The RCI Galore: Panic has set into Umno and BN

There are three ways to know if Umno is in a state of panic.

First, they roll out the cash as if there is no tomorrow. Second, they start identifying and demonising their enemies.

And, finally, which is new to Umno, but nonetheless repeated ad nauseum, is the persistent focus on a royal commission of inquiry (RCI).

As of today, all three have been in the offing, which goes to show that the whole of the Umno supreme council, including Umno Youth, have found themselves backed into the corner. How?

To begin with, Pakatan Harapan's formula of 10 and five has struck terror into the heart of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The formula affirmed that any drop in 10 percent of the Malay votes and five percent of the non-Malay votes is enough to consign Umno to the dust heap of history.

All across Johor, for example, the votes for Umno, and by extension the BN's as well, have dropped consistently by 25 to 30 percent since 2008, and are still dropping.

The likelihood of Umno losing its ceremonial stronghold is strong, especially when MCA has already caved in.

Gone are the days when the MCA president, in order to capitalise on the strength of Umno in Johor, can compete in one of the safe seats in Johor.

This is what Ong Ka Ting did before he too had to throw up his hand. Party vice-president Chua Tee Yong came within a whisker of losing Labis in Johor in 2013, and looks certain to be dislodged if he remains there.

Umno and BN know that they have lost their fixed deposit in Peninsular Malaysia, especially in Johor.

When Umno and BN are weak, the lunge at their opponents will start at will, even if this is done without any rhyme and reason.

Within a week after Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Muhyiddin Yassin embarked on their "Jelajah Semarak" and 1MDB roadshow, five Umno supreme council members have attacked Mahathir and Muhyiddin.

One will notice that when they need an "ulama" to burrow into Dr Mahathir, they have had no one to go to except PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang (photo).

Secondly, Umno and BN are also in white panic, precisely because they know investigations by the US Department of Justice may go criminal anytime soon.

When they do, their own charade that they have done nothing wrong will come crashing down.

Third, instead of launching an RCI on a monumental scandal involving billions of dollars like 1MDB, Najib has taken to dredging the past history of Malaysia with the aim to reduce the stature of Mahathir.

By speaking the truth, Mahathir, Muhyiddin and Mukhriz Mahathir have all been lionised.

If the youth in Malaysia haven't heard of all three, they have just been given the reason to learn.

The more Umno and BN try to dig up the past, the more it will expose their own skeletons.

Every patriotic Malaysian knows that Umno and BN have taken them for a ride, all with their taxpayers' money too.

The way to claw the money rests with a strong and progressive Pakatan Harapan.

Let's make the 14th general election the clincher that will end the hegemony of Umno and BN, especially their tendency to peddle in fake news and half-truths.

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RAIS HUSSIN is a supreme council member of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu). He also heads the Policy and Strategy Bureau of Bersatu. - Mkini