It was Friday rush hour traffic, and I was from meeting an MCKK friend having successfully convinced him to organise a ceramah kelompok for Keadilan Kelana Jaya, and going to a cafe to get access to the Internet to settle some outstanding work. Suddenly I saw a row of lampposts in front of Sunway Pyramid decorated with BN flags. As I made the turning into the Mentari Court area, I saw massive trucks with cranes putting up the flags – soon I realised they were MBPJ trucks!
I had too many things on my mind and the traffic was awful, otherwise I would have used my Blackberry to take a photo of the entire hullabaloo! I messaged my colleagues from Keadilan Kelana Jaya. Soon news got round that MB Datuk Seri Dr. Khir Toyo would be opening the BN Sunway operations room over the weekend.
When we opened our community service center in Desa Mentari last week, UMNO decided to open theirs immediately the next day. It’s so simple for them, with the money and government machinery. It took a lot of meetings for us to commit to renting the place in Desa Mentari, and even division leaders sometimes help out in putting up banners and flags!
Which brings me to a question a friend asked recently, after I convinced him to have the satay party for his neighbours and church friends: with the immense resources that BN has, and with all the tricks up their sleeves, how do I remain an optimist?
Well I won’t lie by saying that the road I take is easy. It’s not. And I’m learning more and more about the challenges the longer I’m in the struggle. There are some days, when friends have to slow down in their commitment due to their other responsibilities, or worse when people give a look like they see a ghost when you mention ‘opposition’, that are tough. There are times when you’re tired of motivating other people when you yourself need motivating.
But that’s a choice I made, and I entered the fray with my eyes wide open. It’s precisely because behind the BN juggernaut are state resources, unfair rules and pure cheating that we’re standing up to them. More than that, we stand for something – a stronger Malaysia: a more robust yet fairer economy, a safer and more united society and a freer state. I believe Malaysia deserves better and can get better.
However faith alone won’t take us anywhere. We need to work hard and smart for it. As Nat said at the satay party, even if we’re already working now, we all need to do a bit more. I know that if enough of us do something and more than what we do now, change will happen. We all have a role, not necessarily in the front line but doing nothing is definitely not an option.
Whenever I meet others who face greater hurdles yet still do something, I know that all of us can and must do something. There are government servants who are transferred to the ends of the country because of their critical opinion, yet they refuse to budge. There are factory workers struggling to make a living who would try to attend our programs even if it means hitchhiking on a lorry to get back home.
If they can be optimists, how can I afford not to?
Dear Nik,
“It Takes Courage” by Anonymous
It takes courage to refrain from gossip when others delight in it,
To stand up for the absent person who is being abused.
It takes courage to live honestly within your means,
And not dishonestly on the means of others.
It takes courage to be a REAL man or a TRUE woman to hold fast to your ideals,
When it causes you to be looked upon as strange and peculiar
It takes courage to be talked about, and remain silent,
When a word would justify you in the eyes of others,
But which you dare not speak Because it would injure another.
It takes courage to refuse to do something that is wrong,
Although everyone else May be doing it
With attitudes as carefree as a summer song.
It takes courage to live according to your own convictions, To deny yourself when you cannot afford to.
January 26th, 2008 at 2:00 pmTo love your neighbour as yourself.
Hard things are put in our way bot to stop us but to call our sincerity, wisdom and courage.
Wish you all the best bro!
January 26th, 2008 at 11:01 pmAustralia, then Taiwan, next Malaysia.
January 26th, 2008 at 11:20 pmyes, there will be changes when the admin swaps hands initially.
10 years later (or maybe earlier), it’s back to square one.
January 27th, 2008 at 2:01 amOne of the professors in my department, his personal crusade is to expose the corruption of accounting firms. It’s an uphill struggle; he has more than enough evidence, he points these out constantly. Not only does he the academic platform, but he is using the Parliament and the mass media as his tools. People listen, but the world is too corrupt to change. He acknowledges this, but for all that, I have yet to see him falter in his steps. I asked him what keeps him going. He said, belief that he is doing the right thing. He is one man, he says, and he does what he can. And if you believe in God, he says, then you’ll believe that ultimately it is God, and not those around you, who has the final say.
Amazing bloke. Feel quite privileged to be working with him, actually.
January 27th, 2008 at 2:23 amJeg,
Well, if ten years after the change things swap back to square one, then change the government again.
America, Britain, Australia – all have regular political changes and are doing fine. So does India, which is economically backward but developing at a rapid rate and has a more diverse population than our country.
The point is, once we can break this mentality that ‘Only BN can be government’, the rakyat will then no longer have any fear to kick out an inept, uninspired and inefficient government. Once that mentality has changed, trust me, thing’s won’t go back to square one.
Taiwan, Korea, India – all make interesting examples where previously de-facto one party states had political change due to the stagnation of authoritarian politics. But the reformers do not have a monopoly in power – when they start to get complacent the people then reverted to the older party but with a difference – a competitive two party system is now in place.
That’s why I’m optimistic for change.
January 27th, 2008 at 9:41 amDear Jeg,
Whether things will be back to square one after 10 years or earlier or it may even be better, I guess we wont know until we first muster enough courage to vote for change.
With UMNO-BN, after 50 years, we know what we will get. If we are happy with rampant corruption, abuses of power, rising crime rates, declining education standards, racist policies and thugs like Bung Mokhtar as MP in Parliament, then I guess UMNO-BN is the obvious choice.
However, if we aspire to want better then the other alternative is to vote for change.
And if the new government turn out to be no better than UMNO-BN, then we change again. This is what democracy is all about. The rakyat is the boss, while the elected reps are there to serve the rakyat. If service no good, we change.
January 27th, 2008 at 3:13 pmIt could only be better if and only if all the leader in the goverment consist of qualified people and not another politikus..For instance,how come people who doesn’t have the relevant expertise in agriculture is becoming the “menteri” for that particular field..
IMO,1997s recession should be made as the best example for the nation future planning.We suffered during that year because lots of short term policy.Nevertheless being a wise Dr as he was,Tun M managed to put the paint-killer to temporarily cure some of the nation problems and also obscured the people eyes back then, but apparently most of the problems starting becoming inevitable now.
As a matter of fact, i got to agree that our nation now is still not being governed in the proper manner..But, “Just” perhaps not as that bad as we think..After all, if the “badan kehakiman” still under the power of that “taukey judi”, corrupted chief judge and Lingam,i believe DSAI will probably still in the prison rite now..Not forget to mention also the long term plan made by the goverment looks very promising as a great investment for the future.Wilayah koridor utara,timur,selatan and that sort of thing which will eventually benefit the poor people.
However,after reading your post here,i couldn’t say a word to criticize and undermined what you and your colleagues had done.Your spirit is trully amazing,and fighting towards the better of Malaysia is not something youth like us can easily do.Well then, I wish you all the best!
January 28th, 2008 at 7:51 am