BN needs to do some serious soul-searching

Najib’s role is to protect the rakyat, not stand at the sidelines as he is fond of doing and watch them get abused at the hands of corrupt authorities.

COMMENT

It is a tragedy in the making if the race-based Barisan Nasional coalition wins the 13th general election, contrary to the constant assurances by its leaders that only it can determine the fate of this country.

Claims after claims were made by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak who is also chairman of BN and Umno president respectively about the feats BN can achieve for the rakyat if only it is given the mandate to rule the country yet again.

Honestly, giving BN a two thirds majority win will be suicidal for the rakyat, keeping in mind the ‘unfinished business’ BN and its chief partner Umno have embarked on.

It is imperative that before it cries out for the rakyat’s empathy to oust the opposition Pakatan Rakyat pact, BN has to make a clean breast of its many wrongdoings post-2008.

The 12th general election defeat has not humbled BN and from the look of things, it is definite that the party has no desire nor interest in repenting and turning over a new leaf.

In spite of its unexpected loss in the 2008 general election, the BN coalition continued with its power abuse and disrespect for the rakyat.

Had BN learned the bitter lessons the 12th GE brought with it, the party’s leadership would have abandoned its addiction to all things nefarious.

From premier Najib right down to the BN ADUNs, their failure to live up to the rakyat’s expectations has never been more clearer.

Wayward

If Najib is serious about wanting the best for the people of this country, he has to first take BN for a ‘soul-searching’ trip.

As the Malay saying goes, ‘buang yang keruh dan ambil yang jernih’, BN has no choice but to reform itself for the sake of the rakyat whose support it so badly needs.

All the promises and pledges made by Najib and his men at the recently concluded Umno general assembly would mean nothing if both BN and Umno continue to behave in a wayward manner.

The issues that need to be dealt with are aplenty and unless and until BN ‘comes around’, the rakyat cannot depend on it to solve their woes.

From the tribal natives of Penan in Sarawak to the homeless estate workers of Bukit Jalil, they have all given up on Najib and his declarations that BN is synonymous with the welfare of the people.

Had it been so, the Penans would not have to risk life and limbs to safeguard their ancestral lands which continue to be ravaged by loggers, no thanks to nod coming from Sarawak chief minister Taib Mahmud.

The Penans were also against the building of the Murum and many other dams there which would leave tens and thousands of natives ‘landless’ besides destroying Sarawak’s rainforests. Was Najib attuned to their worries?

If he had been, the angry and frustrated Penans would not have mounted a blockade three months ago on the access road to the Murum Dam site, an effort which attracted the attention of local and international media.

According to Save Rivers, a coalition of Sarawak NGOs, the Penans had been protesting against the dam since 2009 but the state dismissive approach and refusal to fulfil its promises prompted the blockade.

Where was Najib then when the Penans were left to their own devices to protect their native customary rights land?

Protect, not abuse

In hindsight, all the affirmations made at the Umno general assembly were nothing but mere rhetorics to brainwash the rakyat, a folly Najib has to stop making.

Had BN been as caring and protective as the premier touts it is, then justice would have been the order of the day and the deaths of youths Teoh Beng Hock and S Kugan would have been dealt with sincerely.

Instead, there were cover-ups and fabrications to conceal the actual cause of death of both these men.

Clearly, the exaggerated claims made during last week’s Umno general assembly are just that – inflated declarations made to enthuse the rakyat.

Najib’s role as the ‘guardian’ of the rakyat is to protect them, not ‘stand at the sidelines’ as he is fond of doing and watch them get abused at the hands of corrupt authorities.

The 55 years that BN has lorded over the nation has seen too much injustice pervading the lives of the everday ‘cari makan’ (wage earning) rakyat.

The time has come for the people to take a stand and make the much needed difference. Had BN been committed towards the betterment of the rakyat, the people’s nambikei or faith would never have seen a compromise.

Now, that was tragic for BN, was it not?

Jeswan Kaur is a freelance writer and a FMT columnist.