Umno fears loss of monopoly

The interest of Malays can be fought on any political platform other than Umno's.

COMMENT

Some folks in my hometown Pekan are now calling me Dato’ DAP. Its quite amusing and comical.

The most common question to me is why DAP? Weren’t they the ones who started May 13?

The thrust of that reminder is to remind us – fellow blogger Aspan Alian and me -of their commonly-held belief that DAP started the May 13, 1969 incident.

Well since they want to know, what if I said Tun (Abdul) Razak allowed it to happen because the ensuing troubles would give him an excuse to kick out (then Prime Minister) Tunku Abdul Rahman?

The point is, there was no single contributor to the May 13 incident.

But I would place some blame on Tun Razak who as Home Minister allowed things to degenerate. He allowed it so that a proclamation of emergency could be made.

Anyway, lets step back a look at DAP.

When I was an ADUN (assemblyman) in the Pahang legislative assembly (2004-2008), I have never heard the lone DAP member ever speak about anti-Malay themes.

DAP never raised ‘race’ dominance

He spoke about abuse of power, about mindless spending and he spoke about maladministration.

The first book Lim Kit Siang wrote that I read was ‘Time Bombs in Malaysia’. After that I read so many books written by Kit Siang that touched on the Maika Scandals, the BMF financial scandal and so on.

If we are honest enough, we have to admit, the issues raised were never about one race dominating the other.

It was always about the abuses of those in power, corruption, and a continuous attack on policies that are ruinous to this country.

So tell me how has DAP politics been inimical to the general political health of this country?

Can any DAP Chinese leader be a PM when it’s contesting only at most 50-55 seats? Can any DAP non-Malay leader harbor the dream of becoming a PM in a country dominated by Malays?

Has the DAP threatened the institution of Malay rulers? DAP has never done that or will not be mad to countenance such rebellious idea, but Umno on the other hand insulted the Malay rulers as far back as in 1998 constitutional crisis.

Can we reasonably accept the allegation that the DAP is instrumental in claims that Malays are being converted into Christians when most DAP members are not themselves Christians?

We have to do better than that to take Malays to be imbeciles. Only Umno seems to do that.

Umno fears loss of monopoly

What is noteworthy is that DAP is a democratic party committed to the rule of law, good governance and good government. It abhors corruption and abuse of political office. Umno on the other hand has turned its back on these.

Umno harps only on one primal worry of Malays- when Umno is threatened it shares the threat with Malays at large.

So a threat to Umno is translated mindlessly into a threat to Malays as a whole.

Nothing can be farther from the truth. But that is how Umno has approached politics in Malaysia.

Umno basically makes its fears public and gains private for selected Malays within its fold.

To the Chinese, Umno is a chauvinist Malay party whose leaders can be easily bought.

The Umno Malay will sell all to abandon their cause.

Enough reason to encourage Malays to join DAP en masse!

It’s a party committed to democratic principles and rule of law. I can only imagine, so many can prosper under a regime of freedom of speech within DAP

The interest of Malays can be fought on any political platform other than Umno’s. And that is Umno greatest fear. It will no longer have monopoly.

The writer is a former Umno state assemblyman and a FMT columnist.