Taboo

I dare not talk about politics. Well at least not publicly. Most of the time I talk politics to myself and I have dreams of becoming the Prime Minister and supreme ruler of all Malaysia. Apparently that’s what happens when you talk to yourself to often. Thank God for blogs! So today I’m going to expose my political thoughts and affiliations.

Warning: My views are very biased towards the political thought I subscribe to so don’t expect me to be objective or fair.

I’m not an UMNO supporter. Well at least not in their current state. I do not support the 1Malaysia propaganda (does anyone?). No prizes for guessing where my vote went in March 2008. Or at least where I marked on the ballot paper, where it went is a different story altogether. For this I’m often branded ungrateful. Some say I benefited from the system and now I’m turning my back on those hands that fed me. Yes, those UMNO hands (via their government policies) did feed me but isn’t that the job of the government to ensure the rakyat doesn’t ‘starve’*?

I think the idea behind PKR is a good attempt to redefine the landscape of Malaysian political parties. Gerakan tried it back in the late 60’s but they somehow went over to the dark side (The dark side depends on which side you’re on). The problem with PKR is that they are full people frustrated with BN. Don’t get me wrong, is a good thing if the reason for being frustrated is valid but sometimes the reason for being frustrated stems from the lack of contracts, losing in the party polls and not getting to become YBs. Those are not valid reasons.

Both sides of the divide suffer from leadership problems.

BN leaders IMHO, carry too much stinky baggage. Some refuse to retire. A certain Law minister IMHO, makes far too many stupid statements and decisions. A certain former MB is so defiant and arrogant; he thinks its okay to use the taxpayers’ money to go for family holidays to Disneyland. The only decent leader they have is too old and unappreciated. No, I’m not talking about Herr doktor.

Sometimes I feel that BN has lost the plot. MCA is in disarray. MIC is not getting anywhere with Samy driving. Gerakan is as good as dead. And UMNO is living a lie. I find it amusing that they keep on harping on Khalid’s cows for korban and now Nik Aziz’s free haj but keeping mum on Khir’s shenanigans.

Anwar, being once part of the system has too many skeletons in his closet; he has too many enemies and too many secrets.
Hadi self-created doubts of his credibility and he is also IMHO, not PM material.
Lim Guan Eng seems to be doing a decent job so far and he gets top marks from me.
Khalid the former KGB** chief sometimes can be quite UMNO-pologetic. Despite that, he gets a lot of marks from me too.
Azizan is so low profile (maybe not out of choice); I can’t make a fair assessment of him.
Nik Aziz is my idol. Full stop. I have nothing but admiration for this man. I have only good things to say about him. Yes, I’m biased. I told you that didn’t I?

So who is my choice for the leadership of PR? Nizar, Khalid Samad, GE Lim and Zaid Ibrahim would be at the top of my list although I have not decided in what order.

Another problem with PR is that they do not seem to have a ‘shadow government’. The purpose of a shadow government is to identify suitable ministerial candidates and to practice being the ruling government. This is when errors can be rectified without repercussions. This can also serve as a marketing and promotion tool to tell the electorate “this is what we will do for you if you let us”.

PKR still has a lot of work to do, there are still some ‘phantoms’ and potential ‘frogs’ in the party, some of the YBs need to be told to put the party first. They cannot afford to have any more ‘Nallakaruppans’ or ‘Ezams’ or ‘Lokmans’.

PAS needs to stop the unity talk bullshit and focus on being a party acceptable to all. They should stop moral policing and focus on Islamic education instead.

We need to regain the rakyat’s trust in the public institutions. The judiciary and police force have bad reputations. One wonders if the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Malaysian Association of Chinese Comedians (MACC)*^ is one and the same. The education system is driving (some, those with a choice) parents to private schools and foreign universities. Most accident victims are brought to the hospital in tow trucks# and not ambulances.

Given my political leanings, it is without doubt I want them to win the next general election. When they do, let’s hope they’ll do a better job in making this country a great place to live in.


*starve as in deprived of food, shelter, education, medical services, basic needs
**Kumpulan Guthrie Berhad

*^apologies to MACComedians, I dont mean to insult you guys by putting you in the same light as the other MACC.
#tow trucks get to the accident scene within minutes while ambulance within the hour