Sparking A Shift?

Update; 27th January 2012:
This was in the Malaysian Insider - Kit Siang: More Malays will join DAP

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 26 — Lim Kit Siang predicted that the Malay influx into DAP will continue, in spite of the party being branded “Chinese chauvinist” and anti-Malay.

Anticipating already the wrath of Barisan Nasional’s (BN) key leaders — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his deputy Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in particular — over his prognosis, the DAP veteran forewarned them today that “no force in the world” could stop Malays flocking to DAP.

“Let me inform the Umno leaders that this is the tide of the times and no force in the world can stop more Malays joining up with other Malaysians from other ethnicities in DAP to build a common destiny as Malaysian citizens for future generations of Malaysians,” he wrote in a statement here.

The Ipoh Timor MP then cited examples of DAP’s latest members — well-known Malay opinion leaders like former Utusan Malaysia journalist Hata Wahari and bloggers Mohd Arif Sabri and Aspan Alias, all of whom recently announced their loyalty to the largely Chinese-dominated party.

“Umno Youth leader Khairy Jamaluddin was sufficiently upset at Malays joining DAP as to even come out with a public statement,” Lim (picture) scoffed.

He stressed that since DAP’s formation more than four decades ago, the party had always been committed to its multiracial cause and had always been the forerunner of the 1 Malaysia policy, just recently mooted by Najib when he became prime minister in 2009.

DAP, added Lim, had never been anti-Malay, anti-Islam or anti-Malay Rulers and was merely labelled as such due to the “political insecurities of Umno leaders”.

“They (Umno) have subjected the DAP to an unrelenting assault with lies and falsehoods — as in the irresponsible exploitation of the 3R cards of race, religion and raja Melayu against the DAP by both Najib and Muhyiddin at the recent Umno general assembly,” he said.

To prove DAP’s multiracial stance, Lim pointed out that the party had never before been hauled in to face the Registrar of Societies for violating Section 2A (1) of the Societies Act 1966, which prohibits organisations from violating the Federal Constitution.

“DAP will be celebrating our 46th anniversary on March 18, and during the four-and-a-half decade of our struggle, DAP had never been once asked by the Registrar of Societies to show cause why we should not be deregistered for opposing or undermining the fundamental features of the  Constitution, whether with regard to Islam as the official religion or the system of constitutional monarchy,” he said.

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I have followed Dato' Ariff Sabri's blog Sakmongkol AK47 since its inception and I dare say his move to DAP was not unexpected. This guy is no pushover and can be considered a great coup for DAP. However, the more crucial question would be why did he not move to PKR instead? The answer to this is as relevant to the changing mindset of many intellectual Malays as it is to the nature of the PKR beast today. More non-PKR and non-PAS Malays who clamor for change should consider following Sakmongkol AK47's lead.

The DAP in turn should not go to town with this latest recruitment but just maintain its characteristic bland, no-nonsense approach to nation building. In any case, this article by Dato' Ariff is as good a write-up as any on the DAP.

Malays should not fear the DAP

I am not going to respond to the xenophobic responses around news that Aspan Alias and Sakmongkol are about to join DAP. No explanation will be able to change preconceived biases. So why bother? So we are about to join or have joined DAP.

The DAP is a democratic party committed to the rule of law, good governance and good government. It abhors corruption and abuse of political office. To me those are attractive propositions. UMNO on the other hand has turned its back on these. It harps only on one primal worry of Malays- when UMNO is threatened it shares the threat with Malays at large. So a threat to UMNO is translated mindlessly into a threat to Malays as a whole. Nothing can be farther from the truth. That is how UMNO has approached politics in Malaysia basically- make its fears public, make the gains private for selected Malays within UMNO.

I have only one message to that- those salad days and that halcyon period are over.

UMNO is trapped by its own successes. Indeed its supporters and leaders assume ownership of the wrong things and end up digging in to support the wrong choices.

My answer is, if we do indeed change our political vehicle that is what we are actually doing. Don’t read our move as blasphemous or treasonable. The DAP is more relevant and functional in achieving a more democratic and abuse-free society. As a Muslim, we are changing wadah not aqidah.

So, I thought it would be more substantive to answer my critics by writing an article, why shouldn’t Malays embrace DAP politics? That’s the only way to dominate and conquer your fears.

How has DAP politics been inimical to the general political health of this country? Can any DAP Chinese leader be a PM when it’s contesting only at most 50-55 seats? Can any DAP non Malay leader harbor the dream of becoming a PM in a country dominated by Malays? Has the DAP threatened the institution of Malay rulers? DAP has never done that or will not be mad to countenance such rebellious idea, but UMNO on the other hand has insulted the Malay rulers way back in 1998 constitutional crisis. Can we reasonably accept the allegation that the DAP is instrumental in claims that Malays are being converted into Christians when most DAP members are not themselves Christians? We have to do better than that to take Malays as imbeciles. Only UMNO seems to do that.

But DAP is Chinese chauvinist party and anti-Malay. I will answer by examining the deeds rather than slogans. When I was an ADUN in the Pahang Legislative assembly ( 2004-2008) I have never heard the lone DAP member ever speak about anti Malay themes. He spoke about abuse of power, about mindless spending, he spoke about maladministration. The first book Lim Kit Siang writes that I read was Time Bombs in Malaysia. After that I read so many books written by Kit Siang that touched on the Maika Scandals, the BMF financial scandal and so on. If we are honest enough, we have to admit, the issues raised were never about one race dominating the other but were always about the abuses of those in power, corruption, and a continuous attack on policies that are ruinous to this country. So we are going to oppose Kit Siang on the basis of the fact that these things are spoken of by a Chinaman?

To the Chinese UMNO is also a chauvinist Malay party except, their leaders can be easily bought. The Malay will sell all to abandon their cause. Er…correction, the UMNO Malay, I mean.

I would also like to respond by saying- why Malays should consider joining DAP en masse. It’s a party committed to democratic principles and rule of law. I can only imagine, so many can prosper under a regime of freedom of speech within DAP. I can speak on the plight of the displaced and disowned Malays with more energy than allowed of in UMNO. The interest of Malays can be fought of on any political platform other than UMNO. That is what UMNO fears. Its monopoly is broken.

So the past week I have had many friends calling me asking whether it’s true I am joining DAP? Some folks in my hometown, Pekan refer to me now as Dato DAP. I find the responses somewhat amusing and comical.

There was a comment reminding me and Aspan as to who started May 13? The thrust of that reminder is to remind us; of his and others belief that DAP started the May 13 incident.

Ok, you want to play ball, we play ball too. Since you want to know, what if I say Tun Razak allowed it to happen because the ensuing troubles would give him an excuse to kick out Tengku Abdul Rahman? The point is, there was no single contributor to the May 13 incident. But I would place some blame on Tun Razak who as Home Minister allowed things to degenerate. He allowed it so that a proclamation of emergency can be made.

Finally, let me deal with certain responses from certain pro UMNO bloggers. The chief spokesman is of course that paid lackey and buffoon of a regurgitating machine. He does nothing but regurgitate material passed on to him by his paymasters. The material he writes and posts therefore emits the strong smell of vomit. The owner of the lard layered brain does what he does best- spewing personal attacks. And so he invites comments from likeminded mental gnomes to do what he has orchestrated.

Why the paranoia? If we are not good, failed ADUN, bankrupt politicians, it will be cinch for any winnable UMNO candidates to beat us. So, it’s no cause of concern or a sleep depriver. But please remember to stop telling lies about us so that we can promise not to tell the truth about you.

I see a sense of hopelessness. They cannot attack our nationalist credentials because we are as Malay as they are too ( to some we are , in fact more Malay in appearance and in thinking) – so they do what they do best. Attack me on the personal side. No big deal. My advice to these UMNO bloggers is simple. Please stop telling lies about me, and I promise not to tell the truth about you people. And telling the truth about you people includes telling the truth about top UMNO leaders including the PM who is Pekan UMNO division head.

If we are so easily beatable, then why all the fuss? We can’t do damage to invincible UMNO. We on the other hand, see UMNO as the party before, presently and forever stealing, pillaging and ruining the country.