O Ye Folks of Little Faith

Frankly, I was oblivious to what happened last night with regards to RPK's interview with TV3 because I was at a dinner. Imagine my shock when I returned at about 11.30 p.m. and saw a barrage of news items on the topic.

If that was not enough, there was a flurry of articles analyzing various versions of what is/could be truth.

To exacerbate matters, responses to the many articles in cyberspace have been very heated and emotional.

If you have time, do read the following articles:

Kim Quek's The Unending Haunt of Altantuya

Now that the shit has hit the fan

Spot the Spin Contest

PM thankful truth revealed over Altantuya murder allegations

Original Transcript of RPK - Alang Bendahara Interview

Honestly, I do not have the time to follow all of RPK's writings and I am not even a MCLM member but I know he comes forth as an earnest man - he says what he means and means what he says.

Reading the angry and negative comments of some who expressed their disappointment, doubt and disgust at what happened really disheartened me. I wonder what RPK is thinking. Readers who have been following his writings should know the man by now.

Yes, the reports/interview appear damaging, especially the timing ( THIS POST explains the interview was filmed) but I asked myself, "What is happening here? There has to be something more to this even if a broadcast media seems to paint a different picture."

I believe we all need to keep a clear mind, not to overreact but to adopt a very objective view and remember what is important, what is real and what were the weaknesses.

Here's my two cents' worth of the scenario written without prejudice.

1. It does not pay to trust people even if the motive is honorable.

On hindsight, any action taken must ALWAYS be based on documented evidence.

Perception faulted RPK based on this TV3 interview. We do not know 100% why he did it but the transcript HERE explains why and even then, we may not know the real reason as he is a master strategist with an unwritten plan unknown to us.

On his part, at least he now knows who are the doubting Thomases.

Kim Quek has discussed this very eloquently and I would encourage you to read his article HERE.

You can study RPK's reactions HERE and HERE.

2. I would say RPK is a man who walks the talk. I am sure all of us know that all this while. So how can that evaporate overnight just over an interview?

Some even speculated that he had been bought.

How can it be that a man who has been writing/talking/doing so much, given up so much, gone through so much betray the trust of people who have supported him?

Take a deep breath, read his articles and ask yourself if he has changed.

I will not say anything to influence you. Everyone has the right to his/her own opinion.

3. Who is the best judge of whether RPK is telling the truth or not?

Let us look at the situation very clearly. Many things have happened with regards to the SD/SDs and the events before and after those declarations as outlined in RPK's post HERE. Has he been consistent?

To me, it is the police who can truly get to the bottom of the case.

A friend,X, wrote in a google group discussion:

• If what RPK now says is true, then what he said in that SD is not true.
• And if what RPK said in an SD is not true, then the police should charge him for making false statements and prove in court that he lied.
• And if they don't charge him and prove in court, then they are telling RPK that it is alright to come up with false declarations.
• And if they allow RPK to do so, does it mean others can do so as well?
• The onus is on the police to act on this. Why don't they?

4. The Impact of the Interview

Many lament that the interview may impact the Sarawak elections negatively. I beg to differ as the state elections there is a different ball game altogether. Voters have already made up their minds and BN is so confident of winning so what's the big deal? Besides, people are concerned about localised issues and not on RPK.

5. The PM

We all understand that the PM and his wife have to be innocent because he is the Prime Minister of our country but why hasn't the PM sued all who made allegations against him? Read what he saidHERE. Even Deepak is suing RPK as reported HERE.

Ironically, many from the other side accused RPK of being a liar but today, they have confidence in his words as uttered in the interview. So does this mean RPK has been exonerated in this area?

At the end of the day, each of us need to ask ourselves - in whom do we trust? How much faith do we have left? I certainly hope a lot.

We cannot afford to falter or to give up. Not at this stage when the going is getting tougher.

Take care and do leave a comment to share your views. Thanks! Enjoy the rest of the evening.

*This post was written by Masterwordsmith and Angela Ooi.