KU LI HAS ENOUGH STATUTORY DECLARATIONS TO OUST NAJIB? ENOUGH OF THE FAIRY TALES ...

When I was young I asked my grandmother what the markings on the surface of the moon were. My grandmother, who believed in fairy tales, said the markings were angels. She had no schooling and no knowledge of science, so saying the moon markings were mountains and large rocks would not have been fanciful enough for her liking.

Sixty years later, nothing has changed. Malays have graduated from university in large numbers but they still believe in fairy tales. “Educated” Malays are still superstitious and eschew reasoning and having a clear head.

Those who assembled for the recent Umno General Assembly have multiple degrees under their belts, including from Oxford and Cambridge, but they still convinced themselves that some unknown Middle Eastern personality deigned to give Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak billions of ringgit with no strings attached. Even when their "Great Leader" and his (Cabinet) deputy started giving nonsensical answers, they believed.

Elsewhere, some Malays still insist on bringing their children to a Tok Guru to prepare “holy water” for them so they can do well in their school exams and earn 10 A’s. As we speak, a group of Malays has also started hoarding rice and food items because they believe Doomsday is coming soon.

Political leaders rely on wishful and fanciful thinking too.

Some years ago, a well-known opposition leader claimed that despite having only 70-odd seats in Parliament, the opposition would still topple the Barisan Nasional Government on September 16, 2008.

Why on earth would Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs desert their party and their lucrative contracts in droves? This was not explained, yet many Malys believed that the promised revolution would happen. Of course, it did not.

Enough statutory declarations?

The latest example of wishful thinking that’s swirling in the coffee shops and getting political pundits excited is the prediction that a senior Umno leader (but not one who holds any senior party post) already has enough statutory declarations signed by BN MPs to command a majority in the Dewan Rakyat.

Apparently, these declarations will be submitted to the Agong, who will then call on the prime minister to resign. How this scenario is more believable or credible than that of September 16, 2008 baffles me. But Malays are Malays and they believe in fairy tales.

Then you have smart accountants like Rafizi Ramli from PKR who can calculate with some certainty how to get to Putrajaya. He says that with a pact with PAS, the Pakatan Rakyat will win enough seats to win Putrajaya.

He seems to have forgotten that it was because of infighting with PAS that the Pakatan lost some winnable seats in 2013.

PKR's 'dishonest' poltical thinking

Now PAS is interested in having a pact with Umno; in fact, more than a pact. They want to save Malays and Islam. Like their leaders who have more than one wife, they seem to think they can share political alliances like they share their love.

Rafizi believes that PAS’s idea of fidelity will help the Pakatan. But how does Rafizi know if PAS is going to be faithful?

If PAS can strike a pact with PKR in constituency A, it can also have a pact with Umno in the same area. Again, another example of wishful thinking from a smart Malay.

I hope the leaders of Amanah don’t get mired in this kind of muddled thinking and instead start working on some honest political arrangement. Stay the course with DAP.

Try and recruit more Malays and progressive Muslims into the party. Fight corruption, hate politics and sick racist ideas to chart a new path for the country. Work for democracy and the Rule of Law.

Don’t worry about Putrajaya for now. Let the fanciful Malays who think they can work magic with numbers, either in Parliament or in an election, continue with their ways. Just work for the long haul to change Malaysian minds and habits, so meaningful political reform can happen one day. - zaid.my