Rant & Raves

Let me declare that I am not a political blogger so that there will be no confusion on this blog entry. I do not support any particular political parties, be it Barisan Nasional (BN), Democratic Action Party (DAP), PKR and PAS or anything. My support is to have a clean government that emphasize on the benefits of the country, the people, and empathy towards the people, instead of those who are in for personal gain.

For all these years that I have been blogging, I have pretty much refrained myself from posting any politic-related blog entry is because I cannot say I am knowledgeable in this topic, even sometimes when I see a politician screaming racist statements, I refrained myself from writing about it. For me, I am a Malaysian, and this is a ONE NATION. I do not understand the need or the necessity to separate us into multiracial group such as Malays, Chinese and Indians, whereas there are so many constitutions stated that only Malays can hold certain positions and all that.

You can call it Winds of Change or Shift in Power. But I would call it Balance of Power. BN do not gather a two third majority but still able to form a government based on simply majority. This is a stark contrast to the 2004 General Election where BN won 92% of the seats. So why the stark contrast?

In 2004, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi promised many things, such as clean government, transparency, and etc. The people wanted a change from the Mahathir era, so they gave their precious vote to BN because they wanted change. Change it did, under the leadership of Abdullah Badawi, but not for the better. This year, a large amount of votes swung towards Opposition parties, namely DAP, PKR and PAS. Look at the voting results. BN 140 vs Opposition 82.

Now, we have to keep an open mind and not be too radical (or extreme), so let’s just assume that it is true that there were 1million phantom votes (as reported here), and without these 1million phantom votes, it is pretty safe to assume that the Oppositions would have won more seats than what they had won now. If without these phantom votes, then BN would have lost more than just Selangor, Penang, Perak, and Kelantan, and that would mean that for the first time in Malaysia 50 years history since independence, BN would not be able to form the government.

So what does that mean? The people are sending a message to these political parties, a very loud and clear message; we are tired of what had happened. So please do something about it and help make the country a better place to be.

Will this create social instability? I don’t know but I think most probably not. The other day I went to Tesco and realized that the shelf for rice, instant noodle, sugar and oil were all empty because people were buying those items fanatically, afraid that there would be a social instability and result in another May 13 event. For me, I see this as a good thing and the reason is very simple.

The message that the rakyat (people) is sending to BN, UMNO, government and Opposition parties during the 12^th General Election is crystal clear. So now, the government will tiptoe and really put in their effort to do a good job, if not, more voters will swing their votes to Opposition in the next General Election, provided that the Opposition can do a better job. The Opposition will have to put down their political differences and start to look at the big picture, meaning that they will have to perform well and be the public servant that they are supposed to be, make the country to be a better place and help the people to have a better life. There is no point of announcing multi-billion mega corridors projects if it is just a waste of money. Remove all those time-and-money wasting projects and spend those money to improve the facilities, transportation and education, and provide a business friendly environment to groom local businesses and attract oversea investments. Most importantly, be transparent and don’t be a corrupted politician. Don’t try to get the people’s vote by removing everything, like the toll or parking (just an example) just to get the votes because that might bankrupt the state and government. What we want is that you do a study, review and investigate existing contracts and remove the necessary burdens of the people on this country.

Yes, I understand that for the first time, the Opposition won so many seats. You can bask in champagne for celebration, but right now the most important thing to do is to sit down and really work for the people. For 50 years, the people had given BN the chances and opportunities to do things right. Now the people are giving you 5 years to make a difference, and you know what we really want. We want transparency. We want a clean government. We want a fair system. We want to curb corruption. We want to put a stop to award government contracts based on relationships instead of abilities and capabilities (and for some reasons that no one can understand, when those projects are canceled, these “companies” will be compensated with hundred of millions. They did do shit so why should they be compensated?). We want you to develop the country to be a better place. We want a safer place to live. We want a better education system. We want you to put a stop to all the wastage in money for projects that are deemed unnecessary. We want you to make a difference.

And if you can a good job, people can see the results with their own eyes and more votes will swing your way in the next General Election and you can win more seats, and maybe, just maybe, for the first time in Malaysia history that Opposition can form the government based on simple majority, or better, garnered two third majority seats. This is not impossible, but it depends on if you can perform during this probation period of 5 years. Remember, you asked for chances, and now you are given one. Take this precious opportunity and do something significant. Don’t screw up.

As for BN, stop disappointing the people. Yes, you can control the media and only let the people read what you want us to read in main stream media, but this is the age of Internet, so please stop treating the people like an idiot. Respect us, and be honest to us, and most importantly, to yourself. Start doing something that can make a difference because if the Opposition is doing a better job, the people will abandon you in the next General Election. Don’t try to play dirty tricks like limiting the fund to the States or whatsoever so that the Opposition parties will have difficult time to perform. People know as we all can see. So be fair, and make it a fair competition. A fair competition will only benefit the country and the people. You do want to leave a legend of yourself instead of being booted out in shame. So buckle up and start doing your job.

Last but not least, I hope that Mr. Lim Kit Siang will put down the differences and accept other political parties and race with open arms. You gave rosy speeches about an united Malaysia with no racial differences, then please act like you mean it. At this moment, the most important task is to sit down and discuss, formulate and strategize to improve the government, the country and the life of the people. Don’t create too much troubles and allow other people to have an opportunity to destroy your effort and image.

On a final note, let me declare that I am not a registered voter. I didn’t find a compelling reason for me to vote. Now, this is different, and a lot of the people that I know are not registered voters as well. If anyone can make a difference this time round, I don’t see why we won’t become a registered voter and exercise our rights.