The politics of violence
Posted by Kit in Crime, Teresa Kok, Zahid on Thursday, 13 February 2014, 8:38 am
Jeswan Kaur| February 13, 2014
Free Malaysia Today
Umno’s image is in shreds, but does Zahid Hamidi care?
COMMENT
Violence apparently comes easy to Umno politicians and those associated with them, as they have illustrated so many times in words and deeds.
Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, said to be one of the Umno president’s most trusted lieutenants, obviously does not care that the public thinks so lowly of his party or that his outrageous defence of blood-spilling thugs serves only to deepen our suspicion of his being a violent man himself, as alleged in a suit brought a few years ago by businessman Amir Abdullah Bazli.
Amir said Zahid allegedly administered punches on his face in public in 2006, leaving him with a fractured nose and swollen eye. Zahid denied the allegations and applied for the case to be dismissed, which finally happened in 2010. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib losing the moral right to lead the country
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak on Thursday, 13 February 2014, 6:49 am
by Ahmad Mustapha Hassan
The Ant Daily
11/02/2014
OUTSPOKEN: Any leader who has been entrusted to govern the country will need to demonstrate that he is in total control of the government and that he has the full backing of his own political party.
He has to show that he has the qualities to be the leader. He has to be decisive and he has to act promptly to avert any untoward incidents that would harm the people.
He has to have a vision and a goal to achieve. His full concentration should be on the welfare of the people and their future well-being. This is especially so when the country is moving towards achieving fully developed status.
No task is simple for a leader of a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural country. But he has to prove that he has what it takes to be such a leader. He cannot shun reality and challenges but must face all these with resolute solutions that will keep intact the fabric that has enabled the people to enjoy stability. He should be a leader who can bring hope to the people. He should be able to command the full respect of the people.
He is the symbol of unity, progress and harmony. Read the rest of this entry »
If senior ministers and legislators publicly demonstrate that they cannot differentiate right from wrong, what type of a bad example are they providing not only to citizens but the young generation of Malaysians in schools, colleges and universities?
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, nation building, Teresa Kok on Wednesday, 12 February 2014, 6:09 pm
I welcome the Islamic Consumer Association of Malaysia (PPIM) distancing itself from the offer to “slap” DAP woman MP Teresa Kok at a disgraceful “chicken-slaughtering and blood-smearing” demonstration by self-styled “Council of Islamic NGOs” in Kuala Lumpur last Thursday.
PPIM secretary-general Dr Ma’amor Osman has clarified that PPIM was not directly involved in making the initial offer of RM500 for anyone to slap the Seputeh MP over her controversial Chinese New Year satirical video. The offer was later increased to RM1,200.
I fully agree with the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Joseph Kurup that the bounty to slap Teresa Kok could only be made by people who are of “unsound mind”.
Dr. Ma’amor’s repudiation of the disgraceful “slap offer” and “chicken-slaughtering and blood-smearing” episode shows that sanity is returning to groups who were targeted by dubious but highly irresponsible characters bent on inciting racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension based on lies and falsehoods. Read the rest of this entry »
UMNO Vice Presidents and Ministers will be even more irresponsible and reckless if their attack on Teresa Kok’s video as anti-Malay and anti-Islam is based on the video sub-titles which provide no cause whatsoever for such a rampage
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Gerakan, nation building, Teresa Kok on Wednesday, 12 February 2014, 2:04 pm
I was yesterday reminded of the Chinese saying: 此地无银三百两（cǐdì wú yín sān bǎi liǎng), i.e .“there are no 300 pieces of silver here”, when I read a response to my statement that UMNO Ministers had been misled by Chinese BN leaders to spearhead the demonization campaign against Teresa Kok falsely accusing her video “Onederful Malaysia CNY 2014” as being anti-Malay and anti-Islam.
The Chinese saying came from an interesting story.
There was this man named Zhang San(张三） who fancied himself to be clever, but he really was somewhat dull. He managed to collect 300 taels of silver. He didn’t want this tidy sum of money to be stolen, so he had to figure out what to do with it. After considering various plans, he decided to bury the silver in a corner of a wall behind his house. Of course, he did when it was dark so he could evade detection. After the silver was buried, Zhang San was concerned the silver would be discovered. So, he thought he arrived at what was a brilliant plan! He made a sign that said 此地无银三百两 “No 300 taels of silver buried here” at the precise location where he buried the money.
I thought of this saying when I read of the tweets by the Gerakan national youth chief Tan Keng Liang yesterday: Read the rest of this entry »
The conduct of Umno leaders
– Sakmongkol AK47
The Malaysian Insider
February 12, 2014
In an earlier article, I have mentioned a bit about the late Tun Dr Ismail. Some people cannot accept the comparison saying there’s no need to drag in Tun Ismail in the issue in question. Or saying Tun Ismail’s time was history.
Of course the personal attacks against me continue. I am after all a running dog of the “da PIGs” and my tokongs are the Lim Family. These diatribes and vitriol are of no consequence to me. I, a Malay and a Muslim and a rightful citizen of Malaysia find no contradiction being in the DAP. We can all coexist because we are united and resolute in struggling and fighting for a just, equitable and fair society through the instrument of the democratic process. I hope this can be sufficiently understood by people with sufficient intelligence.
People are free to believe in Umno and what it struggles for. We are likewise free not to believe in Umno.
We reject violence and unconstitutional approach to changing government. That is the basis which unites Malaysians who want to be in the DAP. I find it laughable the call from some Malays that they enter DAP to get into the CEC or get some posts. If they join DAP to get these, then don’t join. Let only those with similar convictions join. Read the rest of this entry »
Shame of shame! Worst setback to Najib’s “best democracy in the world” claim with Malaysia’s 2014 Press Freedom Index falling to the lowest point in nation’s history, even below that of Myanmar
Posted by Kit in Human Rights, Media on Wednesday, 12 February 2014, 9:23 am
Shame of shame! This is the worst setback to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s “best democracy in the world” claim with Malaysia’s 2014 Press Freedom Index falling to the lowest point in nation’s history, even below that of Myanmar.
Malaysia already plunged last year to a historic low of No. 145 ranking out of 179 countries in the 2013 World Press Freedom Index – the worst since the start of the annual index by Reporters Without Border (RSF) in 2002.
Malaysia fell by 23 rungs last year, as it was ranked at 122 in the 2011/2012 Press Freedom Index.
In the latest 2014 World Press Freedom Index just released, Malaysia fell further to 147 out of 180 countries, two places behind Myanmar which climbed from 151st ranking to 145th position this year.
ASEAN nations which outperformed Malaysia include Brunei 117, Thailand 130, Indonesia 132 and Cambodia 144 and Myanmar 145. Philippines is ranked 149, Singapore 150, Laos 171 and Vietnam 174.
Malaysia’s World Press Freedom Index 2014 would have been more abysmal falling even behind Philippines and Singapore if the government’s latest press freedom repression had been taken into account, i.e. revocation of the publishing permit for FZ daily, hours just after the publisher The Edge Communications Sdn. Bhd. was granted leave to initiate proceedings against the Home Ministry for deferring its initial approval of the permit. Read the rest of this entry »
Is Najib and Cabinet really seriously about national reconciliation and national consensus rising above partisan differences to end national drift and loss of leadership and direction?
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Najib Razak, nation building, Pakatan Rakyat on Tuesday, 11 February 2014, 4:31 pm
I have addressed three Open Letters to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the Cabinet before three Cabinet meetings in January last month urging the end of national drift and loss of leadership and direction in the past nine months since the 13th general elections last May.
I also appealed to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet to accept the olive branch offered by the Pakatan Rakyat leadership “to love and save Malaysia” by preserving and promoting national unity, harmony and tolerance in the country and to ensure that no nefarious and treacherous plot to cause racial chaos and religious conflagration could succeed in Malaysia.
After the January 29 Cabinet meeting, Najib announced a Cabinet green light for a Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat Leaders’ Summit on national reconciliation and national consensus, claiming that he had first mooted the idea of national reconciliation after the last general election but various parties were not responsive to his appeals to come together.
For the past six months, Pakatan Rakyat leaders have been urging for Barisan Nastional/Pakatan Rakyat talks on national reconciliation and national consensus in view of the unprecedented slew of major national crises faced by the country, including the quintuplet of national crisis covering nation building and national unity, economic, educational, security and anti-corruption. The PR leadership never proposed the idea of “national unity” government. Read the rest of this entry »
Cabinet meeting tomorrow must repudiate and reprimand Zahid and IGP for failure in their duties to uphold the rule of law and embracing, instead, the law of the jungle
Posted by Kit in Crime, Najib Razak, Police, Zahid on Tuesday, 11 February 2014, 1:01 pm
I applaud the Malaysian Bar Council President Christopher Leong’s bold, righteous and forthright statement declaring that government inaction against a group of protestors that slaughtered chickens and smeared its blood on banners of politicians’ faces last week is tantamount to authorities ignoring threats to public order.
Leong said the incident, whereby banners featuring the faces of several DAP and PKR leaders’ were smeared with blood and propositions were made to the public to slap Seputeh MP Teresa Kok was dangerous as it also made references to the May 13, 1969 racial riots.
The Bar Council said the actions carried out by the group, which dubbed itself Council of Islamic NGOs, can be viewed as an “incitement and a threat to public order”.
“It is wholly irresponsible of the authorities not to take immediate and firm action.”
This episode is in fact the blackest mark for the Najib administration as far as police professionalism and the upholding the rule of law is concerned – worse than the “fairy tale” concocted by the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar about the “grenade-plot to topple the elected government” at Dataran Merdeka on 2014 New Year’s Eve because of a peaceful gathering to protest price hikes or the equally preposterous allegation by the government that the Bersih 3.0 rally on April 28, 2012 was a coup attempt to overthrow the government using “salt” and “mineral water bottles”! Read the rest of this entry »
Call on all moderates in Malaysia, whether BN or PR, to unite and isolate extremists and traitors of the country who want to foment racial chaos and religious conflagration through incessant incitement of racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension
Posted by Kit in civil society/NGOs, nation building, Pakatan Rakyat on Tuesday, 11 February 2014, 11:50 am
We are gathered here tonight on the 111th birth anniversary of Bapa Malaysia Tunku Abdul Rahman, to discuss the legacy of the founder Prime Minister of the country.
Tunku had always wanted to be remembered as the “happiest Prime Minister” of a multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural Malaysia, but if he is alive today, he would probably be the saddest person in the country.
For the past nine months since the 13th general elections in May last year, the country has been afflicted by a quintuplet of national crisis the magnitude of which had never been experienced by the country in over half a decade of nationhood – nation building and national unity; economic as reflected in the unchecked rise in prices and the increasing hardships of the low-income groups; educational with the unchecked decline in educational standards; security in terms of the safety of Malaysian citizens, investors and visitors; and good governance particularly in the losing war against corruption.
Never before has the country been more polarised both racial and religious as in the past nine months – because of a combination of two factors, a rudderless and directionless administration of Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and a systematic and relentless campaign by an irresponsible and reckless group who are prepared to destabilise the country by ceaseless incitement of racial and religious hatred, conflict and tension to create the conditions for another May 13 racial riots.
I believe that the overwhelming majority of Malaysians, whether in DAP, PKR or PAS in Pakatan Rakyat, or in Umno, MCA, Gerakan, MIC and the other component parties in Barisan Nasional, do not want another May 13 riots in the country as they want, like Tunku Abdul Rahman, love, peace, harmony and prosperity to prevail in Malaysia. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s impotent, useless police force
Posted by Kit in Police, Teresa Kok on Tuesday, 11 February 2014, 11:03 am
The Malaysian Insider
February 11, 2014
Lord Bobo
Ask Lord Bobo is a weekly column by LoyarBurok where all your profound, abstruse, erudite, hermetic, recondite, sagacious, and other thesaurus-described queries are answered. Free Your Mind!
Lord Bobo, why is our police force so impotent and useless? Some thugs can get together and do the most vile and inciteful things towards Teresa Kok because of a silly satire video, and our police are nowhere to be seen. What’s going on? Do you think her video deserves this reaction? (Duit Kopi, via email.)
We’ll deal with the second question first – whether Teresa Kok’s video deserves the outrage some people have expressed towards it.
Lord Bobo is a fan of satire and comedy, and as you may have noticed, we are also strong advocates for freedom of expression. Satire, as a form of political protest, is naturally aimed to provoke and agitate. Teresa Kok has successfully done so and Lord Bobo congratulates her for achieving the intended result.
The Malaysian public may be unfamiliar with this, but the right to freedom of expression allows citizens to criticise politicians. Levelling criticisms against politicians is crucial in any healthy, liberal, democracy – what more when Malaysia the best democracy in the world.
Some people may not have enjoyed the video. Some people may have found it not at all entertaining or funny. That’s their right, of course. They also have the right to express what they think about the video.
However, that does not mean that Teresa Kok loses her right to make and distribute that video, or that the government or the police should step in to censor it or punish her. Read the rest of this entry »
11th Sarawak state general elections may be held any time after the present state assembly has completed three years on April 16, 2014
The Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud is set to step down by the end of this month, after almost 33 years at the helm of the state.
I will expect the new Sarawak Chief Minister, whether the PBB deputy president Abang Johari Openg, PBB senior vice president Awang Tengah Ali Hassan or PBB information chief Adenan Satem to opt for early state general elections to seek a new mandate from the Sarawak voters instead of heading the Sarawak state government for 12 to 18 months before holding new polls.
Opting for early state polls will give the new Sarawak Chief Minister the advantage of starting on a comparatively new slate, promising to heed the calls for change and improvements after almost 33 years of Taib Mahmud rule, which would not be available if the new Sarawak Chief Minister goes to polls after 12 or 18 months in office when he will have to campaign on his own record.
For this reason, the Sarawak DAP and Pakatan Rakyat must gird itself to be ready to face the 11th Sarawak state general elections any time after the present state assembly has completed three years after April 16, 2014. Read the rest of this entry »
What would Tunku Abdul Rahman do in light of raging racial tensions?
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, nation building on Tuesday, 11 February 2014, 7:46 am
by Eileen Ng
The Malaysian Insider
February 11, 2014
Had Tunku Abdul Rahman been still around, he would have been disappointed with the elements that are trying to divide Malaysia and its people.
The nation’s first prime minister had considered himself to be the happiest premier in the world, but had he been alive today, he would be Malaysia’s saddest man due to the raging racial religious tensions.
With his legacy of unity being threatened, speakers at a forum held to commemorate Tunku’s 111th birthday last night in Kajang said there is a need to secure his legacy to ensure the nation remains united.
DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang said Tunku wanted peace, love and harmony, which he lamented seemed to be in short supply in recent months.
“Never before has Malaysia been so divided and polarised, with the last eight to nine months being the worst. Today’s forum is for us to think of what we have lost in our 56 years of nation building.
“Tunku would want to see a united country. Is Malaysia more united or divided now? Has the issue of race and religion become more polarising?” he said at the forum in last night.
The veteran politician noted that during Tunku’s time, there was certain civic and gentle chivalry that seemed to have gone down the gutters today. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysians must form ‘peaceful resistance’ against racial and religious strife, says Ambiga
Posted by Kit in nation building, Religion on Tuesday, 11 February 2014, 7:32 am
by Eileen Ng
The Malaysian Insider
February 11, 2014
Malaysians must band together for a “peaceful resistance” against ongoing racial and religious strife facing the country, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan (pic) said last night when recalling founding prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman’s legacy for Malaysia.
The former co-chair of electoral reform group Bersih 2.0 said those who want to fight racism and bigotry must unite and stand together with the oppressed. Malaysia’s political mercury spiked in the past few months with a church attacked with a firebomb over the Allah issue and threats against an opposition lawmaker over a satirical video clip.
“How do we stop groups who are bent on dividing us? When they speak the language of racism and bigotry, we must respond with the language of unity and togetherness.
“When they speak the language of ignorance, we must speak the language of knowledge. When they attack our brothers and sisters, we must defend them.
“We must respond from a position of knowledge if we see such ignorance. When they create fear, we must respond with courage, when they divide, we must unite.
“We must make this message loud and clear – the more you divide us, the more we will unite,” Ambiga said to applause from the audience at the Tunku Abdul Rahman legacy forum in Kajang. Read the rest of this entry »
Cat out of the bag – MCA clearly behind the plot to mislead UMNO Ministers to spearhead the vicious demonization campagn against Teresa Kok falsely accusing her video as being anti-Malay and anti-Islam
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Corruption, MCA, nation building, Teresa Kok on Monday, 10 February 2014, 5:10 pm
Now the cat is out of the bag.
MCA is clearly behind the plot to mislead UMNO Ministers to spearhead the vicious demonization campaign against DAP National Vice Chairman and MP for Seputeh Teresa Kok falsely accusing her video, “Onederful Malaysia CNY 2014” as being anti-Malay and anti-Islam, and therefore deserving not only downright condemnation by all right-thinking Malaysians but also the fullest punishment whether under the laws of the land or the law of the jungle.
I have come to this conclusion after reading the Bernama report of the statement by the MCA deputy president, Datuk Dr. Wee Ka Siong, at the Sabah MCA CNY dinner in Kota Kinabalu last night, where he advised Teresa to apologise for her video clip “for the good of Malaysians”.
Present at the Sabah MCA CNY dinner in Kota Kinabalu were the Sabah Yang diPertua Negeri, Tun Juhar Mahiruddin, Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman and Urban and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.
What interested me was the presence of Apdal, the first UMNO/BN leader to open up the attack on Teresa on the video on the completely baseless grounds that the video “Onederful Malaysia” lampooned the Malaysian security forces and the Lahad Datu incursion tragedy. Read the rest of this entry »
Has Malaysia a Home Minister of “unsound mind” who could condone and absolve the criminal actions of people stoking racial tensions by declaring payment of RM1,200 to anyone who slaps woman MP Teresa Kok?
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Corruption, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, nation building, Teresa Kok, UMNO on Monday, 10 February 2014, 6:37 am
This morning the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of national unity, Tan Sri Joseph Kurup said those stoking racial tensions by offering a reward for slapping DAP National Vice Chairperson and MP for Seputeh Teresa Kok are people of “unsound mind”.
The more relevant and pertinent question is whether Malaysia has got a Home Minister of “unsound mind” who could condone and absolve the criminal actions of the self-styled “Council of Islamic NGOs” in stoking racial tensions by declaring payment of RM1,200 to anyone who slaps woman MP Teresa Kok.
The 30-odd people from six Muslim groups involved in the “slap Teresa” demonstration and the chicken slaughter and smearing of chicken blood on a banner featuring DAP and Pakatan Rakyat leaders are “sick” but what is shocking is whether we have a Home Minister who is equally “sick” as to be capable of defending and championing the “sick” actions of the ‘Council of Islamic NGOs’.
Thanks to the publicity given by the extremist NGOs and their sponsors in UMNO, Teresa’s video “Onederful Malaysia CNY 2014” has now exceeded over 450,000 hits on YouTube. Read the rest of this entry »
When will Paul Low follow Wathamoorthy and resign as Minister in Prime Minister’s Department as the Najib administration has evinced no political will to fight grand corruption and gross abuses of powerful
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Crime, Good Governance, Najib Razak on Sunday, 9 February 2014, 6:53 pm
P. Waythamoorthy is set to resign as Deputy Minister and senator tomorrow because the Najib administration has “committed a historic act of betrayal to the Indian community by not honouring the MOU” with Hindraf to resolve the chronic socio-economic problems afflicting the Indian community.
It would appear that Waythamoorthy and the Persatuan Hindraf Malaysia (PHM) are the only ones in the country who do not know that Najib does not have the political will nor the courage to deliver on the promises in the MOU.
The question now is when Datuk Paul Low will follow in the footsteps of Waythamoorthy and resign as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department as it is crystal clear except to Paul Low that Najib does not have the political will to fight grand corruption and gross abuses of power. Read the rest of this entry »
Sabah students ignorant of the three most historic events in Sabah in 50 year history in Malaysia as they are not in the school history textbooks
I fully agree with the founding president of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS), Tunku Zain Al-Abidin Muhriz that failure to teach history properly has enabled others to invent a past that threatens national unity in Malaysia today.
Speaking at the opening of a forum organised by IDEAS yesterday to commemorate the 111 birthday of Tunku Abdul Rahman, the first Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tunku Zain said there were too few references to Malaysia’s own history in charting the vision for the future of the country.
“Which is why I keep saying they should be made compulsory reading in schools, instead of the lamentable textbooks that I have seen,” he said, adding that the biggest ignorance of all was that of our own history. Read the rest of this entry »
I will ask Teresa to withdraw and apologise for the “Onderful Malaysia” video if anyone can show that there is any part which is anti-Malay or anti-Islam
Posted by Kit in nation building, Teresa Kok, UMNO on Sunday, 9 February 2014, 4:34 pm
I am most surprised by the furore over DAP National Vice Chairman and MP for Seputeh Teresa Kok’s “Onederful Malaysia CNY 2014” video which has highlighted the political desperation of some quarters and the rank political opportunism of others.
We can agree or disagree as to whether Teresa’s video was good, bad or even atrocious; most appropriate in giving vent to the people’s heart-felt grievances about the price hikes, low educational standards, worries about security because of rising crime and rampant corruption in the country or whether it is in poor taste and not befitting the work of a Member of Parliament; but what is completely unacceptable is resort to lies and falsehoods to accuse Teresa’s video as anti-Malay and anti-Islam.
I have seen Teresa’s video a few times because of the allegations that it is anti-Malay and anti-Islam, and although I have gone through the video with great care and attention, I cannot find any part of the video – a stinging critique on the failures of the Najib government to resolve the many pressing problems in the country – which could be regarded as anti-Malay or anti-Islam.
I will ask Teresa to withdraw and apologise for the “Onederful Malaysia” video if anyone can can show there is any part which is anti-Malay and anti-Islam.
This is because the DAP is a Malaysian-centred party serving the interests of all Malaysians, regardless of race or religion, and we will not condone any action which is anti-Malay, anti-Chinese, anti-Indian, anti-Kadazan or anti-Iban or anti any religion because to be anti-Malay, anti-Chinese, anti-Indian, anti-Kadazan or anti-Iban is to do the greatest disservice to the cause of Malaysia and the fulfilment of the Malaysian Dream. Read the rest of this entry »
Is Zahid seriously suggesting that it is perfectly lawful and permissible to organise public demonstrations to offer RM1,200 to anyone to slap the PM, DPM or Home Minister?
Posted by Kit in Law & Order, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, nation building, Police, Zahid on Saturday, 8 February 2014, 3:44 pm
Overnight, Malaysians are asking whether the law of the jungle have replaced the rule of law in the country on our way to a fully developed nation status in six years’ time in 2020.
This follows the shocking statement by the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who dismissed calls to investigate the organisers of Thursday’s chicken slaughter protest against DAP MP Teresa Kok, and who dismissed the RM1,200 reward offered by the self-styled “Council of Islamic NGOs” who slaps Teresa saying “there is nothing to investigate as it is not a threat”.
He said: “Why do we need to investigate that?
“Slapping is not a threat. If they say murder, then it is a threat.”
Is Zahid seriously suggesting that it is perfectly lawful and permissible to organise public demonstrations to offer RM1,200 to anyone to slap the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister or the Home Minister?
Is the Home Minister advocating the law of the jungle instead of the rule of law? Then we are not heading towards a fully developed nation in 2020 but down the abyss to a failed state by the end of the decade!
Read the rest of this entry »
Advice to All Politicians: Keep Calm, Cool and Collected
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, Politics, Teresa Kok, UMNO on Saturday, 8 February 2014, 11:44 am
Koon Yew Yin
8th February 2014
When Theresa Kok’s video clip for the Chinese New Year first appeared, I saw it as a cleverly done piece of political satire. It was funny, original and thought provoking. I thought the references to various personalities and public issues of concern captured some of our recent political controversies in a refreshingly irreverent and comical way. The clip brought back to me memories of that hugely popular and successful British television series, “Yes Minister” which first ran in the 1980’s and has been recently revived.
At the same time that I appreciated the black humour and wit in the “ONEderful Malaysia!” video, I was concerned that it would be viewed the opposite way by the Government and UMNO’s political supporters and would become ammunition for them to hit back not only against her, but also the DAP and the opposition parties as a whole.
Clearly the video was intended to draw attention to issues of public concern. It was also meant to draw attention to Theresa Kok as a politician and to enhance her public image. But what if the Government or its supporters twisted it around and concocted elements of racial or religious discord to smear the DAP and Pakatan coalition? I was especially concerned that the targeting of the video to a Chinese audience and timed for the Chinese New Year period was strategically unwise and could backfire.
My worse fears have now proven correct. Read the rest of this entry »
