Merdeka theme: Might is not right, Rais

Once Umno's grip on the monopoly of defining being Malay is debunked, then Umno itself is broken.

COMMENT

What is the Umno ethos? It’s the culture more in line with the beasts in the jungle – where might is right and the herd instinct prevails.

Power in the hand of Umno becomes a dangerous tool and so Umno becomes a menace to everyone, especially the Malays.

Because of this ethos, you find Umno’s information chief Ahmad Maslan declaring that the theme for “our” Merdeka is for Umno to define.

You also get to hear Information, Communications, and Culture Minister and Umno veteran Rais Yatim condescendingly tell everyone not to dismiss “our” Merdeka despite differences of opinions.

“Our” Merdeka is not Umno’s. “Our” Merdeka is not for Umno to own.

In which case who is Rais to make light of others unlike him who are equally patriotic when it comes to Merdeka?

As for Ahmad Maslan, we’ll will let him be minister in Sungai Buloh soon where the majority of Umno members will hold their AGM in the very near future.

We like it that Umno remains unchanging while the rest of society moves forward.

It will become extinct because the Umno ethos prevents it from adapting.

Rogue Umno

Umno must be ready to accept that not all Malays subscribe to its struggle and agenda.

Umno has simply gone rogue and doesn’t deserve allegiance and loyalty by the majority of Malays.

It’s the mark of the highest self-righteousness when any Umno leader and his supporters describe Umno’s struggle as sacred while that of others, profane.

That’s the Umno arrogance.

Once defeated, Umno will take a long time to recover because it simply does not have leadership of substance.

Its members seem to be united more because of their herd instinct of needing to be just together in order to have safety in numbers.

They are not in Umno as a result of the strength of their convictions.

As long as Umno can maintain a near monopoly on defining what being a Malay means, then it can sustain itself.

Once its grip on the monopoly of defining being Malay is loosened or the myth that Umno represents Malay is debunked, Umno itself is broken.

The writer is a former Umno state assemblyman but joined DAP earlier this year. He is a FMT columnist.