Whom would you trust to run the country?

 

Ten thousand miles away in the United Kingdom, the country may soon see Rishi Sunak as the first British prime minister of Indian ethnicity. In 2021, Kamala Harris, who is of Indian and Jamaican heritage, became America's first Asian American vice-president.

Back in Malaysia, and 64 years after Merdeka, we still argue about the Malays being downtrodden, and the people responsible for retarding the progress of the Malays are, unsurprisingly, the non-Malays.

Whilst other nations have done the metaphorical equivalent of sending men to the moon, we appear to be frozen in time.

Malay politicians create demons out of the non-Malays, discriminate against local Malaysian-born Chinese, and then, in the next breath, welcome the Chinese from the People's Republic of China, with open arms.

There is active discrimination against local, Malaysian-born Indians, but we treat the arrival of the Indian fugitive, Zakir Naik, like he was a head of state or monarch.

Being frozen in time could also apply to the Malaysian Opposition coalition. They appear to be stuck in the reformasi movement of 1998. Instead of rebuilding or rebranding themselves to move with the times, the original movement appears to have become static.

Indian fugitive Zakir Naik

For GE15, the opposition coalition must get rid of the deadwood, hangers-on, divisive characters and control the infighting. They will then have to make hard decisions about a fresh start. If not, then Malaysia may languish, for a further 60 years.

Ever since the days of reformasi, progress appears to be measured in 10-year intervals.

The reformasi movement of 1998 was a key defining moment of open activism and social protest.

The next key moment was in 2008, when the ruling coalition lost its two-thirds majority.

In 2018, the seemingly unbeatable Umno-Baru/BN was finally toppled.

Much has happened since 2018. It reads like a combination between a Hollywood blockbuster and the animal kingdom gone mad. Treachery, betrayal, broken promises, sex scandals, frogs, two-headed snakes, crocodiles, monkeys, donkeys and dinosaurs.

Opposition has much housekeeping to do

Will it be 2028 before we see the next key defining moment in Malaysian history?

The opposition coalition has much housekeeping to do. They tell us that they want to project an image of youthful participation and exuberance. Harapan leaders talk a lot about increased youth participation in politics.

Whilst DAP is actively pursuing this, Amanah appears to have dropped off the face of the earth.

PKR claims it wants its youth the chance to excel, have more say in formulating policies, running the nation, and make key decisions in governance.

There is one stumbling block: the top brass.

For reasons of their own, they refuse to, or are unwilling, or are scared to demand that Anwar Ibrahim steps down. This is the tragedy of Harapan.

Opposition Leader Anway Ibrahim

After all the hype about giving youth more say, they then go back on their word, and like Pejuang and the other Umno-Baru clone parties in Malaysia, revert to having dinosaurs as heads of their respective parties.

So, whom would you trust to run the county?

It's far easier to name those you would not want to lead Malaysia, because, over the decades, they have contributed to the wretched state of the nation today.

When Dr Mahathir Mohamad was in power in the 1980s, many of the politicians and civil servants who are still around now, or who have recently retired, held junior positions in government at the time.

They are not stupid, but they are selfish. They probably realised that many of Mahathir's policies were wrong, but did they speak out at the time? No, they did not!

Today, the country is in an almighty mess because of their collective silence. It is not just the Malays who said nothing, because many non-Malays did the same, too.

Today, the children and grandchildren of the political dynasties think they can ride on the coattails of the legacies of their fathers or grandfathers. Take away the famous name, and these people are nothing.

Remove the name "Mahathir" and what do you think are Mukhriz's stellar qualities? Do the same with "Onn", "Razak" and the other names, including that of the opposition.

The nation is crippled by the nouveau riche who think they can buy their way into our hearts, the herd mentality of the political establishment, the wannabe politician-cum-clerics and the equally damaging clerics-cum-politicians, who tell the stupid among us that God is on their side. Don't forget the mainstream broadcast media and law enforcers, who do the government's bidding.

In my own shortlist of three potential leaders, the majority are non-Malay, non-male and non-Muslim. What matters is that they are all Malaysian, educated and fair-minded.

Like most Malaysians, I am sick to death of a succession of Malay PMs and leaders, who robbed the nation dry, divided us and like the Pied Piper of Hamelin, will lead us into oblivion.

The Malay leaders of any of the Umno-Baru clone parties and PAS have the same genetic make-up, which is comprised of Umno DNA. All have enormous egos, all lack the ability to listen, they backstab and when hemmed into a corner, will produce incriminating videos and a queue of time-wasting, young males, who claim to have been coerced into doing unmentionable things.

The non-Malays should be given a chance to lead Malaysia out of the abyss. For decades, Malay politicians claim that only their party will protect the Malays and defend Islam.

Ironically, in 2022, the Malays are more divided than ever and have made a mockery of Umno-Baru/PAS' claims.

So, is this why the film, "Mat Kilau" was screened? To provide a timely distraction and instil a false sense of Malay pride and nationalism? - Mkini

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MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army, and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO). Blog, Twitter.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT/