My Podium

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

That's BN in Batu Talam

Imagine Manchester United plays against a Beranang’s soccer team. That’s a joke!

But then, imagine the MU deploys all its star players against the unknown soccer team. That’s idiot…to say the least!

Imagine also that the MU team even celebrate their win in a big way, perhaps almost in the same way the Beranang team could have celebrated had they won the match.

So, that’s BN in Batu Talam!

Malaysian election has become jokes fot idiots. In Batu Talam by election recently, BN deployed all its might including government machineries against the three-member team of independent candidate. The BN top brasses were all there, camping and campaigning for its candidate as though the fight is worth anything at their disposal.

As usual, the abuses and the corrupt practices were also all there in Batu Talam. My friend’s relative, a headmistress in a public school, informed that the local Education Department Office in Raub had given instruction to all teachers and school staffs to attend all functions in which ministers were scheduled to deliver their speeches through out the campaign period. In BN’s view, the fact that the school session had just started for the new year, and there are many job related outstandings these teachers and school staffs had to complete, was of no greater importance than ensuring that the 22-year old independent candidate would not only be defeated but also loose his deposit in Batu Talam. As winning the election is for them for sure, humiliating is what actually makes them proud. And that’s BN in Batu Talam!

The word “disgrace” may not sufficiently depict the above conduct by our ruling politicians. Yet, it is actually still a whit in describing political abuses and corruption by our ruling party in all elections that we have gone through in the last few decades. Public buildings, trucks and other vehicles, publics servants, chairs and tables, canopies, and money… hell lots of money, which belong to both the State and Federal Government, are all at BN disposal to be utilized in the election. When we also count in the media and the various law apparatus, which are, too at BN disposal, in the equation, then our election has become a complete fool. As foolish as what foolish could be.

One still wonders, though, would there be a need at all for BN to pay additional money up to RM 200 for voters to cast their votes in Batu Talam by-election. Certainly not if we wouldn’t think the election was no more than bad jokes at all. Idiocy is what describes our election. And thus, idiocy is what describes BN’s win in Batu Talam.

Election should be a damn serious matter. It defines who we are and what have we become. But then, see what we have become!

Have we not become fool enough for not demanding a truly clean, free and fair election? Have we not become fool enough for not asking electoral reform? Have we not become fool enough for not taking EC to task for not doing enough for what they have been paid for? Have we not become fool enough for tolerating such abuses and corrupt practices? Have we not become fool enough for ignoring the biased and unethical media practices? Have we not become fool enough for not telling the naked emperor that he is wearing nothing on himself? Have we not become fool enough that we have allowed ourselves to become foolish all these while?

Should Manchester United play, win and celebrate against Beranang soccer team, I bet, even that wouldn’t make its way to the headline. But, BN’s win in Batu Talam was on the frontpage the next morning. That’s Malaysian media!

Thomas Jefferson once said, “a person who reads nothing at all is better educated that a person who reads nothing but newspapers”. How true he was…especially in Malaysia Darul Boleh!