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Criticising Zambry is a little like shooting fish in barrel. Sometimes it seems too easy, almost boring.

But I do believe it is imperative for the rakyat to keep up the pressure on this man – a man who is as much a democratically legitimate MB as he is a world class soccer player (I still can’t get over “Pangkor Pele,” what a joke!).

The point we should repeat ad infinitum, ad nauseam if necessary, is that if the only thing Zambry can and should do for the people of Perak is to give them the right to choose their own leader.

Failing which, he remains an usurper, and a coward – fair game for having idiotic statements such as below torn apart.

Since he said so many, we’ll have to go chronologically, starting from yesterday’s interview.

That is my biggest worry. We are the new and young generation, we are very much trying to minimise ethnic- based or race-based politics and parochial thinking. I have been trying to project the image of being more embracing.

When Umno comes to stand for United Malaysians National Organisation, baru aku percaya. Jika tak… podah!

On Bkt Gantang:

You may say that (my position) has worsened, but you can’t deny that we have also gained (more support in terms of the percentage of votes). They said we got more than 55 percent, some said it was 57 percent, some even said we got 63 percent.

I really haven’t the faintest clue what he’s talking about. Won 63% of the vote, but…. lost the election? What does he think this is? The US electoral college?

Or is he just talking about the Malay vote? Hmm, that seems to run counter to the prior quote no?

Part 3 contains some of my favourite parts:

Questions: You were speaking about changes. In Perak specifically, what kind of changes do you propose to do?

Zambry: Well, to go back to the people. Go back in a sense of being people-centric, understanding the people on what they really want. It is not a question of going back to the people by having fresh elections. I think it is bigger, and deeper than that.

O_O

Alright, Mr. Phd. Perhaps you can explain to us *just* what is more important than the founding principle of democracy – that people should be allowed to choose their leaders through free and fair elections.

There is something that is bigger than this? Deeper than this?

What does Zambry really understand about being people-centric?

It is important that we go back to the people and serve them. That is the most basic principle. To a question whether how good you are, how better you are, how best you are, let the people judge after a certain time.

Another point is that if you are a responsible leader, if you are thinking about your future or your children’s future, you cannot play this populist approach.

As far as I understand, the root word of the word ‘populist’ is ‘people.’

So, we must be people-centric, but not populist?

Maybe he means, we can be people-centric when convenient, but must avoid populism when inconvenient (oh say, in the case of needing elections).

Zambry also put a question mark over previous policies implemented by Pakatan state government headed by ousted menteri besar Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin.

According to him, policies such as free land titles, village head elections and funds for independent Chinese schools were similar to what BN had executed before they lost the state to the Opposition for the first time.

“Whatever pronouncement that was made (by Pakatan), is it the continuation of the previous (BN) government? If you look at some of the policies (they practised), (we had that) even in our previous policy,” he said.

Ah. Pakatan is a copycat is it? I think that such things are outright delusional is obvious enough, but let’s not stop there. Hmm, how about:

Understanding their sufferings, predicament. I have been saying this, like the  issue of poverty for example. We can’t look at poverty in terms of colours or whether this is the rural area or this is the urban area. You have poverty not only in rural areas but in urban areas as well.

Poverty transcends all colours and races. I have been stressing that it is a universal problem. So you have to change your mindset of looking at poverty from the perspective of one particular race.

Rightttt.

We heard things like that from BN allllllllll the time before March 8th. Practically every day :|

I don’t want to go to the public and say: “Look, I’m very clean, we will fight against everything, we are the best models.”

Sorry? You *don’t* want to go to the public and say that you are clean? That you will fight corruption?

Umm. Ok.

*

Poor guy. I can’t imagine a deader political career.

So yes, the courts will give him the keys to power in Perak. He may well lord it over us for a little while.

But reading what he is saying, I can feel that he feels himself a hunted man, and rightfully so.

I have no doubt that he and his bosses will go the way of all who attempt to rule without the mandate of the people.

You can still escape hell Zambry. Turun padang, bertanding seperti gentleman.

If not, resign yourself not only to a doomed career, but to a life forever bereft of dignity, respect and self worth.

You’ll kinda be like the next Augustine Paul.

This picture reminds me so much of the first time I met Uthayakumar.

Our position was reversed, I was in a court that looked exactly like the one he is in the picture, and I was the one in cuffs.

He recognised me and very kindly offered to defend me, as the cops had ‘forgotten’ to tell my own lawyers where and when my remand hearing was to be held. I was very anxious at the thought of not having legal representation.

He also helped me smuggle out my passwords, so that they could be changed.

2 years later, he now sits in Kamunting, with no hope on the horizon for his release.

I have reproduced his heartbreaking letter marking his 500th day of detention, a letter which calls to mind another well known letter written from jail, in full below.

In it, he writes not just of himself, but of his fellow detainees, going on 8 years of detention.

He writes of an unwavering dedication to the cause, a conviction of his principles and the struggle against injustice in Malaysia.

He writes of his fears that he may lose his leg to amputation – the sense of helplessness and complete lack of sympathy from the authorities.

He writes of being served beef. Can you imagine if stories emerged of prisoners in Guantanamo were being fed pork?

He writes of his pride in the Makkal Sakhti movement, in the men and women who have thrown off their fears and stood courageously together.

He writes of defiance against his oppressors, just as Reverend King did, echoing stories I read in Syed Husin Ali’s ‘Two Faces.’

He writes of unshakable faith that justice will prevail in the end, if only we persist and are patient.

He writes of missing his family.

Just as he has refused to cut his hair, I think I will not grow mine until they close down the hellhole of Kamunting.

Read the following and be inspired, we have so much to change ahead of us.

Makkal Sakhti Valga!

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prescript: on the note of BM, I was asked to give a shoutout to Helen Ang’s debut BM article :)

I haven’t had a weekend this good in a long while.. :) Thanks to those of you who responsible :)

I want to start with a performer that blew my mind last night, at a small concert of sorts organised by Pentas 152, an initiative promoting Bahasa Malaysia – a cause to which I’m very sympathetic – and held at my former office (ah, memories).

The lady in question is Fynn Jamal, carrying a torch in the fine spoken word tradition – a poet, singer, performer.

No words I choose could quite equal the piece she did.

But that piece, along with so many great others that night, was such a great reminder of what strong art currents run in the blood of KL. Gripping articulations of emotion that hide out of sight from most of us.

I’ll just put up these two videos to give a sampling (excellent, but I won’t pretend it’s equal to being part of a live audience).

I dunno about you, but I thought it was the most awesome thing ever :P It made me excited to live here in this city, to be young(ish), to be Malaysian.

Anyway. Before I get even more corny. I’ll let Fynn speak for herself, and invite you to peruse more videos at (cutest name ever) the nottiewabbit youtube channel.

There were other great performers that night, including a very old friend from the protest scene, Affandi, who you may have seen in pictures, and who did some fantastic backup vocals for one of the songs :)

I was also at the KL Poetry Slam the night before, held in Hartamas with some fantastic performers (of particular note was this one dude, didn’t quite catch his name? Bonnie? did some great pieces I’d call transcandental).

These two events reminded me of the gap between different language communities in Malaysia. This is a chasm I’d like desperately to close, in so many ways.

Hopefully, the next time there’s a gig of this sort, I’ll be able to publicise it and get more English speaking Chinamen like me, etc, to pop in and see some of KL’s best creativity.

*

Anyway. Forgive my giddyness :P

I also caught the Bar’s forum on Perak, and actually found Shaffee Abdullah’s presentation quite interesting. These things are really only fun if there’s someone at least semi-intelligent presenting the other side of the coin. I find it terribly boring and self-indulgent otherwise.

Lotsa interesting questions on the legal matters surrounding the letters of resignation, the suspension of Zambry and gang, etc. I suppose I conclude that on the legality front, there is plenty that remains very ambiguous.

The one indefensible thing BN seems to have done in Perak however, is not to return to the people for a mandate. From what I saw and heard, I think this is the main issue we can and should continue to press and pressure.

Zambry himself could call for a dissolution, and by God he should, if he has any semblance of dignity and self worth.

*

I caught up with almost half a dozen people I hadn’t spoken to in a good while, and had great sharings :)

Sadly, a weekend as great as mine cannot be shared by the likes of Uthayakumar :( :( Tomorrow most likely, will be a post on his letter from Kamunting.

The thing about rumours, for better of worse, is that unless they are addressed convincingly, they tend to persist.

For example, I think there will continue to be a lot of talk about Manohara until she herself comes out and states her case in her own words.

When Raja Nazrin, formerly the darling of so many people, starts talking about ‘political books with destructive themes,’ I think a good majority of people will now simply make cynical comments that he is merely taking a pro-BN line and tone (his words really ring some unpleasant bells), similar perhaps to comments that might be made concerning his father.

We should all always be reminded that respect must be earned, and cannot be effectively demanded. Such respect may be hard to come by after the perception that the rakyat was denied the very essence of democracy, added to the abounding rumours and conspiracy theories.

By the way, if you haven’t read Pratamad’s quote on some background regarding the Perak monarchy, it’s interesting, and mirrors some things I had heard discussed verbally.

Being a bit of a blur case, I wasn’t really aware that there’s more than one purported photograph of Najib and Altantuya speculated to exist – one in Paris, and one in Singapore.

Just putzing around, I came across this transcript from a long time ago detailing Gobind’s questioning of Insp. Gan during the RPK’s sedition trial (reproduced below), which still is compelling reading, and once again demonstrates that you can put at least some parts of a rumour to rest just by asking the appropriate people the simplest of questions.

The reluctance of Insp. Gan to ask Najib even such very basic and simple things cannot help but reinforce the notion that in Malaysia, some people are above the law.

Under such circumstances, with so many unanswered questions, I think we can expect rumours to persist and persist.
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A good friend of mine runs MediaRakyat, basically a one man operation that uploads videos of a great deal of Pakatan ceramahs and events.

He has singlehandedly captured on tape a lot of great speeches and moments that would have otherwise been lost, and has done so basically on a guerilla basis – using one old videocam, and copious, copious amounts of his precious time.

His website and its dazzling volume of output is a magnificent success (check it out for yourself!) and has really made an impact in helping to spread the word to people otherwise unable to access alternative views.

His old camera has broken down, and he is looking to raise funds for some new equipment.

I’m sincerely hoping you will consider donating to MediaRakyat’s equipment fund to help keep the fire burning, and ensure a steady flow of videos to help get the message of hope out to the rest of Malaysia.