Syerleena Abdul Rashid
The Malaysian Insider
4 September 2015

“You’re either with us or not” – this is the fact that the ruling regime has hammered into the minds of many Malaysians for the past several decades.

Fact is, although, they may have succeeded with our predecessors, they have lost their iron clasp hold on this generation and this is something the ruling regime is fully aware of.

The recent Bersih 4 rally – and like the other three rallies that came before, showed them just how upset Malaysians are.

Of course, the usual suspects will downplay the numbers and will try their very best to tell the rest of the world that the rally was ineffective and had failed to create any sort of revolutionary wave that can deliver reforms.

We know that our country is becoming increasingly unstable – the depreciation of our currency and a battered “head” who has held the entire nation political hostage.

With each passing day, every single Malaysian is reminded that we are “potential threats” – assumed guilty until proven otherwise by a paranoid government.

Malaysians are frequently told that such restrictions of freedom and limitations of personal expression are for our own safety and protection.

Wrong. It is only there to protect them and those well connected enough to enjoy the same piece of the pie.

The irrational suspicion they have over us justifies their need to intercept our social media accounts, track our trails on the internet and keep tabs on our daily routines.

They tell us social media will pave the way to anarchism or God forbid – communism, but the justification given to censor the internet is a glaring contradiction to the democratic principles enshrined in our Federal Constitution.

Citizens living in a functioning democracy have every right to know what their government is up to; they can demand a public explanation as to where exactly RM2.6 billion came from.

Citizens of a functioning democracy can exchange ideas and deliberate over policies or decisions made without looking over your shoulder every 5 seconds or worst yet, without having the police knock on your door in the middle of the night and drag you out for questioning.

In fact, the paranoia this government is becoming well known for these days is far more serious than the fear of spiders or even the fear of this country being overrun by “pendatang”.

The former being nothing more than petty whilst the latter is nothing but fabrications aimed to divert Malaysians from real pressing issues plaguing our country.

The paranoia perpetuated by them displays the irrational fear of losing power and eventually, having to return the money making gravy train back to the rakyat – to whom it rightfully belongs to.

They ban certain words, certain colors and these days, even yellow coloured balloons can land you in jail.

As the rest of the nation looks on in disbelief at the heightened level of crazy presented to us by our right wing countrymen, it needs to be understood that the political insanity that has gripped them is nothing more than paranoia.

Yes, the right wing conservatives are paranoid and they validate such claims by selecting representatives that indulge in their skewed political opinions.

What we have right now is a police state disguised as a generous democratic government that glorified its own supremacy.

But after 58 years of gaining freedom from the shackles of our former white colonial masters, what have Malaysians learnt so far?

Have we truly gained our independence or have certain issues cast shadows of doubt to nullify the achievements our forefathers attained in the name of integrity and nationhood?

Or are we now waking up to the notion that this is another case of out of the pan and into the fire?

Like most Malaysians, we know that a majority of our grouses stem from our country’s increasing suspicions but what makes it worst is how certain groups are blindly lashing out in ignorance and fear.

With every illogical decision made and irrational behavior displayed, the one simple question remains – is this the behaviour of a government that respects its citizens?

No, I don’t think so. – September 4, 2015.