Rafizi Ramli has cautioned Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the Madani administration against underestimating public sentiment, drawing parallels with the “Kita Lawan” protests in 2015.
The Pandan MP made the remark after attending the “Tangkap Azam Baki 2.0” rally in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, which saw several hundred people take to the streets over the latest shareholding allegations against MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki and to demand an independent investigation.
Describing the turnout as encouraging despite the short notice, Rafizi said it reminded him of the “Kita Lawan” series of demonstrations that began in February 2015 in response to the 1MDB scandal.
“If I were (PKR deputy president) Nurul Izzah (Anwar) or (Home Minister) Saifuddin Nasution (Ismail) - those who can whisper directly to Anwar - I would share the story of the Kita Lawan series with him.
“He was in prison at the time, so perhaps he doesn’t know,” he added in a Facebook post.
According to Rafizi, the lesson from “Kita Lawan” is to never underestimate the resolve of a small group of citizens, especially young people, when they believe their cause is just and free of personal interest.
“Eventually, their voices will be echoed by the wider public,” he added.
Recalling events in 2015, Rafizi noted that PAS had distanced itself from the opposition coalition at the time, and Pakatan Rakyat, the predecessor to Pakatan Harapan, was fracturing.
Without PAS, he said, even the leadership of Bersih 2.0 doubted that any demonstration would draw a sizeable crowd.
“Within PKR, the leadership had come under the control of the group aligned with (former deputy president) Azmin Ali, who had little interest in organising demonstrations or raising issues such as 1MDB and government corruption,” he added.
Starting small
Rafizi, who was PKR vice-president and secretary-general at the time, said that together with then PKR Youth chief Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, they resolved that even if only 10 people turned up, a series of demonstrations had to be organised to keep the spotlight on the 1MDB scandal.
“It’s true. The first Kita Lawan demonstration had fewer than 50 people. I couldn’t attend because I had been arrested two days before the protest.
“After that, Nik Nazmi, Chan Lih Kang (now a minister), (Tan) Kar Hing (Gopeng MP), (Lee) Chean Chung (Petaling Jaya MP), (Chua) Wei Kiat (Rawang assemblyperson), Akmal Nasir (now a minister), and the younger activists carried on organising the subsequent rallies.
“Nik, Chan and Tan even got a taste of wearing lock-up attire as protest organisers.
“After several rounds, by March 2015, the #KitaLawan demonstrations saw good turnout and strengthened our confidence that the people would continue to support a cause if the issue truly resonated with their hearts,” he added.
Rafizi cautioned that the integrity issue involving Azam fits all those characteristics. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.