persist on repeating the same acts. Or are they challenging the intelligence of Malaysians? So Malaysians your guesses are as good as mine.
#8 by Loh on Monday, 6 June 2011 - 9:32 am
IPP and AP have the same objective to make Malays chosen by Mamakthir rich. He did it so that Malays can be proud of the rich Malay tycoons, and then there would not be a repeat of May 13. That is NEP. The good thing is Malays too pay for higher price for cars and electricity, to make a few selected Malays rich. Any more support for NEP to stay?
#9 by k1980 on Monday, 6 June 2011 - 9:39 am
time is up, as said to altantru before she went ‘kabooommm’!
#10 by cherasusie on Monday, 6 June 2011 - 1:38 pm
like it or not – the gang of four you mentioned did churn out some really dangerous malays…. just give you one example:- Kuala Sepetang is famous for charcoal – it used to be a chinese dominated industry but with government schemed agenda it has changed hands in favor of the ketuanan tribe.
but who cares if the place is still as friendly as when it was with the chinese…you could walk-in anytime and you expected smiles to greet you…
but, but…..i was shouted and menacingly warned off, one ketuanan tribe, looked like them, spoke like them and i presumed must be one of them or maybe incorporated ketuananian……….treatened to throw my camera into the parit and one malay woman charcoal packer even, out-rightly asked for money…….so much for well mannered and god fearing tribe.
this ketuanan tribesman could run amok if i challenge him, so yeah, he won……yeah good feeling for him but lousy for me……
i have a good reason to despise him for he is a racist but his tribesmen mostly, except a few, seems condoning these…duhhh i despise them all.