The Three Christs of Yipsilanti (2)

(Posted in www.malaysia-today.net 16 March 2008)

I want to reiterate that the letter I wrote yesterday (The Three Christs of Yipsilanti) was not meant to condemn any groups or individuals. The opposition parties are born out of the resistance to the constant threats, intimidations and instigations from the BN racial politics. In the case of DAP, historically, it took the role of Robin Hood, the underdog hero that fought to uphold the identity and welfare of Chinese population. Of course this is a form of chauvinism for it gained the support and sympathy from the Chinese at the expense of exclusion of other races.

To be fair we have to give credit to the DAP leaders, as without their persistence thorough the think and thin of it, going in and out of ISA detention and prison we would not have the vehicle and the grass root support to see the victory now. The underdog hero role is a baggage that need to be shed. But DAP is also under a lot of pressure, and they have to make a lot of very difficult adjustments. It is going to take time for its leaders, let alone its grass root support to understand and comprehend the new role that DAP has to take on. And worst of all is that its arch rival MCA has been busy fanning the fire from behind.

A few MCA leaders made some statements regarding the Perak Chief Minister issue that appeared in the Chinese newspapers on Friday. The statements read like “Chinese are betrayed by DAP conceding chief minister to PAS”. When I read statements like these I fume with anger. These bunch of sore losers has no sense of social responsibilities. They do not care how dangerous it is to instigate racial sentiments in a delicate time like this. So much for being the elected or aspire to be elected statesman or representative of the rakyat. For them every damm thing has to be sensationalized. This is their political chip. One criticism of Ong Ka Ting is that he was too quiet, and that is equivalent to being politically bankrupt. This the dirty nature of politics. Oh man, I do hate politics. I really want to give the whole bunch a good spanking, especially the self-proclaimed devout Buddhist Ong Ka Chuan.

I generally have been very upset by the coverage of the election in the mainstream newspapers. The incident I related above got me fuming mad. And when I saw the cat fight cartoon referring to the Perak MB issue in the front page of Friday Sun I slammed the paper down, and swore that I will not put up with any of these bullshit anymore. When I received an SMS calling to boycott of the mainstream papers last night, I promptly forwarded it to every single contact in my SIM card, even to names that I can’t remember. Guang Ming Daily is the only paper that I buy now.

I don’t want to second guess Raja Nazrin Shah’s intention on his choice of Perak’s Chief Minister. But my first impression is that it is a stroke of genius. It is going to stir the pot big time. It is going to force DAP face-to-face with PAS. It will force DAP to work closely with PAS – the one single party that DAP sworn no allegiance with. If DAP can pull it through it will demonstrate to all that DAP is mature enough to accommodate other races.

I am generally very happy with how things are unfolding. The news that the Perak’s chief minister will be sworn in tomorrow is a big relief. My salute to YB Lim Kit Siang for making a prompt apology and giving a very balanced explanation of it in his blog, and kudos to PAS youth for openly supporting the new government in Penang. This is the type of cooperation that will move us forward.

For me the greatest significance of GE 12 is not the birth of a two party system in Malaysia. The greatest victory is that we, the rakyat, are no longer helpless, isolated individuals that are subverted and manipulated by the power mongers. We have found our collective voice. It is voice that transcends religion, race and ideology, and it is powerful enough to cause a political tsunami.