Sunday 31 August 2014

Merdeka

31 Ogos,
Tarikh keramat
Agamaku dimuliakan
Bangsaku dimartabatkan
Hak ku dikembalikan

Doaku,
Agar agamaku terus dalam perlindungan Mu
Bangsaku terus dalam keredhaan Mu
Jalur gemilang kekal berkibar di bawah kerahmatan Mu
Di Tanahairku, tanah tumpah darahku yang terus merdeka

Wednesday 27 August 2014

Egotists

By refusing to forward more than two names for consideration as candidates for the post of Menteri Besar, PKR and DAP refuse to acknowledge the authority of Sultan of Selangor in the appointment of Menteri Besar as defined in the Selangor Undang-Undang Tubuh Negeri.

That is not only "biadap" (rude) but also "besar kepala" (big headed).

I am no lawyer, but when I read the state constitution, my interpretation is that Tuanku's decisions has so far been strictly within the laws.

So to those that argue that Tuanku should simply accede to Pakatan's decision of who the MB should be, my suggestion is for them to read up the Selangor State Constitution and interpret it with a rational head instead of warping things to suit your own point of view.

"Pakatan Rakyat" is not even a legal entity, and yet they presume to dictate the Istana Selangor and Tuanku Sultan to adhere by their conventions.

PAS did the right thing by acknowledging "titah" Tuanku - there is still hope for them as it seems they have not forgotten their "adab sopan Melayu" - because Tuanku is obviously making decisions within the scope of his authority.

See, the problem that I have with Pakatan is that their mental disposition is not just irrational but also unbelievably convoluted - they are inconsistent, contradictory and judgmental in addition to supremely confident of their infallibility.

And like immature children, they will always blame someone else instead of seeing that some of these things are caused by their own doings, presumably because they consider themselves highly educated and intelligent beings in addition to being always in the right.

The Kajang Move is an example of how unbelievably egotistical these PKR-DAP leadership is.

They thought they can treat the entire Selangor State, from the rakyat on the ground up to the Sultan, as merely adherents to their show of internal power play and deem it fitting to force the Tuanku Sultan to accept the victor of their childish politics as Menteri Besar.

Not a single one of them give a crap for the rakyat, they are just too busy feeding their ego with all sorts of ego boosters, even to the extent of intimidating the Tuanku Sultan with their "expert legal opinions" that Sultan has no authority to appoint the state's Menteri Besar.

They blame Khalid, they blame PAS, they even blame Umno, and yet they refuse to see that all the mess began when they started involving the entire Selangor state, rakyat and all, in their stupid political lunacy with that Kajang Move.

And they even stated that their first act under the new Menteri Besar will be to rescind the water agreement the state signed with the federal government - leaving the people of Selangor with the possibility of more water problems.

How can anyone with any self-respect allow these bungling idiots to be their leaders in anything?

Monday 25 August 2014

KPI of a State Government

I am so incredibly glad that at least this blog is no longer inundated with Opposition cyber-bullies like it used to be.

Sure, BigCat no longer have the kind of traffic it used to have, but at least I can actually say my piece without a number of trolling cretins filling up the comments space - except for the occasional expletive-ridden curses.

True, I can just delete those comments the public would deem offensive, but to be honest, I find these reaction from anons who couldn't refute my opinions in a more measured and rational manner kind of amusing and just let them through to remind myself to avoid going the same route.

Just as I give these anons the freedom to express their opinions, I expect the same courtesy from the public who come to my blog - to freely air my opinions of the world around me.

It so happens that now I am living in Selangor, in all its rubbishy glory and political lunacy.

Why do some people get all excited when I express exactly what I think about the barely tolerable situation that deprive us who live in Selangor with basic services that a state administration should provide to the people who put them in office?

If what I wrote is not true, then refute it and give examples of the truth.

If I think politicians tussling for the highest office in the state while basic public services (such as water, road conditions, garbage collection are neglected) is a symptom of a banana republic, wouldn't it be "classier" to refute my opinion with rational reasonings of why it is not so?

If Selangor people are happy with such a situation, then so be it, but I don't see why I should keep quiet about it.

I also exercise my right to express my opinion that a well-managed state with more than RM3 billion in its coffers should not neglect something as basic as uninterrupted supply of clean water.

Before we shout in pride about the state's ability to have RM3.2 billion in its coffers, and that we are the richest state in Malaysia, we should think again what is meant by having a BALANCED BUDGET and why the KPI for running a state government and a corporate entity are different.

A corporate entity has an obligation to create value, which is ultimately translated into more Ringgit and Sen for its stakeholders.

A state government has an obligation to serve the public.

Selangor state government should function primarily as an operations general manager by efficiently managing its resources such as land, water, minerals and of course the human resources; to create a conducive environment for its residents, by providing not only jobs but also living condition that is prosperous, safe, clean and healthy.

So tell me, has the Selangor state administration delivered this with their RM3.2 billion reserves, water crisis, uncollected garbage, potholed roads, dengue and a political brawl to boot?

Wednesday 20 August 2014

Clean Start

Logic would say that Tuanku Sultan will consent to the dissolution of the State Assembly.

With all the mess currently, it is only sensible to have a clean start.

We can't possibly have a clean slate, as I suspect the same jokers would still be putting themselves up as candidates, but at least there will be a fresh mandate to check Selangor's state administration downward spiral to that of a banana republic.

Imagine that, the richest (all the political write-ups especially the foreign ones like to throw this in whenever they write about Selangor) and most urbanised state in the country, with presumably more "educated and classy " urbanites per square feet than other states in Malaysia combined, have managed to get themselves into a festival of political lunacy.

We have taps that run dry periodically, garbage that don't get collected regularly, poorly maintained roads with potholes that you  have to get off-road to avoid, an escalating dengue fever problem - and now a possibility of a state wide election barely a year after a General Election.

Talk about third world problems and mentality.

If we have these kinds of problems in the richest state in Malaysia with the most number of "educated and classy" urbanites, maybe it isn't too bad living in a kampung somewhere in the rural heartland of Johor where they don't have too many people claiming they are better than everyone else, trying to force their political opinions down other people's throat.

I am not sure whether I am going to even waste my time analysing the upcoming (possibly) elections and the potential outcome.

Besides, Annie is already doing it and she probably would continue to do so.

However, if the Selangor people are smart, they should really think hard whether they would want to give their mandate to a bunch of politicians who spend their entire time talking to the people as opposed to doing things in service of the people, again.

My sister is definitely casting her vote in Subang Jaya again, should there be a by-election.  That's one wasted vote for BN in lala land.

Unfortunatey, or fortunately come to think of it, I haven't transferred my vote from Gelang Patah, so this time I will be just a bystander.

When I suggested to Pakatan that they should all resign their seats periodically instead of just the one in Kajang to gain attention, I never expected that the Kajang Move was going to trigger the dissolution of the State Assembly and caused a mini-general election in Selangor.

I mean, that posting about ignoring the attention seeker was just a joke, who would have thought that some moron would actually started creating a political mess to trigger something similar.

So now I know what it's like living in a state run by "highly intelligent, classy and educated" urbanites.

Monday 18 August 2014

So Be It, Selangorians

At 10 to 27 against, I think the Ulama faction within PAS has lost control of the party.

The next step is to wait for the decision of Tuanku Sultan when he comes back from his holiday.

Until then, we just have to endure more of the same posturing all around.

This is the reason why I never put much credence in PAS.

All that posturings and whatever, but in the end they toe the line drawn by their masters, for the sake of having a share of the RM3.2 billion in Selangor coffers.

This whole thing would have ended much earlier, before Tuanku left for his holiday if not for these blustering bastards.

What a complete waste of time la these windbags ...

As for those who think that Khalid Ibrahim is such a wonderful guy, think again.

He is not that much different from the hypocrites barking and nipping at his heels to get their hands on that RM3.2 billion Selangor cash reserves.

How can he be considered a good state administrator when the state has RM3.2 billion in cash savings or fixed deposits, and yet the state cannot provide Selangor residents with basic things such as uninterrupted availability of clean water, a healthy living environment, and decent roads.

Why was he hoarding that RM3.2 billion when it could have been better utilised by the local authorities to maintain roads, improve the garbage collection service, clean up the back alleys and open spaces to create a healthier and safer living space for the rakyat?

To what purpose was he saving all that cash for?

Obviously not for the rakyat.

When has it ever been said that a public administration with lots of cash reserves holed up somewhere gaining interest while the public services suffer is a sign of good management?

Why can't the state work with the federal government and neighboring states to resolve the water issue in a timely manner and without a drawn out political drama?

Is the state government truly free of corruption, cronyism and nepotism during his watch?

For me, Khalid Ibrahim is just as guilty as the rest of them of political grandstanding, so I don't see that he is that much better than Anwar's Wan Azizah or Azmin Ali.

This whole issue of replacing the MB is a non-issue really.

And if Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Guan Eng, Mat Sabu and the rest of the gang are that hard up for the RM3.2 billion, so be it - it isn't like we the rakyat will get any benefit from that cash reserve regardless of who is in charge in Shah Alam.

Things will get worse, I agree, but it isn't that much better under Khalid anyway.

Saturday 16 August 2014

When we let 3 year-olds hold power ...

... we get Selangor MB Crisis 2014.

I know, it is convenient to blame Umno for everything, but this time around, you people have taken it too far.

PAS Excos hang on to their Exco positions because they wanted to protect the state cash reserves from Umno because they heard the Sultan will "perkenan" the appointment of Umno ADUNs as state excos?

How much was that, Sallehen?  More than RM3.2 billion you said?

Are you seriously stupid or what?

Without PAS support, Khalid and Umno cannot form a government la mangkuk!

If all PAS ADUN went and support Wan Azizah from the very beginning, there would have been no drama at all, the Khalid administration would have collapsed and the Sultan will either dissolve the State Assembly or appoint a new Mentri Besar who has the majority support.

All this extended drama was because you donkeys from PAS wanted Khalid to stay as MB, refused to accept Wan Azizah as the new MB, and now wanted to wait until Sunday before you decide what to do.

It has nothing to do with Sultan or Umno.

It started with that stupid PKR drama called The Kajang Move which was intended to remove Khalid Ibrahim from the MB Office to be replaced with PKR's own Diva Extraordinaire through his proxy, The Wife.

Tuanku Sultan was not involved in the Kajang Move.

Umno was not involved in the Kajang Move.

Only PKR, DAP and PAS, ok.

Then all those other moves to discredit Khalid Ibrahim with the roadshows, the alleged misconduct, whatnots; that was all PKR, DAP and PAS Anwarinas, ok.

Tuanku Sultan was not involved in any roadshows discrediting Khalid Ibrahim.

Umno was not involved in that either.

Then for some convoluted reason, PAS wanted Khalid to stay as Mentri Besar, what with the public statements, the "solat hajat", and whatnots.

Tuanku Sultan was not at Khalid's residence, performing "solat hajat" for his Mentri Besar, ok, only PAS and Khalid's supporters were there.

Umno members were not there, performing "solat hajat" with the rest of Khalid's supporters either.

The only thing that Umno did was to state that they support Khalid to continue as Mentri Besar without conditions, i.e. they were not asking for anything in return for their support, but they only have 12 seats in the Assembly, a minority.

They were never in any danger of getting near that RM3.2 billion cash reserves that you people are so proud of if PAS had not been such stupid donkeys and insisted on Khalid as MB.

This so-called crisis was created entirely by you people, nothing to do with Tuanku Sultan or Umno.

August 28th is only a few days away.

So I would like to suggest to PR politicians and political activists that they should just cool off and wait until then.

Since you are so sure that the majority of the Dewan is with you, the rakyat is with you, the NGOs are apparently with you, so chill and try to have a life that does not involve politics until that date when the Sultan decides what to do next.

Stop pointing fingers at everyone else like a three year-old.

I don't give a crap who becomes MB of Selangor, as I am certain nothing will change for the rakyat no matter who sits in the MB Office.

If Selangor people want these idiots to become their lawmakers, then so be it, I am not invested in any of it.

Just make sure you collect my garbage regularly, repair the roads instead of hoarding billions of state funds just to brag about how much money you people are making, clean up all the open spaces to reduce the dengue numbers, make sure my taps do not dry up.

I will even continue to pay my bills and taxes promptly.

In return, I just want you lot to shut the xxxx up, do you job to serve the rakyat with the minimum of fuss and for God's sake, stop acting like three year-olds.

Can?

Thursday 14 August 2014

When You Have The Smarts

The Pakatan is really at breaking point now and it is all up to PAS how this drama will end.

Khalid Ibrahim is pulling all the stops, and I bet he still has a few tricks up his sleeves in his bid to keep his enemies unbalanced.

However it is still up to PAS.

For one thing, as I predicted earlier, PAS is not willing to have anything to do with Umno, not even in Selangor, or at least that's what I gathered from the statements by Sallehen Mukhyi and Halimah Ali.

They will not sully the holy pact that forms the political trinity of Islamist PAS, Libertarian PKR and Socialist DAP.  At least not until their meeting on the 17th.

Heh ... the irony of it.

Too bad, really, for those who think that PAS-Umno unity government is going to happen in Selangor.  PAS loves DAP and PKR too much.

Therefore, in reality, Khalid's position is not very strong, so it is important for him to keep his opponents jumping around in disarray.

It is interesting to note that DAP and PKR miscalculated big time as they totally did not take into account the role of the Istana and the pertinent clauses of Undang-Undang Tubuh Negeri in the appointment of Mentri Besar and the State Exco.

I found that baffling, that they apparently did not do a thorough research before plotting a course of action that is turning into a disaster.

Reading his moves, I think Khalid has some very competent and sharp advisers who have not only been giving him good advice, but have also prepared for all possible scenarios.

I guess it helps that the other side are not very smart.

On a positive note, reports say that Umno would decline any offer of positions in the state government, which is smart of them.

By distancing themselves from all the drama, and minimising their official statements only to the necessity of stating their unconditional support for Khalid to continue his job as Mentri Besar, Umno in Selangor is coming across as a more sane and credible alternative.

It also frees Khalid from obligations that may hamper him in his bid to remain as Mentri Besar.



Monday 11 August 2014

Calculating the Odds

I really don't get PKR's Kajang Move.

Whether they are not very good with their math or simply unable to live quietly, PKR seems to have managed to put themselves in a situation very similar to that in Perak in 2009.

It is now a game of numbers, with the odds of PR losing control of the Selangor government being as high as Wan Azizah becoming the MB of Selangor.

There is of course the bonus of PAS leaving PR to go solo and uniting with Umno for political expediency to defy PKR-DAP in Selangor State Assembly should the need arise (I doubt PAS would lick their spittle and unite with Umno beyond Selangor).

For one thing, when they decided to appoint YB Hannah Yeoh as the Speaker, it is obvious DAP did not learn from what happened in Perak, nor did they anticipate Anwar Ibrahim's penchant for drama.

DAP, in their shortsightedness of wanting to be seen as having equal power over the state by having one of their own presiding over the Dewan, gambled away 1 vote in the eventuality of a motion of no confidence in the State Assembly.

PKR, in their abject stupidity, sacked one of their own, reducing their numbers to 13, almost at par with their nemesis Umno at 12.

It is also an absolute show of arrogance that despite being the weakest partner in the Pakatan, PKR expect DAP and PAS to totally submit to their machinations, come what may.

Ironically, the outcome has created a situation in Selangor where even DAP is now subject to the mercies of PAS assemblymen, whom they have collectively threatened, insulted, sidelined and offended over the past year.

Somehow PR's precarious position in Selangor doesn't seem to have registered in the brains of bratty boy who is lording it up north, for he had just thrown another "I'll sue you" threat at a PAS leader over something that he should have been better to keep mum about.

If we were to start calculating the odds, the much touted Kajang Move is simply one brainless move after another, driven by mindless arrogance which is now tinged with desperation.

So if all these moves are part of the Kajang Move, far from solidifying their position in Selangor as a base to capture Putrajaya, they have instead managed to loosen their grip on Selangor.

Just as the PR government collapsed a year after GE12, Pakatan may find itself losing Selangor barely a year after GE13.

PS.  Tsk tsk .. Don't you DAP people realise that politically speaking, you would have been in a better position in Selangor with PAS than with PKR?  Really, you need people who can count the odds in your party, no wonder even Windows Excel is beyond you ...

Saturday 9 August 2014

PR Drama

Aiseh ... another PR drama in session.

I have been trying to avoid all that PKR-PAS drama being played out in all the news headlines.

Then of course CM Lim had to create his own kind of drama too with the surplus/deficit nonsense, like who gives a crap about that?

And you are suing someone for saying the tunnel project is how much again?

If the BN ministers are half as sue-happy as these PR pollies, we would have all the PR activists knee-deep in legal suits.

I really don't get it la ... these PR politicians ...

They have only three states to govern and yet they create so much noise and drama that I am convinced that they are starved for attention.

As if all the hullabaloo in Selangor is not enough to hog the headlines, Pulau Pinang has to creep into the picture too.

Seriously, PAS accuse DAP of whatever, DAP threaten PAS with whatever, PKR charge one of their own of whatever ... it goes on and on, non-stop.

Don't these people ever get tired of all these conflicts?

Why can't they just try to get along and help each other to govern their respective states without constantly bitching about each other?

If someone make a mistake, can't they just tell him/her about the mistake and work something out to rectify the problem, don't simply get all indignant and angry and threaten to sue lah, show cause letter lah, roadshows lah ...

Aiyooo, I get tired just reading about them.

So incredibly childish, it boggles the mind how these bunch of juveniles got elected as lawmakers.

Thank God Anwar didn't become our Prime Minister, otherwise we would have cabinet reshuffles every time one of the ministers make a decision that wasn't referred to him and we will end up with his entire family as cabinet ministers with multiple portfolios.

This is the reason why I shudder at the thought of PR running the Federal government.

Khalid Ibrahim, you should have been prepared for the eventuality of being discarded once you have served your purpose.  It has happened to others before you.

That is the nature of Anwar Ibrahim, everything and everyone's purpose is to serve his interest.

You should have just given in gracefully and let Wan Azizah take over the MB post if the Sultan allows it.

If, as a result, Selangor regresses into a cesspool, that's what the Selangor people totally deserve for not using their brains when they chose their representatives.

You reap what you sow.

As for Lim Guan Eng, why can't someone just tell him to grow up?

Thursday 7 August 2014

My First Million

I didn't even realise BigCat had passed the million mark if it hadn't been noticed by Annie who blogged about it and Rocky ... heh, thanks for the mention guys.

I wasn't really going to make a big deal about it, but I really should thank them, and all of my regular readers, for still reading my nonsense, especially those who regularly drop by even when I hardly write anymore.

This blog really started with the little posting that practically told CM Lim "I know what you said in Singapore last summer" and with Ai's brand of quirky, semi-personal public airings and rantings, it grew in prominence, gaining followers and haters alike.

I officially took over fully in March last year, at the height of the Lahad Datu crisis, simply because Ai had other things to do, and there was no one else to carry the momentum so near to the General Elections.

I am no writer and not really into politics, as my education background is mathematics and economics.  Not even a member of any political party.  It was rather tough to continue the excellent work started by Ai.

The good thing is I never really pay much attention to the blog stats (it isn't really statistics in the true sense of the word), heh ... ironic, considering I am a statistician by training; it helped me to be focused on the writing as opposed to worrying about the numbers.

I was never paid by anyone to blog, despite many accusations that alluded to my being a paid Umno blogger.

I wasn't writing much after GE13 because I was actually bereft of ideas as well as the fact that I found all the post-election posturing almost too much to stomach and had to keep the bills down.

I wouldn't mind being paid to blog, actually, as bandwidth and electricity cost money, but I would never allow my thoughts and opinions to be bought, hence BigCat remains independent under my watch.

So again, thanks for reading and have a nice day.


Wednesday 6 August 2014

Making A Difference

Previously I urged Umno to engage Islam-based NGO if they are truly interested in uplifting the lot of the ummah instead of being immersed in meaningless protracted political drama with PAS.

I would like to suggest a better way in which Umno could spend their time and resources for the betterment of the Ummah, if I may.

Instead of having all that annoying rah-rah moments with big "I love PM" rallies, or huge 2-day job fairs that address just a small segment of the intended target, the money is better put to use in creating a lot of goodwill through low-key social programmes with participation from NGOs which are not the usual Umno-related ones.

Start with independent, non-political Islamic social development organisations that run old folks homes, orphanages, nursing homes for mental patients or half way homes for social misfits.

See how these places are managed and find ways to help these organisations administer and run these places while helping out by organising all those Puteri and Umno Youth boys to actually perform voluntary work there on a semi-permanent basis.

Make this as part of their mandatory community contribution, it may help them to get grounded and avoid the pitfalls of the "tin kosong" syndrome when they open their mouths.

They can also create groups of "helpers" that go to the local schools, colleges and universities to counsel students on how to make the best of their talents when choosing specific career paths, help them to recognise opportunities for better career options, assist them to get through any difficulties in their academic endeavours, suggest other options that fit with their capabilities.

It's a positive way of guiding these youngsters to achieve academic success, hence giving them a leg up in fighting for a place in college, universities and the job place, while keeping in touch with these kids without polluting their thinking with all that political rhetoric that is capable of destroying lives.

Maintain this network of youngsters who will then be encouraged to contribute back to society through the same organisation, while they provide each other with business and professional networking that will help Bumiputra businesses to grow bigger and more Bumiputra professionals to become high achievers.

Maybe you won't get lots of photo ops that will fill up the pages of newspapers, but these are things that mean a lot to many people, except the few who think that the world owe them everything, and will allow Umno to constantly be in touch to what is important in the hearts of the people.

You have all those missions to foreign lands, well and good, but don't forget that you should also create goodwill among the ordinary people, who may not need as much help as those poor downtrodden people; to just have their troubles acknowledged and addressed would do wonders of how they perceive you.

There are many little things such as these that Umno members can do to make a difference, I am sure, and people may also have lots more ideas on how to get these done in a more meaningful way, but they should start somewhere instead of constantly lamenting about the perfidy of youth.

Tuesday 5 August 2014

PAS-Umno unity very unlikely ...

... if PAS leadership wants their "maruah" to remain intact.

This is of course just my opinion.

The thing is, with the leadership that they have in PAS currently, I doubt that they would be crawling to Umno any time soon anyway, despite all that talk about leaving Pakatan.

The problem with PAS is, I have this weird feeling that all that talk of unity government, leaving Pakatan and what-nots are just political posturing, them maneuvering to get attention for whatever that they are not getting from the powers-that-be within Pakatan.

PAS wants a share of power (prior to GE13, they were even aspiring to the Premiership), which they are obviously not getting in Pakatan states other than Kelantan.

There is only so much you can get out of a state without any coherent socio-economic development planning and implementation in place.

But then reality bites, and they now have one full year to reflect on what they got out of the Pakatan deal after what has been termed as the most successful opposition political achievement ever since the riots of 1969.

However, the state of PAS in Selangor, despite having the same number of seats as DAP, kinda reflect what is in the dish that was shoved to their corner.

Let's not even talk about Pulau Pinang.

They are even reprimanded for attempting to table Hudud Laws in Kelantan, where there isn't a single non-Muslim representative in the State Assembly and more than 95% of its population is Malay Muslims.

Then there is that allusion to idiots in Ariff Sabri's description of PAS as "parti tok alim kampungan".

Of course they are upset, and they want to hit back in whatever form they can, hence the support for Khalid Ibrahim, the leaking of their WhatsApp chat, the insistence in tabling Hudud.

What difference would it be to PAS whether Khalid Ibrahim or Wan Azizah becomes the MB of Selangor?

It isn't as if it would change PAS' lot.  They are both PKR.

But they won't leave the Pakatan, primarily because they will have to eat their words, all those years of constant Umno-hating ceramah, even "doa pecah perut" and "Umno KO".

Really difficult to do that, considering the size of their ego.

How would they explain all that to their members and followers whose life-long "perjuangan" was to fight against the Umno infidel?

I wish Umno and pro-Umno bloggers would just quit talking about PAS-Umno unity as I think if the Malays truly had wanted to be united above any need for personal glory, there would not have been a PAS in the first place.

And their anti-Umno rhetoric has not significantly lessened by any degree either.

So Umno should not waste their time with PAS.

What Umno should do is focus on steering our nation through these difficult times without wasting too much time pandering to those who are dissatisfied with the outcome of their choices.

Instead, they should just pay more heed to some of the Islam-based NGOs which have been quietly active on the ground, have dialogues with as many of them as possible and invite them more often to be part of the planning think tank and implementation machinery of Islamic social programmes.

Be sure to avoid organisations that appear to have over-weaning political ambitions, or narrow definitions of Islamic social development, or those with overly political rhetoric about Malay rights without making any significant work on the ground.

Be smart with your choices will you, Umno, and steer clear of the mess in Pakatan.

Sunday 3 August 2014

Opting Out of Pakatan

Okay, I've lost the depression.  Most of it anyway.

Spent the last 36 hours in isolation, sewing a brand new baju kurung.  That was supposed to be my Baju Raya but I wasn't motivated to finish it in time, so it will now be my Baju Hari Kebangsaan.

For some reason, sewing always calms me down.  That's why I always have my sewing basket handy, and to visit Kamdar regularly to stock up on fabrics.

But I digress.

The reason I am posting so soon is because I read Helen's latest posting here about a TMI editorial piece.  (As a rule, I don't read TMI as a source for reliable information - too gossipy, largely unverified innuendos, and an opposition slant too obvious that it insults my intelligence.)

Helen has always been a good motivating factor for me to write about what little I know of politics .. heh

1.   I agree with Helen - TMI's "analysis" was a desperate attempt to intimidate PAS to stay within the Pakatan fold.

With almost 90% of Chinese votes, all of PAS Islamist Malays votes and whatever hotch-potch liberal urbanites under the banner of PKR and PSM, Pakatan failed to win Putrajaya in 2013.

PAS also lost Kedah.

In GE13, PAS was the biggest loser, while DAP the biggest winner.

The fact that they have already captured as much Chinese support as they can possibly capture, DAP need PAS to retain sufficient Malay support in winning urban mixed constituencies that would have gone either way.

With the confrontational biadapness of the DAP supporters and Christian evangelists, I would be surprised if PR would be able to garner more support from the Malays in these constituencies without PAS, even if they were to field their collection of "awek cun" Barbie dolls as candidates.

So PAS must be compelled to stay in Pakatan to maintain access to Peninsular mosques and suraus, while they concentrate their efforts to penetrate new rural base through Christian evangelism in Sabah and Sarawak churches.

Once Sabah and Sarawak have been sufficiently penetrated, and their Barbie collection are sufficiently accepted by the drooling Malay masses, PAS would readily be kicked out.

2.   Staying in Pakatan is harmful to PAS and will eventually reduce it to a mosquito party.

If PAS were to stay in Pakatan, their support base among the Malay Muslims will gradually be eroded because they are seen to have lost their Islamic conservatism which was their defining identity.

Along the way, PAS seem to have lost their ultra-Islamist credence whenever they are faced down by PKR and DAP, while their vitriol seems to be reserved for everything Umno; not even Umno's non-Muslim coalition partners get the kind of hatred that they heap on Umno.

DAP's arrogance and condescending attitude towards PAS doesn't help either.

PAS' seeming deference, almost subservient attitude, to the ultra-liberal PKR and ultra-chauvinist DAP in matters pertaining to what are deemed (by Malay Muslims) as affecting the sanctity of Islam is a turn-off to young Muslim professionals and the undecided Malays who feel "maruah Melayu dan Islam sedang dicabar".

Now PAS is neither truly Islamist, nor are they nationalist, and they can't compare to PKR when it comes to liberalism and multi-culturism ...

As it is now, I see ISMA as having a stronger political will than PAS to provide the needed check and balance to Umno's commitment, or lack of it, to the betterment of the ummah while defending Islam and Malay interests from DAP and Christian evangelism aggression.

I had a chat with a chap who was a PAS totok while waiting for a flight to Dubai not long ago, and he somehow inadvertently expressed his disappointment "entahla, sekarang ni generally yang biru tua macam lebih islamik dari yang hijau - if things don't change, I may just stay at home next election ..."

So that's my 2 sen ...


Friday 1 August 2014

Paranoia

The family get-together is definitely over as my sister took the early morning flight westward this morning, back to her job and life on the other side of the globe.

I didn't send her to the airport this time, just my sister (the one I am living with) with all three kids in tow, right after Subuh prayers.

I am not certain why, but I feel extremely depressed the last couple of months and I simply couldn't keep up the happy and carefree facade that I must maintain in front of my family.

I also find it difficult to write about local political goings-on that seem too petty to me when compared to the life-threatening situations being faced by ordinary people in trouble spots throughout the world.

The world of politics and international diplomacy (or posturing more like it) is something I cannot even claim to fully comprehend, nor attempt to analyse.

But I don't need to be an expert to see the proxy wars being fought throughout the world, the manipulations at play, the public posturing of the head bullies (they call them presidents and prime ministers, but they are just bullies to me), and the eventual negotiations which they called diplomacy that will apportion territorial influence over regions, resources and minions after they have accomplished a certain number of casualties.

After all the killings, the number of deaths are just statistics that will determine who had the upper hand in the fight for economic influence and acquired-by-proxy resources.

How little do these warmongers value the lives they obliterate by the thousands to further their ambitions for global hegemony, not that they value the lives of their proxies any higher than those they killed.

Looking at the events that affect our nation these past few years, I have this sinking feeling that peaceful and prosperous Malaysia is being manipulated and pushed into a situation.

Lahad Datu was the first real public threat that test the resolve of our security forces, while MH370 pitted us against China, and MH17 pushed us to decide how to deal with Russia (see how MH17 seems to unite our politicians in condemnation of the perpetrators ... kinda telling that this time around all the opposition MPs were all in agreement, meek as lambs.)

When Malaysia seems to be avoiding conflict by keeping neutral and side-stepping the issues of condemnations, Israel is now accusing us of training Gaza fighters.

It is one thing to be accused of training MNLF by Filipino riff-raffs, but to be accused by Israel of training Hamas is something else.

It can be used as an excuse to bomb us to oblivion.

And amid all these, social unrest is being stoked under various guises of civil liberties by NGOs which have been mushrooming lately, while opportunistic political parties riding on the waves of negativity, take advantage of the situation to further their political ambitions.

Despite our government's efforts to steer clear of creating situations that would trigger foreign intervention, I can't help feeling that we will, sooner or later, be pushed over the precipice into unwanted violence.

Unfortunately I don't seem to see anyone else sharing my concern, definitely not our aspiring politicians.

Maybe it is just paranoia, but the feeling of helplessness is rather overwhelming.