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| Say NO to BN - ABCD |
By Siti
Norhayati Mohd Yusoff
These
days, politics is the hottest conversation everywhere. You pick up the phone to
talk to a friend, or a relative, and suddenly you are discussing politics!
I was not very
much into politics until very recently when I felt my money had been ending up
in some rich individuals' expensive handbags. We all have heard the
"cincin" and handbags story, which has now been confirmed by the lady
herself. That she did not purchase it is secondary. The fact is she and her
family did have a taste and a liking for such obscene luxury, so much so the
ring had actually been shipped here. Would - or could - any of us do that? At a
time when people are finding it hard to make ends meet, she was eyeing the
ring!
Now, they are
giving you back the RM200 or the RM500. But wait! I know that some children in
private schools with annual fees of RM30,000 have also been given the cash!
The coming
general election will be the first time I will cast my ballot. When I
registered as voter, I did not do it to exercise my right. I did it simply to
exorcise the ghost of BN and their supporters which have been running amok
since 2008.
I have more
friends who are ready to vote for 'bananas' or any other fruit placed to
contest against BN.
But there are
days when questions boggle my mind while chatting with friends who still
support BN. I have always wanted to know what is it they don't know yet. I
concluded that they are in the dark. They either do not read or only read
Utusan Malaysia and watch TV3. So I tried to tell them of the recent survey
finding that more Malaysians are getting news from sources other than RTM, TV3
or any of the other local TV channels. People now depend on independent news on
the internet such as Malaysiakini or The Malaysian Insider.
I tried to tell
them: you don't have to stop watching TV3 news. You don't have to read Harakah
because it is a party organ and it could have its own biases. There are many
other news sites on the net which are not operated by political parties.
Many of these
friends of mine who have no clue of BN's excesses actually have much fear of
losing whatever material things they now have. Most are Malays, and a good
number are Indian Muslims whose parents would have taken great pains to
repeatedly visit the NRD just to have their children registered as Malays. As
such, they feel some 'protection' under BN.
So, I thought to
myself, are they even thinking like a Muslim should? Some of whom I know are very
pious. I am beginning to think they definitely are praying with a happy heart,
feeling secure, but will they pray when all these benefits are taken away?
Will they pray
when they wake up one day to find the new government declaring equal rights for
all just like what Islam has taught us? Do they even understand the meaning of
the Just God?
What can they
lose? 7% Bumi benefits when buying a house? Are you okay to be given preference
to enter universities when others are not? And you are okay when many poor
non-Malays are oppressed due to these policies? Some have lived in this country
longer than you - do you think they should go back to their parents' or
grandparents' or great-grandparents' homeland? And to where? India? China? They
don't even know how to speak good Tamil or Mandarin anymore.
After 50-plus
years, with all the benefits, where are you all now? Well protected, but where
are you know? You are still the same officer who comes back home with not
enough money, who cannot afford your children to buy a small house. What
happened to your benefits?
You go to any
place and you can't see a phone shop if there is no 'China man' around. These
Chinese - denied many benefits accorded to you - have struggled since birth.
Their effort is more blessed by God, as they earn money with hard work while we
still wait for government handouts.
We are nowhere.
So what benefits would you lose, my dear BN-supporter friends?
Many of these
friends feel that some non-Malays are also racist. I can agree with that, yes,
completely. My question is, aren't you racist too? You get more privilege than
the non-Malays only because your birth certificate says you are a Bumi! Let's
face it, everybody is racist in Malaysia!
People tell me
Chinese companies only employ 'their people' for top position. I agree. But not
long ago before you applied for this job, weren't your race prefered for
university enrolment?
Similarly, some
Chinese complain that Malays are racist even in their preference of where to
buy their daily goods. I agree, but I have also seen Chinese salesman snubbing
non-Chinese customers.
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| BN = poverty |
So why is
everybody racist? It is all from up there, our political and government's
concept that "one race is more privileged than the other". So the
poor non-Malays who only know Malaysia as their land strive on, and in the
process some begin hating Malays. And when they openly show this hatred, some
Malays react by calling them racists too, and then argue that "we must
protect our nation". What nation, whose nation?
Do the Malays
know they represent Islam in Malaysia? Do they realise that some ignorant non-Muslims
hate Muslims because of this institutional racism? Can we blame them?
Yes, they are
ignorant but so are you! You talk about Islam and defending Islam, yet in your
heart you have no iman (faith). All you think about is "my benefits".
Take a look at
Australia. Whatever your view about that country, its system accords equal
benefits to all including Muslims who have only become citizens for several
weeks. That is why they still feel a belonging to Australia despite some
limitations in their religious practice such as the prohibition of azan in
public.
When we Muslims
are just, the non-Muslim communities will similarly accept the reality of
Malaysia's Muslim history and identity and accept some limitations, just as
Muslims in Australia have.
Islam is just.
Everybody has equal rights. If you still feel that you need your children to be
protected by a man's rule (BN) and not by God, then you are just like what the
Qur'an describes: "Deaf, dumb and blind; and they are not to return (to
the right path)" [Baqarah 2:18].
As for me, I
will vote for the banana that I don't know about. Give Pakatan Rakyat a chance.
I too have so many doubts about PR. Yet, I am convinced it can't be worse than
our present state. If it does, then I can pass my verdict in another five
years.
Giving BN
another five years will spell the end of the opposition, and ultimately
competition. In any country, such a competition is healthy. What makes you
think Malaysia is any different?
*
The writer, in her early thirties, is a housewife and lives in Subang Jaya.
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