By Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz | September 5, 2011
Free Malaysia Today
Former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Umno hasn’t got leadership. My take on that statement is that it is the damnest indictment on Prime Minsiter Najib Tun Razak’s leadership.
Umno is now reduced to the stature of a beggar – scrounging at the supposed faux pas committed by PAS deputy president Mat Sabu.
What has Mat Sabu actually said that caused so much consternation?
Mat Sabu mentioned the name of Mat Indera, the Batu Pahat Malay born in Peserai who led the attack on the police barrack at Bukit Kepong.
The barrack was commanded by an English man representing the colonial government then.
I think we are missing the point here. Mat Sabu wasn’t glorifying the communists or communism.
He didn’t even say anything about communism. He was asking his audience to take a relook at the treatment of history on the role of Mat Indera.
To Mat Sabu, history has unjustly treated Mat Indera and we, the public, have accepted the official version of history – hook, line and sinker.
Was Mat Indera a simple terrorist sans a greater purpose and therefore deserving the description of a villain and terrorist?
Villifying Mat Indera
It now seems the preferred version of revised history is to see and value Mat Indera as a freedom fighter bent on kicking out the British imperialists.
Certainly the people in Mat Indera’s kampung in Batu Pahat refused to accept the vilification of Mat Indera’s memory.
The criminalisation of Mat Indera is part of the indoctrination and propaganda carried out by British imperialism.
Mat Indera joins the list of so many other freedom fighters who dared rise up to challenge Britsih hegemony.
Nowadays the Malayan people could no longer accept nor tolerate the infamy enforced on people like Pandak Endut, on Tok Janggut and Mat KIlau and so many others.
Mat Indera certainly doesn’t deserve to be dumped into the dustbin of history as just “one of those” terrorists.
Why is Umno concerned?
Over the last few days, I had the opportunity to finish reading the memoir of one Shamsiah Fakeh – Memoir Shamsiah Fakeh- Dari AWAS ke Rejimen ke-10.
PKMM preceded Umno
If you recall, her name re-emerged with some notoriety recently when the Bersih 2.0 marchers on July 9 were said to be influenced by her actions.
Shamsiah was a member of Parti Kebangsaan Melayu Malaya (PKMM) – a left-leaning Malay political party formed in 1945.
It was the first political party that openly declared its mission to be that of securing independence for Malaya.
In that sense, PKMM preceded Umno in its commitment to secure Merdeka for the Malayan people.
Umno leaders at that time scoffed and chided and were dismissive of the manifest desire to gain independence.
They often derided those who wanted independence as fanciful dreamers who couldn’t even manufacture a needle.
What is then alarming about Mat Sabu’s faux pas is the fear that it may lead to a widespread revision of history.
If it snowballs into a widespread revision of history, then Umno’s actual role MAY itself be diminished.
And it will no longer enjoy an unchallenged and monopolistic place in our nation’s history.
Politically it will also mean that Umno will find it increasingly difficult to claim absolute legitimacy as the nation’s only political force to have fought for Merdeka.
Its own heroes will be brought down to size.
This excerpt is from the writer’s blog sakmongkolak47. The writer is a FMT columnist.
#1 by Loh on Monday, 5 September 2011 - 6:23 pm
///Politically it will also mean that Umno will find it increasingly difficult to claim absolute legitimacy as the nation’s only political force to have fought for Merdeka.///–MASA
Even if what UMNO claims is true that it single handedly gained independence for Malaya, it still has to respect the constitution and it has to earn the mandate to govern. In doing what it has been doing, UMNO believes that it is entitled to rule, just like Moammar Gaddafi dictating in Libya. Soon UMNO will have the same fate as Gaddafi which he would soon change into in a couple of weeks. For UMNO, it will be a couple of months till next election. Of course Najib can take a leaf from his father, and put into practise his call to die for Putrajaya.
#2 by cemerlang on Monday, 5 September 2011 - 8:42 pm
To me, anyone can be a leader. But whether you can be a good leader or a bad leader. Gaddafi used to be a good leader until he overstayed his rule and become a bad leader. Our beloved Tun Mahathir is the apple of the eye of many people. To many he is a good leader. Until questions are asked. Does Communist China possess good leadership or is it a result of a mutual understanding from all her politicians of what they want for the country ? Was Ghandhi a good leader ? Was it a good way to solve problems by going on a fast for Ghandhi ? Historically, Malays used to be Hindus like the Indonesians in Bali who are not Muslims but Hindus. And UMNO of today is different. Not all members are Malays. There is the kadazan dusun murut part in UMNO and there is even at least one christian politician inside UMNO . Where is the relevancy ?
#3 by monsterball on Monday, 5 September 2011 - 10:11 pm
UMNO b politicians are truly sick men of Asia.
They have been living in a dream world instrumented by Mahathir…with jungle laws and orders protecting them so long…dressing up with false titles…with stolen millions to spend…on and on…they are above all laws…greeted with showered by their puppets .. cronies…and Muslims with weak minds.
Oppositions are the devils. They are the saints.
That’s the latest news to tell Malaysians,
A government that provoke…divide..telling lies..and so much more…defending ..defending…offensive is one clear sign that there are so much to hide.
Only idiots and racists will support them…and Mahathir should be proud of his 22 years most sinful leadership…for he is the Devil reincarnated…doing such a good job for Lucifer.
Black and white is written that Mat Sabu is a Freedom Fighter….by their own hands.
Tell some lies…tell some truths…by themselves …caught them red handed many times…but crooks will never learn.
They must keep findind ways and means to avoid loosing control for the love of the stolen money and their lives….even maybe hanged for murders.
#4 by tak tahan on Monday, 5 September 2011 - 10:43 pm
I hope cintanegara will impart some of his sound input and prinsip-prinsip rambutan ‘wisdom’ regarding this posting.We all are expecting your bombastic ‘England’ of the historical scenario.Or maybe can enlighten us some useful and truthful Umno-jenis-sejarah beside the so real Umno-jenis-religion?What say?No say you?
#5 by limkamput on Monday, 5 September 2011 - 11:32 pm
I don’t even give a damn to who really have secured Malaysia its independence. So what if it was UMNO. We wanted self rule and independence for what? We kicked the British out for what? So that we can have another group of nincompoops lording over us? So that after 54 years we remain a divided nation, that despite our resources the country is haphazardly managed with mega wastage and corruption. What is independence when we can’t even vote freely and fairly who shall govern us? What is independence when we can’t even openly challenge some of the issues/policies that affect our well-being? What is independence when we are still subjected to all the draconian laws as practised by the colonial master from restriction of assembly, speech, to printing and press? We always argue the British did not care about us; they practised divide and rule, they exploited our rich resources and left us poor. Think about it; when the British left us, they left behind a railway system from JB to Alor Star in the North and KB in the East. They left us a trunk road system connecting the whole country. They left us an efficient and professional civil service and a competitive education system. Where did our rich resources go since independence? Are we a united nation today? Given the benefit of time, I think the British would have been more benevolent if they still govern us today. So what exactly are we arguing about?
#6 by good coolie on Tuesday, 6 September 2011 - 12:00 am
Oh, now even Malays do not agree with UMNO Baru’s version of history! Well, happy revision. While we are at it, please correct the Interlok version of Indian and Chinese history. We will then reach across the South China Sea on our map and start rubbing out rubbish written of East Malaysia, too.
#7 by ENDANGERED HORNBILL on Tuesday, 6 September 2011 - 5:24 am
UMNO is rubbish.
Oops, I mean UMNO will hereafter be consigned to the rubbish heaps of history.
God is great; man proposes, God disposes UMNO!.
Hello, Dr M, try spitting skywards at God-lah.
#8 by dagen on Tuesday, 6 September 2011 - 11:41 am
limkamput said: /// I don’t even give a damn to who really have secured Malaysia its independence. ///
How very true. We have moved on from square one. And now we are heading towards the future – an effort on our part which rather perversely umno is doing its utmost best to thwart and frustrate. Young men and women of today are no longer bothered by such issue (ie who secured our independence) at all. Times hv changed. Even reality tv shows and x-games are begining to look out of date. It is now time for idols and celebrity chefs. And Japan is talking of launching a fully functioning holo tv in the near future.
Meanwhile umno remained firmly stuck in the original struggle of mid-last centuary – that is way way back in time.
I am not denying the importance of history. It is just that we should not be bogged down by it. More importantly we can no longer model our present and future development and affairs after some obsolete events or events that have lost their relevance in today’s context.
#9 by monsterball on Tuesday, 6 September 2011 - 6:41 pm
Now that Mat Indera who was hanged by the British is proven to be a patriot and true Malaysian..by Mat Sabu….eventually Malaysians will understand what patriotism is and ignore labels like being a communist..is evil at that time of war against foreigners.
Chin Peng is a decorated patriot…yet cannot come home to Malaysians after 60 years.
What kind of so call Muslims are these UMNO b hypocrites are?