Politics

When I first started my Blog, I never intended to turn it into a venue for political debates and forums. I still don't.

However, the events of the past few weeks have moved me to put up this posting on the political situation in Malaysia and my thoughts on this. Note that this is purely my take on the events from the outside looking in. I am no politician.

Let's start on the premise that most of us may think that the squabbling in UMNO & the pressure on Pak Lah to resign from being the Party's president doesn't affect us as we're not UMNO members. Unfortunately, the truth is, it does affect each and every Malaysian citizen. Why?

Because the fact is: the President of UMNO is the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

So, whether we are an UMNO member or not, whatever race we may be, we must be aware of what is going on in UMNO as it does affect our country and our future. It affects the stability of the country that we love so much. A weak leadership in UMNO means a weak leadership in the Federal Government, and this can't be good for Malaysia.

Personally, I feel that Pak Lah is not strong enough as a leader to lead UMNO and Malaysia during these times of uncertainties. He doesn't seem to command the attention of the masses. He doesn't inspire me when he speaks. He seems to be so out of touch with the sentiment of the people at large. He appears to be incapable of controlling even some of his cabinet ministers. He has managed to upset Sabahans who are now vocal about the seemingly unfair treatment by the federal government & they have threatened Pak Lah with a deadline for reforms. All these in the wake of escalating food prices, even for basic food items like Rice and infant milk. Malaysia needs a strong capable leader, now more than ever. I somehow cannot see it in Pak Lah.

His strongest critic thus far, Tun Dr Mahathir (TDM) has just announced his resignation from UMNO. This, I believe, will create HUGE waves in UMNO. UMNO members will need to take positive action to ensure the Party's survival. Its sad that UMNO's life member who holds registration #1 in UMNO register book, who had helmed the party for 22 years, who had contributed so much to the party, who was our PM for 22 years, has to take such drastic measures to make his stand clear and voice heard. Quoting TDM as he expressed his frustration:

"Dia masih berkata dia menang. Ini sukar diterima oleh orang Kedah, orang Pulau Pinang, orang Perak, Selangor dan Wilayah Persekutuan. Oleh kerana Dato Seri Abdullah buta mata dan pekak telinga dan tidak faham mesej ahli BN, oleh kerana ahli UMNO pun turut bersama, oleh kerana proses demokrasi tidak berjalan, oleh kerana UMNO yang ada sekarang bukan lagi UMNO yang ditubuhkan 62 tahun dahulu, saya berpendapat penyertaan saya sebagai ahli UMNO tidak bermakna dan tidak berguna lagi."

It is my hope that Pak Lah will stop being in denial. Face facts. Self-reflect. Soul-search. Bow out with dignity. It's not just for the sake of the stability of UMNO, but also for Malaysia.

It's a sad day for UMNO, for Malaysia. What will happen next? We can only wait and see..