The way the Malays interpret this is that you are not sincere about eradicating corruption. You are just using this as an excuse to justify kicking out Umno. If the opposition perpetuates corruption you are prepared to ‘close both eyes’ for the sake of ABU. In fact, you will curse the person who reveals corruption in the opposition. So why do you want ABU then? Is it to eradicate corruption? The way the Malays see it, it is to eradicate Malay political power. And that would be even more reason to keep Umno in power. NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
You may have read the various pieces and reports below. If not then take a quick look before you read what I am going to say.
Okay, now my response: 25% of eligible Chinese voters are yet to register to vote. Hence, there are only 3.8 million Chinese voters out of more than 12 million registered votes. This means only 30% of the voters are Chinese (many who are overseas and will not or cannot go back to vote).
The states where the Chinese voters would make an impact and the number of Parliament seats in brackets would be Penang (13), Perak (24), Selangor (22), Johor (26), Kuala Lumpur (11), Negeri Sembilan (8), and Melaka (6).
That comes to a total of 110 Parliament seats out of 222 (I am not including those from Sabah and Sarawak).
Note, however, that not all the 110 seats are Chinese majority seats. At best we are looking at one-third those 110 seats, which means about 35 seats or so. For the rest, although they have a high percentage of Chinese voters, the Chinese are not the majority. Hence the Malays, Indians, and ‘others’ would play a crucial role in those seats (including in Sabah and Sarawak where there is a huge mix of ‘others’).
While we in Malaysia Today and those from the civil society movements are screaming ABU, is that also what the Malay Diaspora is screaming? While we want transparency, accountability, equality, good governance, and an end to all the abuses, transgressions, corruption, and whatnot, is that also what the Malay Diaspora wants?
The Malay Diaspora has other things in mind. The fact that in 2004 the Malays in Terengganu (who make up 97% of the voters) gave the state back to Umno (and voted Umno again in 2008) shows that Islam or religion is not the first consideration. The first consideration is money, and by voting Umno they were assured of money.
No doubt Kelantan voted PAS since 1990 and has continued doing so for 22 years -- and will probably do the same this coming election as well. But that is because Kelantan does not have money and the Kelantanese have learned to live with not having money. That is why the Kelantanese are very industrious and migrate to other states to earn a living.
Even if the Kelantenese voted Ummo there would be no difference to their livelihood. Kelantan is poor anyway. And they have learned to live with poverty for three generations. Terengganu, however, is rich. And they have been spoiled since the 1970s. And when they faced hardship in 1999 because they voted opposition, the following election they voted for Umno again to end this suffering. And Umno made sure their suffering ended so now the people in Terengganu are quite happy.
So you see, the Malays are just like the Chinese, Indians and natives of Sabah and Sarawak. The Chinese and Indians are screaming because of the discrimination and due to economic reasons, the NEP being one of them. The Chinese and Indians scream because of what they are being denied. The Malays too scream because of what they might be denied if Umno is kicked out.
Hence, a lot of the campaigning and sloganeering is not going to swing the Malays over to the opposition. In fact, the reverse might happen. They may be pushed back to Umno.
The trouble is: those in the opposition, in particular the Chinese and Indians, are looking after their own self-interest. There is nothing wrong with that, of course. Everyone wants to guard his or her interests. But when you appear to be threatening other people’s interest that is when the problem arises (just like how the Chinese and Indians resent the NEP when their interests are sacrificed/threatened).
We cannot deny that the rhetoric in Malaysia Today has given the impression that the non-Malays are declaring war on the Malays. Even I get that impression and I would consider myself more liberal than the ‘normal’ Malay. And it is no coincidence that the majority of comments in Malaysia Today are posted by Chinese readers. And that is because the Malay readers have abandoned Malaysia Today because they consider it a DAP anti-Malay website.
Do you think that this impression created is going help the opposition march into Putrajaya?
You say that the reason we want BN out is because they are corrupted. Malays can buy that. Not all Malays condone corruption. But when I expose just one or two cases of abuse of power involving Pakatan Rakyat (amidst the hundreds of cases I have exposed involving BN) you curse me and call me names and allege that I have been bought, have sold out, am working for Umno, and whatnot. You then argue that we must accept a bit of corruption from the opposition for the sake of ABU.
The way the Malays interpret this is that you are not sincere about eradicating corruption. You are just using this as an excuse to justify kicking out Umno. If the opposition perpetuates corruption you are prepared to ‘close both eyes’ for the sake of ABU. In fact, you will curse the person who reveals corruption in the opposition.
So why do you want ABU then? Is it to eradicate corruption? The way the Malays see it, it is to eradicate Malay political power. And that would be even more reason to keep Umno in power.
If you really want to see a regime change then you need a change of strategy. Getting all the Chinese to unite against the Malays would only mean Putrajaya is going to get further and further away.
You first need to win the trust and confidence of the Malays. And if even I can no longer trust your reasons for ABU (from your reaction to my exposes about the opposition) how can you expect the other Malays to stand by you? Is ABU ‘anything but Umno’ or is ABU actually ‘anything but Malays’? In that case change ABU to ABM and at least we can make a decision on whether we are with you or not.
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Kong: One in four eligible Malaysian Chinese not a voter, situation 'serious'
(The Star) - MCA has urged all Malaysian Chinese who are eligible to vote to register for the coming general election, as some 1.1 million individuals from the community have yet to register.
Secretary-general Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha said that according to Election Commission, as of September 2011 a total of 4.89 million Malaysian Chinese are qualified to vote but up to 1.1 million have not registered.
"This means that one in every four Chinese has yet to register as a voter," said the Transport Minister, calling the situation "serious".
"In view of the challenging current political situation in the forthcoming general election, eligible Chinese voters should register as quickly as possible to fulfil a responsibility.
"If a Malaysian Chinese is eligible to go to the polls but does not register as a voter, he or she will be giving the impression that the Chinese community is politically apathetic, which is not the case," he said in a statement on Wednesday.
Kong, who is also Lumut MP, said the Chinese electorate in the country had always been concerned about the country's future development and actively participated in nation building.
He said they should also actively take part in general elections, and make the best use of their vote to decide the country's future.
Kong said the MCA service centres were open to help eligible Malaysians register as voters.
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BN’s four methods to win the polls
Barisan Nasional is using three powerful and distinct methods to win the forthcoming 13th general election and their methods can be grouped into four main categories, namely:
1. Population re-engineering.
2. Propaganda to brainwash the citizens.
3. Philosophy of Malay Supremacy and 1Malaysia.
4. Plain cheating via manipulation of the electoral rolls by the Election Commission (EC).
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WIKILEAKS: Malaysia's racial divide deepening
And now with election approaching, and Najib pushing his "one Malaysia" idea, the situation is becoming even more contentious for those who consider themselves to suffer under pro-Malay policies, namely the enterprising ethnic Chinese minority. What Mahathir is doing here is drumming up resentment against the Chinese with the hopes of getting more Malays out to vote, and to vote pro-Malay. Unlike Najib, he doesn't have to try to court the Chinese vote. The danger is that his statements will alienate Chinese voters that Najib needs.
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WIKILEAKS: Next election: do or die for Umno
To win this next election, you've got to win back Malay votes. Create some fear... spook the Malaysians into voting for UMNO again. For Najib, it's not just about winning the election; it's the survival of BN. The fear of BN is not just that they might lose the election, but that some of them might go to prison. Some of them might be indicted. This is really a do or die situation for them.
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The question remains however: Is the PR platform sufficient to convince their multi-ethnic constituencies to oust BN from power to build a new democratic Malaysia?
Under this regime, the majority Malay (and therefore Muslim) population have gained an unparalleled amount of power, wealth, status and opportunities as their birth rights since independence. UMNO and its major coalition partners in BN, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) and the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), were formed and allowed to survive primarily to represent and protect political and material interests of Chinese and Indian minority communities. In the post-NEP period, the regime has become even more protective of the communal interests of the Muslim-Malays while gaining authoritarian characters.
Opposition parties, while certainly sharing such unusually strong anti-regime sentiments emanating from civil society, were not able to translate these divisive ethnocentric sentiments and demands directly into political action. Instead, they have chosen to stay mute on fundamental issues that they do not wish to discuss or negotiate, that is, issues related to communal identities and religion.
The key question here is whether Malaysians, especially the Malay-Muslim community, are ready to accept a new set of deals, terms and conditions set by the new democratic regime along the line suggested by PR. All possible signs thus far seem to suggest that they are not. According to public surveys conducted by the Merdeka Center between 2008 and 2010, a large majority of Malays, especially those in the lower income categories, strongly favour the reservation of special rights and privileges.
More alarmingly, such anxiety among a community perceived to be under threat or siege at a time when the regime is undergoing unpredictable transition is a ready recipe for communal tension and potential violence. Indeed, it was when the BN adopted policies and allocated resources in ways seen disproportionately favorable to the non-Malay communities, especially Chinese, that ultra-nationalistic Malay movements such as Perkasa gained popular approval and appeal.
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