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PAS : KE ARAH PEMERINTAHAN ISLAM YANG ADIL
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From: Sri Mersing <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
What I Learned at the Umno Annual Meeting
I went to the PWTC with some anger, and many unanswered questions. How
could Muslims be responsible for leaders who were clearly neither honest
nor capable. What was the answer? I came away with a completely new
appraisal of the situation.
First I wanted to know if the members KNEW. Were they aware of what
their leaders were doing? Talking to new friends and old, I learned that
the answer is yes, they know.
I wanted to know if they approved. The answer was a resounding NO! Why,
then, I asked, did it continue? Their answers surprised me. First, the
money handouts are significant to them. "We are poor. We have families.
We depend on the money. If we don't give them our vote we will be
ostracized, considered traitors. We will not only be eliminated from all
forms of patronage, they will find ways to punish us. They have many
ways, and they are ruthless. Once they consider you the opposition you
will be hounded incessantly. So there is both the greed/need aspect and
the fear.
What about guilt? Didn't they feel they were going against their Islamic
teachings. Yes, that is true for all of us, they told me. But it is a
complicated situation that goes way a long time. It is difficult to make
change. Why don't you use your vote, I asked. They said, "Well, almost
everyone here is sponsored. The sponsor pays for the transportation,
lodging and meals. So we have to deliver our votes to the sponsor.
Aren't the votes secret, I asked? "No, they have ways of finding out how
you vote, so we must deliver the votes according to the sponsor's
wishes. This is how money politics works," they said.
Did they know that the voters in the Sanggang by-election received RM1,
000 for their votes? "Sometimes more," they corrected me. Did they
consider this wrong? Yes, they did. But again, they are poor people and
cannot afford to turn the money down. They cannot refuse, because if
they do, they will be branded and punished. There have been promises
made, and these promises must be honored.
So while there is guilt, there is also fear, and against these is the
feeling of belonging, even if the brotherhood is one of criminals. To
salve the conscience there is the money, the promises of new roads and
bridges, jobs for the relatives, contracts, favors of many kinds from
powerful people in positions of influence above. There are loans, and
scholarships for the children.
Do they agree with the way the judiciary is manipulated? No, especially
in the failure to prosecute the guilty party leaders, and especially the
treatment given to Anwar, who is universally admired as a good Muslim
brother. Do they believe the charges? Certainly not. It is all a
fabrication for political purposes.
I came away feeling sad. One cannot be angry at these people, they have
been entrapped, and now they genuinely are fearful for their wellbeing.
What does all this mean for Mahathir and the leaders of Umno? It betrays
the truly thin support they have in their party. The grassroots of Umno
is almost totally opposed to the policies and activities of the
leadership. Their loyalty is based on fear and greed, and cannot be
depended on when the inevitable challenge arises within the country.
For Mahathir it is a clear message, "You are not wanted, not liked, and
given any opportunity, you will be replaced." For the Umno party it
means that they cannot continue in the same way for much longer. The new
reform minded members must be given positions and a voice. If they are
frustrated in their efforts to return to basic Muslim principles, they
will bolt and form a new group, or as many ex-Umno members already have,
join one of the BA parties.
There is a ground swell of dissent that cannot be obvious to Mahathir
and the other Umno leaders. Whether it is too late, as I personally
feel, or whether they can open up the party to new reform minded
members, is something we will have to watch and see. Perhaps I delude
myself, but with these fundamentals, the unravelling seems imminent.
Sri Mersing
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