Monday, November 3, 2008
Datuk Zaid Ibrahim, read this posting, it is about you!
This site proposes Zaid Ibrahim to head a new political movement to give voters another choice in the next general elections to vote in a new government.
This site sees Zaid Ibrahim as a forward looking intellectual and Shahidan Kassim as a heel-digging, has-been, neo-feudal petty chief whose hidden agenda may well be feathering his own nest. Zaid is a symbol of the new Malay while Shahidan is a symbol of the old Malay which is dragging the country down with too much historical baggage.
This “ballpoint pen” assessment is based on what he said about Zaid as reported in the papers today. So it is fair exchange.
I hope Zaid can find the inspiration, vision, and critical mass to found and initially head a new non-racial, non-partisan, non-theocratic political movement to give the people another choice to form both the federal and state governments.
Given the reality of the race factor in Malaysia, I suggest the benchmark formula for the party should be 60:35:15, or whatever the demographic ratio is, among the main ethnic groups – Malays:Chinese:Indians. This ratio should be reflected across the board in institutions like education, the civil service, the armed forces, party posts, etc.
Down the line, if a Chinese or Indian individual that is acceptable to all, emerges, he should head the movement and become the new head! How about it folks? Like the idea? Then persuade Zaid to set the ball rolling.
All references to race and religion, where unnecessary, should gradually be done with. Inter-marriages without too much red-tape and other syarat should be encouraged. There should be a cap on the number in a family, say three or at the most four, children.
English and Malay are the official languages while Chinese, Tamil, along with other languages where there is a demand, are taught as subjects.
All religions are respected and given their place under the Malaysian sun subject to the demographic or benchmark ratio noted earlier. Religions are used to grace and bless appropriate occasions, to give their adherents a faith to practice and believe in, but cannot be used as a political platform or to impose punitive laws. Religions should be low-keyed and not strident, as generically enjoined by their teachings.
Other than the usual imperatives like social and economic developments, a very important plank of this new movement should be the protection of the environment including the use of environmentally friendly modes of transport and fuels that will not pollute the environment, commandeer space and congest the streets, add to accident statistics and add to the sense and sight of social iniquities between the rich and the poor.
The streets should be made more friendlier to cyclists and pedestrians so this healthy and non-polluting practice will emerge as the next in-thing to be seen doing after Gothic Lolita dressage or whatever.
If ever this movement are in power, it will be up to the majority to decide what to do with other excess baggage our country have been giving free lunches for generations. Maybe give them dignified sinecures with decent pensions or encourage them to go into business by first giving them a starting line and thereafter leave them to their own devices to perform according to merit.
I’m sure many a Tok Batin from an Orang Asli settlement would happily settle for a pension and an opportunity to run a G-mart in the nook of his woods.
I could go on but I’d rather leave plenty of space for like-minded souls to chip in their own ideas.
So folks, if you want to see Malaysia take a leap forward from the present morass and past excess baggage, please wave placards or other signs and wear T-shirts emblazoned with supportive expressions to show your stand. Camp on his front door and petition him to start a new party. If registering a new party is going to take a long time, find a shell party. Actually, the closest existing party I can think of to this new movement would be DAP, but the problem would be its skewed demographic ratio.
As for Shahidan Kassim and his ilk, they can angkut their excess baggage and set up an import-export near the border or some place. A short hop across to where he has many suraus under his belt would do him no harm.
No harm done, no harm do. That sounds as good a mantra as any.