Tengku Razaleigh's Amanah gathering of 'has-beens' is a sign that the original guardians of Umno cannot endure the transgressions and abuse the country is taking.
Some Umno people are already worried and in the coming days will do their best to demonize Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, the spirit behind Amanah.
Never mind them. They are just gasping for air and clutching at the last straws. In the past few years, this country of ours has been put on a course of self-destruction.
Our economy is not doing that good compared to the countries in Southeast Asia.
Umno which claimed to represent the Malays can’t put on a straight face to say whether they have done well for the Malays.
It only takes one example to demolish their self-conceit – the wealth disparity among Malays is greatest in Malaysia inspite of all the help that Umno says it has given.
We are inundated daily with all sorts of pious reminders that we ought to be grateful.
I want Umno people to realize why we are now reaping what we have sown. The Umno (Baru) we now have (whatever happened to the word Baru that ought to accompany Umno) was reformed in 1988.
It was formed on a fundamentally flawed foundation.
Malay divisiveness
The Umno of 1946 was formed on the basis of Malays coming together. The various Malay groupings subjecting themselves to a common goal and united for a purpose.
The Umno of 1988 was formed on the foundation of Malay divisiveness – the Umno was split into two.
The man responsible for the creation of Umno Baru (Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad) is now retired but only in name. The other person (Ku Li) also linked to the split is now making things right.
Let me cut to the chase on what Amanah actually stands for.
I attended the inaugural launch the other day. It was a gathering of concerned citizens.
On the stage forming the committee members of Amanah were (ex-tourism minister) Kadir Sheikh Fadzir, (former Sarawak deputy chief minister) Daniel Tajem, (ex-MIC deputy president) S Subramaniam, (ex-transport minister) Ong Tee Keat, Bujang Ulis from Sarawak, Tengku Razaleigh (as Amanah chairman) and a sitting MP from Sabah.
The audience was made up of mainly concerned citizens of all races with Malays making the predominant number.
I am not sure if everyone in the hall that day were committed to politics but one thing was certain, they were united in the revulsion and rejection of what is going on in the country – the politics, economy, the divisiveness in our society, the future of democracy and the future of this country.
Talking sense
Kadir gave a rather long welcoming speech. Now, Kadir has never struck me as a thoughtful and thinking person.
He was the quintessential bon vivant with the bow tie. He would, I think be more at home dining at Lafite at Shangri-La rather than with the thrust and parry of raw politics. On that day however, he was talking sense.
Perhaps the articulation was the product of a profound appreciation of the sorry state of affairs that has overtaken our country.
Kadir who had everything, including the respect of his peers, need not be doing this. He should be enjoying his leisure days.
So too should the others – Daniel Tajem – a sincere looking fellow who is committed to uplifting the Sarawak people out of misery, Subramaniam (he may be motivated by his own pursuits), Bujang Ulis and Ong Tee Keat – the MCA man who wanted to do the right thing with regards to the Port Klang FreeTrade Zone (PKFZ).
What the current Umno is to the Malays, MCA is that to the Chinese.
MCA cannot be a den of thieves and plunderers irrespective of how many truckloads of class A durians the perpetrators of the PKFZ financial fiasco bring over to the bosses.
A former MCA leader when he was a deputy minister would often treat his boss at TNB first class durians from Bentong! What the country has got itself into is no longer tolerable.
These ‘has-beens’ and veterans of Malaysian politics cannot endure the transgressions, the abuse, the bullying and the direction the country is traveling.
It’s made worse by a leadership who is more suited to become a poster boy, popular but incapable of managing this country properly.
Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz is a former Umno elected rep and blogs at SakmongkolAK47. He is also a FMT columnist.
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