Thursday, October 29, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
27 Aug 2009
BEBERAPA KENYATAAN MENGHINA ISLAM OLEH PEMIMPIN UMNO DAN AKIBATNYA
Kategori: Isu Semasa
Dalam akhbar HARAKAH bertarikh 30 Syaaban – 2 Ramadhan 1430/21 – 23 Ogos 2009, saya tertarik dengan dua fakta yang ditulis oleh Mohamed Hanipa Maidin dalam artikel beliau bertajuk “Sejak bila Umno tidak hina Islam.” Ia berbunyi seperti berikut:i) Ucapan Dato’ Rais Yatim di Hotel Equatorial, Bangi semasa merasmikan seminar Inter Faith Commission (IFC) antara lain menyatakan (dalam bahasa Inggeris) yang terjemahannya: “(Dalam masyarakat majmuk) tiada orang yang boleh mendakwa bahawa agamanya adalah agama terbaik dengan mengenepikan agama-agama lain kerana dengan mengatakan demikian akan memusnahkan prinsip persamaan (agama) dan prinsip kemanusiaan.” Ucapan Rais Yatim ini telah diterbitkan di dalam Infoline Majlis Peguam. ii) Dato’ Nazri Aziz pernah secara terang-terang di satu forum anjuran Majlis Peguam berkata Umno terpaksa menggunakan Islam kerana jika parti itu tidak berbuat demikian ia akan hilang undi kepada PAS. Buat Rais Yatim dan orang-orang yang berfikiran seperti beliau, saya ingin bertanyakan begini. Dimana nak diletakkan pengesahan Allah S.W.T tentang taraf ugama islam melalui Ayat yang bermaksud: “Sesungguhnya Deen (agama) yang diredhai Allah hanyalah Islam? Inna deen na in dallah hil Islam? (Sebahagian Ayat 19: Surah Ali’Imran).” Inikah caranya seorang pemimpin Islam membuat kenyataan? Dengan kata-kata seperti ini, syahadah kita yang bermaksud “tiada Tuhan yang disembah melainkan Allah” akan menjadi satu lafaz kosong. Ia bo;eh menukarkan “Asyhadu” ; langsung tidak berfungsi. Sepatutnya secara pengertiannya yang bergerak, dia(Asyhadu itu) memberi erti bahawa kita yakin sampai sanggup menjadi saksi. Perihal seriusnya kalimat syahadah ini sampai ia tidak boleh diwakili kepada orang lain untuk dilafaz. Ucapan dan pegangan pemimpin Umno yang sebeginilah sebenarnya yang perlu direnung oleh seluruh umat Islam. Inilah salah satu puncanya sehingga saya berani membuat penegasan bahawa Umno ini membawa Islam dari benih kacukan. Islam dari jenis palsu dan plastik. Memang tepat sungguh sikap PAS yang telah menolak sebulat suara teori Kerajaan Perpaduan. Jika samalah kedudukan rakyat yang ada agama seperti Islam, Kristian, Hindu dan Buddha maka apa pula halnya dengan mereka yang berfaham Atheis yang langsung tak beragama? Apa pula kedudukan golongan komunis yang menolak agama dalam kerangka pemikiran Rais? Sama? Tak serupa? Atau serupa tapi tak sama? Yang peliknya, dalam hal semangat Melayu, pemimpin Umno bermati-matian pula mempertahankan ketuanan Melayu. Apakah Rais bermaksud, faham kebangsaan Melayu itu berada di atas dari segala-galanya termasuk Islam itu sendiri? Malu sangatkah untuk iktiraf ketuanan Islam? Tidakkah Islam itu tempatnya di atas dan tiada yang mengatasi ? Sedarkah kita bahawa jika dilayan logik pemikiran pemimpin bertaraf Menteri di Kementerian Penerangan, Komunikasi dan Kebudayaan ini, maka bila semua agama ini serupa tidakkah Hukum Murtad sudah tidak lagi diperlukan? Kubur muslim dan Non- muslim pun sudah menjadi tidak perlu kerana semua orang boleh ditanam bersekali? Mayat muslim pun apakah halal dibakar? Sedarkah kita bahawa pemikiran jenis ini boleh membawa kita kepada fenomena perkahwinan campur antara muslim/non-muslim yang berleluasa tanpa perlu menukar agama. Ini juga bermakna Mahkamah Syariah tidak diperlukan lagi. Tak timbullah isu sebat Kartika sama ada perlu dibedal atau tidak mengikut peraturan dan syariat Islam. Pendek kata, kenyataan ini sudah tidak syak lagi telah menimbulkan keresahan yang bukan sedikit kepada umat Islam. Menyentuh tentang kenyataan Dato’ Nazri Aziz pula, yang secara terang-terangan berkata di dalam satu forum anjuran Majlis Peguam bahawa Umno terpaksa menggunakan Islam untuk meraih undi kerana bimbangkan kehilangan sokongan kepada PAS jika tidak berbuat demikian; maka jelas di sini bahawa Umno tidak menjadikan Islam ugama untuk mengabdikan diri kepada Allah SWT. Kenyataan ini mengesahkan bahawa Islam bukan menjadi landasan perjuangan Umno. Islam itu bukan “a complete way of life”. Sahlah dengan ini, Umno hanya menggunakan Islam untuk tujuan-tujuan upacara dan “ritual” semata-mata. Ugama Islam hanya sekadar untuk cari makan dengan mengekalkan kekuasaan? Jika timbul keperluan, Islam itu boleh diperalatkan. Yang penting ialah hegemoni dan kekuasaan politik. Jika begitu apa pula fungsi tilawah, perarakan maulidurrasul atau sambutan maal hijrah di sisi Umno yang dianjurkan selama ini? Dalam hubungan ini, jangan salahkan rakyat jika mereka menuduh Umno sebagai parti yang hanya pentingkan kuasa. Segala komitmen terhadap projek-projek agama hanya bertujuan kosmetik, pameran atau bahan perhiasan semata-mata untuk tujuan-tujuan materialistik. Sebenarnya, inilah yang mendorong saya untuk mengatakan bahawa Umno ini sebuah parti politik sekular yang oportunis. Ia gemar dan selalu menggunakan faham kebangsaan dan Islam bagi mengelirukan orang Melayu. Umno menggunakan kesempatan sistem sekular yang memisah agama dengan kehidupan dan kadang kala mencampur adukkan segala benda itu untuk hidup sepenuhnya dalam tubuh pergerakan Umno. Ini yang menjadikan perjuangan mereka berkecamuk, tidak berhaluan dan tidak berdasar. Dasar Umno ialah “tiada dasar”. Inilah juga alasannya ; saya mengistilahkan Umno ini sebagai parti yang mengamalkan Islam dari baka kacukan. Inilah juga Islam palsu yang saya telah namakan kepada parti Melayu ini kira-kira dua minggu yang lalu. Saya kata Umno ini beramal atas Islam plastik, dia memfitnah saya pula yang kononnya saya mengatakan mereka mengamalkan Islam Palestin. Inilah susahnya bermain dengan parti yang tidak menjaga agama dan menjadikan dosa pahala sebagai dasar, agenda dan program perjuangan. Pendek kata sebelum Umno menuduh saya sebagai orang yang kononnya sedangkan mengelirukan umat mengenai Islam maka melalui bukti-bukti ini rakyat sekalian boleh melihat siapa dan parti manakah sebenarnya yang sedang keliru dan tekun mengelirukan rakyat dalam segenap segi. Sambil-sambil beriktikaf di masjid dalam bulan yang semulia ini, eloklah juga kita semua membuat renungan bagaimanakah cara yang sebenar untuk menyelamatkan Islam dan umat Islam dari tipu daya rakan-rakan kita dari Umno ini ? Sebagai penutup, izinkan saya berundur dengan menumpang doa Nabi Allah Ibrahim a.s. yang berbunyi, “ya Tuhan kami, beri ampunlah aku dan kedua ibu bapaku dan sekalian orang-orang mukmin pada hari terjadinya hisab (hari kiamat).” (Surah Ibrahim : Ayat 41).
NIK ABDUL AZIZ BIN NIK MATBertarikh : 5 Ramadhan 1430 / 26 Ogos 2009.
BEBERAPA KENYATAAN MENGHINA ISLAM OLEH PEMIMPIN UMNO DAN AKIBATNYA
Kategori: Isu Semasa
Dalam akhbar HARAKAH bertarikh 30 Syaaban – 2 Ramadhan 1430/21 – 23 Ogos 2009, saya tertarik dengan dua fakta yang ditulis oleh Mohamed Hanipa Maidin dalam artikel beliau bertajuk “Sejak bila Umno tidak hina Islam.” Ia berbunyi seperti berikut:i) Ucapan Dato’ Rais Yatim di Hotel Equatorial, Bangi semasa merasmikan seminar Inter Faith Commission (IFC) antara lain menyatakan (dalam bahasa Inggeris) yang terjemahannya: “(Dalam masyarakat majmuk) tiada orang yang boleh mendakwa bahawa agamanya adalah agama terbaik dengan mengenepikan agama-agama lain kerana dengan mengatakan demikian akan memusnahkan prinsip persamaan (agama) dan prinsip kemanusiaan.” Ucapan Rais Yatim ini telah diterbitkan di dalam Infoline Majlis Peguam. ii) Dato’ Nazri Aziz pernah secara terang-terang di satu forum anjuran Majlis Peguam berkata Umno terpaksa menggunakan Islam kerana jika parti itu tidak berbuat demikian ia akan hilang undi kepada PAS. Buat Rais Yatim dan orang-orang yang berfikiran seperti beliau, saya ingin bertanyakan begini. Dimana nak diletakkan pengesahan Allah S.W.T tentang taraf ugama islam melalui Ayat yang bermaksud: “Sesungguhnya Deen (agama) yang diredhai Allah hanyalah Islam? Inna deen na in dallah hil Islam? (Sebahagian Ayat 19: Surah Ali’Imran).” Inikah caranya seorang pemimpin Islam membuat kenyataan? Dengan kata-kata seperti ini, syahadah kita yang bermaksud “tiada Tuhan yang disembah melainkan Allah” akan menjadi satu lafaz kosong. Ia bo;eh menukarkan “Asyhadu” ; langsung tidak berfungsi. Sepatutnya secara pengertiannya yang bergerak, dia(Asyhadu itu) memberi erti bahawa kita yakin sampai sanggup menjadi saksi. Perihal seriusnya kalimat syahadah ini sampai ia tidak boleh diwakili kepada orang lain untuk dilafaz. Ucapan dan pegangan pemimpin Umno yang sebeginilah sebenarnya yang perlu direnung oleh seluruh umat Islam. Inilah salah satu puncanya sehingga saya berani membuat penegasan bahawa Umno ini membawa Islam dari benih kacukan. Islam dari jenis palsu dan plastik. Memang tepat sungguh sikap PAS yang telah menolak sebulat suara teori Kerajaan Perpaduan. Jika samalah kedudukan rakyat yang ada agama seperti Islam, Kristian, Hindu dan Buddha maka apa pula halnya dengan mereka yang berfaham Atheis yang langsung tak beragama? Apa pula kedudukan golongan komunis yang menolak agama dalam kerangka pemikiran Rais? Sama? Tak serupa? Atau serupa tapi tak sama? Yang peliknya, dalam hal semangat Melayu, pemimpin Umno bermati-matian pula mempertahankan ketuanan Melayu. Apakah Rais bermaksud, faham kebangsaan Melayu itu berada di atas dari segala-galanya termasuk Islam itu sendiri? Malu sangatkah untuk iktiraf ketuanan Islam? Tidakkah Islam itu tempatnya di atas dan tiada yang mengatasi ? Sedarkah kita bahawa jika dilayan logik pemikiran pemimpin bertaraf Menteri di Kementerian Penerangan, Komunikasi dan Kebudayaan ini, maka bila semua agama ini serupa tidakkah Hukum Murtad sudah tidak lagi diperlukan? Kubur muslim dan Non- muslim pun sudah menjadi tidak perlu kerana semua orang boleh ditanam bersekali? Mayat muslim pun apakah halal dibakar? Sedarkah kita bahawa pemikiran jenis ini boleh membawa kita kepada fenomena perkahwinan campur antara muslim/non-muslim yang berleluasa tanpa perlu menukar agama. Ini juga bermakna Mahkamah Syariah tidak diperlukan lagi. Tak timbullah isu sebat Kartika sama ada perlu dibedal atau tidak mengikut peraturan dan syariat Islam. Pendek kata, kenyataan ini sudah tidak syak lagi telah menimbulkan keresahan yang bukan sedikit kepada umat Islam. Menyentuh tentang kenyataan Dato’ Nazri Aziz pula, yang secara terang-terangan berkata di dalam satu forum anjuran Majlis Peguam bahawa Umno terpaksa menggunakan Islam untuk meraih undi kerana bimbangkan kehilangan sokongan kepada PAS jika tidak berbuat demikian; maka jelas di sini bahawa Umno tidak menjadikan Islam ugama untuk mengabdikan diri kepada Allah SWT. Kenyataan ini mengesahkan bahawa Islam bukan menjadi landasan perjuangan Umno. Islam itu bukan “a complete way of life”. Sahlah dengan ini, Umno hanya menggunakan Islam untuk tujuan-tujuan upacara dan “ritual” semata-mata. Ugama Islam hanya sekadar untuk cari makan dengan mengekalkan kekuasaan? Jika timbul keperluan, Islam itu boleh diperalatkan. Yang penting ialah hegemoni dan kekuasaan politik. Jika begitu apa pula fungsi tilawah, perarakan maulidurrasul atau sambutan maal hijrah di sisi Umno yang dianjurkan selama ini? Dalam hubungan ini, jangan salahkan rakyat jika mereka menuduh Umno sebagai parti yang hanya pentingkan kuasa. Segala komitmen terhadap projek-projek agama hanya bertujuan kosmetik, pameran atau bahan perhiasan semata-mata untuk tujuan-tujuan materialistik. Sebenarnya, inilah yang mendorong saya untuk mengatakan bahawa Umno ini sebuah parti politik sekular yang oportunis. Ia gemar dan selalu menggunakan faham kebangsaan dan Islam bagi mengelirukan orang Melayu. Umno menggunakan kesempatan sistem sekular yang memisah agama dengan kehidupan dan kadang kala mencampur adukkan segala benda itu untuk hidup sepenuhnya dalam tubuh pergerakan Umno. Ini yang menjadikan perjuangan mereka berkecamuk, tidak berhaluan dan tidak berdasar. Dasar Umno ialah “tiada dasar”. Inilah juga alasannya ; saya mengistilahkan Umno ini sebagai parti yang mengamalkan Islam dari baka kacukan. Inilah juga Islam palsu yang saya telah namakan kepada parti Melayu ini kira-kira dua minggu yang lalu. Saya kata Umno ini beramal atas Islam plastik, dia memfitnah saya pula yang kononnya saya mengatakan mereka mengamalkan Islam Palestin. Inilah susahnya bermain dengan parti yang tidak menjaga agama dan menjadikan dosa pahala sebagai dasar, agenda dan program perjuangan. Pendek kata sebelum Umno menuduh saya sebagai orang yang kononnya sedangkan mengelirukan umat mengenai Islam maka melalui bukti-bukti ini rakyat sekalian boleh melihat siapa dan parti manakah sebenarnya yang sedang keliru dan tekun mengelirukan rakyat dalam segenap segi. Sambil-sambil beriktikaf di masjid dalam bulan yang semulia ini, eloklah juga kita semua membuat renungan bagaimanakah cara yang sebenar untuk menyelamatkan Islam dan umat Islam dari tipu daya rakan-rakan kita dari Umno ini ? Sebagai penutup, izinkan saya berundur dengan menumpang doa Nabi Allah Ibrahim a.s. yang berbunyi, “ya Tuhan kami, beri ampunlah aku dan kedua ibu bapaku dan sekalian orang-orang mukmin pada hari terjadinya hisab (hari kiamat).” (Surah Ibrahim : Ayat 41).
NIK ABDUL AZIZ BIN NIK MATBertarikh : 5 Ramadhan 1430 / 26 Ogos 2009.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Same Old UMNO, Same Old Ethics
Same Old UMNO, Same Old Ethics
M. Bakri Musa
Biar mati anak, jangan mati adat! (Sacrifice your child if need be, but never your tradition!) Growing up in Negri Sembilan, that wisdom of my culture was continually drummed into me. To those outside the clan, that adage may seem extreme, an ugly manifestation of unyielding and irrational conservatism.
With my children now grown up, I recognize the verity of that village wisdom. Yes, it was hammered into me on the importance of our cultural tradition of fealty towards elders (our parents in particular), but there was also the equally important reciprocal tradition for the elders (who are presumably wiser) to be more patient and forgiving of their young.
It is this fidelity to adat that made my parents not put a guilt trip upon me when I chose a path that was not what they had expected. Cognizant of this adat too is what made me not stand in the way of my children when they too decided to venture on a journey beyond what is familiar to me.
My old Negri saying could be more accurately re-stated as: Jaga adat, jaga anak! (Save our tradition, and save our children!) Such an intricate system of social norms however, would easily be shattered if any of its component parts were to be compromised or exploited.
Consider the esteemed cultural trait of respect and loyalty to leaders and kings, and the associated severe penalty for derhaka (treachery). In tandem with that however, there is the reciprocal tradition encapsulated in the saying: Raja adil raja di sembah; Raja zalim raja di sanggah (Venerate the just king; defy the tyrant).
Yes, my culture demands that I revere and be loyal to my leaders and elders, but they must also be fully aware of the traditional countervailing restraints not to abuse that reverence I have of them.
Consider the nomination of Isa Samad to be UMNO’s standard bearer in the upcoming Bagan Pinang by-election. He was a Mentri Besar for 22 years and a Federal minister for a few years after that. He is the archetypical ‘local boy done good.’ His fellow villagers in Port Dickson have every right to be proud of him. To them, no honor however exalted would be adequate for him; they would wish upon him even more.
Thus it should not surprise us or Isa Samad that they would want him, and no one else, to have the singular honor to represent them in the state legislature. The surprise is that many are surprised by this expected and proper gesture of generosity on the part of Isa’s people towards him.
As per our adat however, it is not for the people to deny Isa Samad this honor; that would leave a bitter taste in their collective mouth as well as an affront to their cultural sensitivities. Rather it is for Isa Samad to have the wisdom and magnanimity to decline that honor. If he were to do that at the first round, again as per custom, they would once more beg him to reconsider, and again Isa Samad should decline.
The social norms demand that these back and forth offers and declines would go on for at least three rounds, all to demonstrate (or at least make a show of) the “genuineness” of the gesture. Anything less and it would risk being interpreted as perfunctory, and less than genuine.
It is through such displays of finesse and subtleties that our culture and traditions have stood the test of time and smoothed our social order. Alas today our traditional values and generosities have been abused not by outsiders but by our own people. It is our own leaders and kin who betray us and our values, as so crudely and ruthlessly demonstrated by Isa Samad.
Nonetheless true to our tradition of “Raja adil raja di sembah; Raja zalim raja di sanggah,” we should not hesitate, and do so in no uncertain terms, to sanggah (defy) these leaders.
UMNO’s Wet-Finger-In-the-Air Leaders
When UMNO chose a disbarred lawyer to contest the recent by-election in Penang, I commented that the next time around expect the party to scrounge even lower in search of even slimier characters to represent the party. I ventured that it would be difficult to find someone more unworthy than a disbarred lawyer, but trust those UMNO folks, they would find someone. I did not expect to be proven right, and so soon.
In Isa Samad UMNO has someone who had been expelled from the party for “money politics,” the euphemism for corruption. Knowing UMNO’s shady ethics, to be expelled for that must take some doing.
In justifying his party’s pick, UMNO’s Deputy President Muhyiddin Yassin declared, “We have decided that this is what the people want.” He was jubilant when making that declaration. Surrounded as he was by senior leaders of the Barisan and fellow ministers, and judging by their beaming smiles and other body language, they too shared his enthusiasm for the candidate.
Just in case we might miss the point, Muhyiddin went on to reassure everyone that the choice was made “after much thought and scrutiny.” Meaning, it was deliberate.
Even ignoring Isa Samad’s blatant bribing of UMNO delegates and then bragging about it (the reason for his expulsion), the more fundamental issue is this. The man has nothing more to offer the state after serving as Mentri Besar for over 24 years. If he had any talent or innovative ideas, that should have been obvious during all those years.
At this stage of their careers, leaders like Isa Samad should be seeking out and mentoring the next generation of leaders, not desperately hogging the stage, and their followers’ fast dwindling reservoir of respect and gratitude.
Only last week Muhyiddin was at pains to point out that he was intent on seeking fresh talent, especially after the Bagan Pinang branch folks brazenly declared that Isa was their only choice. In succumbing to local pressure, Muhyiddin’s leadership is nothing more than wet-finger-in-the-air variety. That is fine in leading a herd of kerbau (water buffaloes) but not a nation aspiring for Vision 2020.
There is nothing wrong with a leader sticking his wet finger in the air to check the prevailing wind if that would lead him to trim his sails and steer his ship of state better, while keeping his eye on the compass. Indeed that is the hallmark of a skilled skipper. However, if you keep changing course and be oblivious of the compass, you will never reach your destination.
The earlier rhetoric about UMNO having “to change or be changed” is now proven to be nothing more than just “cock talk,” to put it in the local vernacular. Muhyiddin is also Deputy Prime Minister, a heart beat away from the nation’s top job. This preview of his leadership does not reassure me.
In picking Isa, Muhyddin obviously had to compromise his principles and abandon his commitment to reforming the party. He should be reminded of the old Xeno mathematical paradox: You will never reach your destination if you are satisfied at reaching only the halfway mark at every try.
Once you start compromising your principle at the first obstacle, then it gets easier the next time. Soon you would have no scruples compromising all your principles. By that time you would not only be willing to dispense with your adat but you also would be willing to part with your first-born, just to get your way.
Your corruption then would have been complete, with nothing worthy left to defend or honor. Then it would be: Mati adat dan mati anak (Death to your culture, and death to your children).
M. Bakri Musa
Biar mati anak, jangan mati adat! (Sacrifice your child if need be, but never your tradition!) Growing up in Negri Sembilan, that wisdom of my culture was continually drummed into me. To those outside the clan, that adage may seem extreme, an ugly manifestation of unyielding and irrational conservatism.
With my children now grown up, I recognize the verity of that village wisdom. Yes, it was hammered into me on the importance of our cultural tradition of fealty towards elders (our parents in particular), but there was also the equally important reciprocal tradition for the elders (who are presumably wiser) to be more patient and forgiving of their young.
It is this fidelity to adat that made my parents not put a guilt trip upon me when I chose a path that was not what they had expected. Cognizant of this adat too is what made me not stand in the way of my children when they too decided to venture on a journey beyond what is familiar to me.
My old Negri saying could be more accurately re-stated as: Jaga adat, jaga anak! (Save our tradition, and save our children!) Such an intricate system of social norms however, would easily be shattered if any of its component parts were to be compromised or exploited.
Consider the esteemed cultural trait of respect and loyalty to leaders and kings, and the associated severe penalty for derhaka (treachery). In tandem with that however, there is the reciprocal tradition encapsulated in the saying: Raja adil raja di sembah; Raja zalim raja di sanggah (Venerate the just king; defy the tyrant).
Yes, my culture demands that I revere and be loyal to my leaders and elders, but they must also be fully aware of the traditional countervailing restraints not to abuse that reverence I have of them.
Consider the nomination of Isa Samad to be UMNO’s standard bearer in the upcoming Bagan Pinang by-election. He was a Mentri Besar for 22 years and a Federal minister for a few years after that. He is the archetypical ‘local boy done good.’ His fellow villagers in Port Dickson have every right to be proud of him. To them, no honor however exalted would be adequate for him; they would wish upon him even more.
Thus it should not surprise us or Isa Samad that they would want him, and no one else, to have the singular honor to represent them in the state legislature. The surprise is that many are surprised by this expected and proper gesture of generosity on the part of Isa’s people towards him.
As per our adat however, it is not for the people to deny Isa Samad this honor; that would leave a bitter taste in their collective mouth as well as an affront to their cultural sensitivities. Rather it is for Isa Samad to have the wisdom and magnanimity to decline that honor. If he were to do that at the first round, again as per custom, they would once more beg him to reconsider, and again Isa Samad should decline.
The social norms demand that these back and forth offers and declines would go on for at least three rounds, all to demonstrate (or at least make a show of) the “genuineness” of the gesture. Anything less and it would risk being interpreted as perfunctory, and less than genuine.
It is through such displays of finesse and subtleties that our culture and traditions have stood the test of time and smoothed our social order. Alas today our traditional values and generosities have been abused not by outsiders but by our own people. It is our own leaders and kin who betray us and our values, as so crudely and ruthlessly demonstrated by Isa Samad.
Nonetheless true to our tradition of “Raja adil raja di sembah; Raja zalim raja di sanggah,” we should not hesitate, and do so in no uncertain terms, to sanggah (defy) these leaders.
UMNO’s Wet-Finger-In-the-Air Leaders
When UMNO chose a disbarred lawyer to contest the recent by-election in Penang, I commented that the next time around expect the party to scrounge even lower in search of even slimier characters to represent the party. I ventured that it would be difficult to find someone more unworthy than a disbarred lawyer, but trust those UMNO folks, they would find someone. I did not expect to be proven right, and so soon.
In Isa Samad UMNO has someone who had been expelled from the party for “money politics,” the euphemism for corruption. Knowing UMNO’s shady ethics, to be expelled for that must take some doing.
In justifying his party’s pick, UMNO’s Deputy President Muhyiddin Yassin declared, “We have decided that this is what the people want.” He was jubilant when making that declaration. Surrounded as he was by senior leaders of the Barisan and fellow ministers, and judging by their beaming smiles and other body language, they too shared his enthusiasm for the candidate.
Just in case we might miss the point, Muhyiddin went on to reassure everyone that the choice was made “after much thought and scrutiny.” Meaning, it was deliberate.
Even ignoring Isa Samad’s blatant bribing of UMNO delegates and then bragging about it (the reason for his expulsion), the more fundamental issue is this. The man has nothing more to offer the state after serving as Mentri Besar for over 24 years. If he had any talent or innovative ideas, that should have been obvious during all those years.
At this stage of their careers, leaders like Isa Samad should be seeking out and mentoring the next generation of leaders, not desperately hogging the stage, and their followers’ fast dwindling reservoir of respect and gratitude.
Only last week Muhyiddin was at pains to point out that he was intent on seeking fresh talent, especially after the Bagan Pinang branch folks brazenly declared that Isa was their only choice. In succumbing to local pressure, Muhyiddin’s leadership is nothing more than wet-finger-in-the-air variety. That is fine in leading a herd of kerbau (water buffaloes) but not a nation aspiring for Vision 2020.
There is nothing wrong with a leader sticking his wet finger in the air to check the prevailing wind if that would lead him to trim his sails and steer his ship of state better, while keeping his eye on the compass. Indeed that is the hallmark of a skilled skipper. However, if you keep changing course and be oblivious of the compass, you will never reach your destination.
The earlier rhetoric about UMNO having “to change or be changed” is now proven to be nothing more than just “cock talk,” to put it in the local vernacular. Muhyiddin is also Deputy Prime Minister, a heart beat away from the nation’s top job. This preview of his leadership does not reassure me.
In picking Isa, Muhyddin obviously had to compromise his principles and abandon his commitment to reforming the party. He should be reminded of the old Xeno mathematical paradox: You will never reach your destination if you are satisfied at reaching only the halfway mark at every try.
Once you start compromising your principle at the first obstacle, then it gets easier the next time. Soon you would have no scruples compromising all your principles. By that time you would not only be willing to dispense with your adat but you also would be willing to part with your first-born, just to get your way.
Your corruption then would have been complete, with nothing worthy left to defend or honor. Then it would be: Mati adat dan mati anak (Death to your culture, and death to your children).
Monday, October 5, 2009
to ponder...........
It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense.
Robert Green Ingersoll
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