The pact with the devil

How in the world did the prime minister arrive at the incredible verdict that God was pleased with Umno's track record?

In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, but one must be wrong. – Abraham Lincoln

Maybe God appeared in his dream. Maybe God called him up one night and told him over the telepathic phone that he is the anointed one and that his party will continue to rule the country for another 54 years. Maybe God even whispered in his ears that if he called for a general election now, he will surely win hands down because God is on his side. The prime minister is showing all the signs of a desperate man clutching at a straw. He sees danger lurking in every corner. He is restless. He can never sleep in peace. His enemies are everywhere – and growing stronger. He is dead worried: if he loses power, his whole glittering world will come crushing down. He must hold on though his grip is loosening. The prospect of finding himself in the political wilderness for a long stretch is frightening. Hence, he is using every dirty tool avaliable to ensure people are scared witless and have no choice but to cast their lot for him.

The prime minister chose an appropriate setting to bring home God’s message. The audience fitted nicely into his game plan. The spectators are members of the Malaysia Islamic Missionary and Welfare Association (Pekida). Fighting for his political survival, he is counting on these warriors to lap up his political sermon and spread the word around with missionary zeal. The message is clear: Go forth and tell the Malays that only Umno can be their shield. Only Umno can defend Islam. Only Umno can give iron-clad guarantee that their special rights and positions will remain intact. Only Umno can defend the institution of monarchy and all things sacrosanct. You have no choice but to elect my government to another term. Vote opposition and the country will go up in smoke. Then came his punchline: God knows that the ruling party had been fair to all and that was why He had allowed it to stay in power. His line of reasoning boils down to one conclusion: he is the special one chosen to lead his people again.

Does the prime minister know what God is thinking? How in the world did he arrive at the incredible verdict that the Omnipotent One was pleased with Umno’s track record? How can he be so sure that the Almighty is always in Umno’s camp? Is He an Umno member? The premier was not jesting when he invoked God’s name in his fight for power. He was dead serious when he talked about this “divine revelation”. The Pekida members probably swallowed the political icing in his message and could be counted upon to go all out to defend the Umno bastion. Simple kampung folks could also be relied upon to carry the Umno torch. But the prime minister’s doomsday oration will cut no ice with all the other people who know what 54 years of Umno rule had done to the country.

Divine pact

Is there a “divine pact” to keep Umno in power? Let’s assumed the premier was right about God and Umno. Let’s go back to the beginning. In the beginning, there was no Umno and God saw that it was not good. So Umno He created and let it run the fledgling country. At first, Umno did an excellent job: it broke the colonial chain and set the country free. The leaders then were clean and honest and the people lived in peace and harmony, away from the shadow of race, creed, colour. God was indeed so pleased that He gave Umno many more terms in office. Even a race riot did not incur His wrath. He trusted Umno and allowed the party to have a free rein. Then the slide began. Rampant corruption, insatiable avarice, blatant abuses, police brutality, corporate shenanigans, money politics, detestable cronyism, theft of state wealth and many more mortal sins were committed. A darkness had come over the land. God saw that it was not good and was sorely aggrieved. And God said let there be light and Pakatan Rakyat He created. He is pleased with His new handiwork.

So now the people have an alternative. Umno cannot claim the Maker is on its side. The prime minister cannot claim it is his divine destiny to rule the country. People will not buy his message sent from high simply because it is unlikely God has made a pact to entrench the current federal government which has lost its moral bearing long ago. The prime minister may be tempted to paint himself as the new political messiah come to save the country, but he can only peddle this fiction to the rural folks struggling to make ends meet or to people who took his “religious” bait. If he indeed has made a deal to stay on – and perpetuate more injustice – the pact was with the devil. God does not condone evil.