Saturday, August 30, 2014

57th Merdeka greets a divided nation


YOURSAY ‘Sabah churches are to be commended for taking a stand.’

Sabah churches to skip N-Day celebrations

Gerard Lourdesamy: What is there to celebrate in light of the MH370 and MH17 disasters? What is there to celebrate when we cannot even use certain words and phrases in our worship because it may offend another faith?

What is there to celebrate when respect, acceptance and tolerance is missing from our national life? What is there to celebrate when we are suspicious of one another and have hate and envy in our hearts and minds?

I rather mourn for the loss of our spirit of independence and the vision of our forefathers of a Malaya and later Malaysia predicated on justice, fairness and happiness amongst all of its peoples.

Ace: We are not unpatriotic and do not want to sound so, but (just as Gerard Lourdesamy said) is there really anything to celebrate if every day we are reminded by some bigots that we are ‘pendatang’, to go back to such and such a country if you don't want to submit to their (extremist and unreasonable) views and demands, and those with power to do something just stood by with their arms folded?

Is there really much to celebrate if abuses, wastage and corruption are so rife that some can get away with hundreds of millions of illicit income while so many are trying to eke out a living and yet get no help?

Peacemaker: Sabah churches are to be commended for taking a stand and sending a clear signal to Putrajaya that its treatment of Sabah as a second-class state and merely one of the 14 states of Malaysia is wrong and dishonest.

Will the churches in Kapit, Sibu, Lawas and Kuching send a similar signal?

Kingfisher: These are the first salvoes of discontent from a long suffering part of the federation that some feel has been taken for granted if not dealt with like a vassal.
                                              
This silent and peaceful expression of dissent from a significant community must be given due regard by the federal government as simmering discontent could coalesce into a revolt for separation if those in control at the centre continue to arrogantly ignore legitimate grievances or take repressive measures to suppress  dissent.     

MA: The teaching of any great religion is all there for everyone to see. No need to form a political party, just read the scriptures.

When people are trampled upon, when you rape your land and when you persecute the down trodden; you need not form a political party.

Your individual greater conscience to the divine must move you to do something good. That's what the Sabah churches are doing.

Kangkung: Sabah and Sarawak are seen as two colonised territories by Umno and it has successfully changed the demographic of the two states.

They are two of the richest states in terms of resources but are now the poorest. Happy Malaysia Day.

Guns 'n' Roses: Do you know what the basic problem is, my dear Christian brothers and sisters in the 'Land Below the Wind'?

Your 'anak negeri' politicians, such as Huguan Siou Joseph Pairin Kitingan and his cohorts are spineless and toothless. They were too easily bought over by the Umno-dominated federal government.

I was a Semenanjung medical doctor who worked for six and a half years in your beloved land, loving every minute of it between 1989 and 1995. I witnessed how your PBS government was sold wholesale to the Umno federal government.

The mass exodus of PBS politicians, and the formation of numerous self-centred political parties which became BN-aligned was crassly sickening and crassly despicable, to say the least.

What more is there to say? Your weak and easily-corruptible indigenous political parties sold out Sabah wholesale without a moment's hesitation.

Negarawan: This is a good move by Sabah churches but more need to be done to increase awareness especially in the ‘pendalaman’ (rural) areas.

Shame to all the so-called Christian BN ministers from Sabah and Sarawak, who have not even lifted a finger regarding the plight and wrongful conversions of Christians.

Anonymous #20513663: Sabahans and Sarawakians must continue speaking up for themselves and giving their perspective on national affairs. And the media too must continue carrying their voices.

For too long (actually forever, meaning since the formation of Malaysia), Sabah and Sarawak have been the 'invisible states' with no voice in national affairs despite contributing a huge chunk to the national budget, and keeping BN in power.

Hplooi: Without these natural wealth coupled with the innate gift of wealth-creation by the dispossessed, originally 45 percent (now reduced to a quarter percentum) of the citizens, all those programmes feeding the leviathan would not have been possible (e.g. instant billionaire bailouts, rent-seeking tycoons, Putrajaya, Perkasa funding, etc). Look how the 'serpent' has grown.

Ourvotesdecide: At least, we now begin to have real shepherds really fighting to protect their flocks. Before this, the so-called shepherds (church leaders) just kept quiet and pretended not to know that their flocks have been attacked by the Umno-BN wolves.

Church leaders for too long have kowtowed to and even worship Umno-BN as their god and preferred to see no evil and speak no evil. In the end, their church members were left on their own to fend for themselves.

We salute you all, Sabah church leaders, for your leadership and courage to stand and speak up against injustices and discrimination. Sarawak church leaders, where are you? -Mkini

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