The tragedy is that ordinary people are paying a price, Dominic Damian writes.
One cannot distinguish friend from foe. If one lives with betrayal, there is a natural possibility of betrayal in return.
Power-hungry individuals with sinister agendas are restless. The political opportunists have predictably started sniping and growling at each other. The bone fragments of power have been hurled at them.
In the frenzy, the flesh of democracy is torn and shred to pieces. The fallout from this ruthless power-grabbing fiesta is visible. The reward for this betrayal is a fresh opportunity to plunder.
Dynasties may fall, and the political ambitions of some individuals may be crushed mercilessly. The horde from Sheraton are at the gates, clamouring for more.
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The elite basking in their moment in the spotlight have been found wanting. They have showcased their deficiencies. We don’t have to be envious of the devious who are stepping on their own ‘droppings’, trapped in their own illusions of intelligence. The world is laughing at them.
The defectors will receive revilement and loathing. There are two defining periods behind this outpouring of sheer disgust: the 1MDB era and the backdoor era. Both are inseparable twins: one cannot live without the other.
The tragedy is that the people are paying a price while an arrogant elite group of the privileged tamper with life’s basics. Those who grabbed what was never theirs are displaying ineptitude and incompetence. This is because these clods are wearing shoes that are way too big for them to walk in.
Meanwhile, many among the indigenous communities, the migrants, the marginalised, the refugees and people with disabilities are struggling to put food on the table.
It is a slow, torturous process the people are witnessing. The political scenario unfolding before us is one of the survival of the fittest. The spectacle is ugly. The betrayers are fumbling and bungling over the smallest thing.
Ordinary people are expressing their grievances in WhatsApp videos, which are flowing unabatedly. The grumbling from concerned people is not a quiet murmuring. It is the fearless daily voice of thunder, which these betrayers – who are gloating over power – will never hear. That which was never given but taken away will always grate with the people.
In the early days of the lockdown, several of those in power committed flagrant violations of the movement control order – but none was jailed.
Ordinary people were arrested and jailed for similar violations.
It is a broken system. The talking down, the threats and intimidation have become familiar. The clownish sideshows during serious tribulation show us that the tragic adversity of hunger and deprivation felt by many is just a sick political game among certain quarters.
The most unforgettable embarrassment was the shameful treatment of vulnerable migrants under tight lockdown. One minister had the gall to say these hungry migrants would not receive food or other aid from the government.
If there are that many undocumented migrants, is it not a combination of a corrupt and compromised system, along with a desire for progress and development, that has brought these foreigners here?
For the betrayers, are these fleeting moments in power worth it? The day of reckoning lies in the shadows. Those who betrayed the people’s mandate in their unholy haste for the crumbs of power have signed a ‘pact’ with the dark side.
They show little respect for the righteousness that should be embedded in the cornerstone of democracy. But then they can only uphold such righteousness if they understand the real meaning and purpose of power. The weight of such power demands sacrifices rooted in unconditional service.
And so, the power-hungry lie in wait. The venomous kiss of betrayal is anywhere and everywhere. The prowlers and predators seem harmless with their Doraemon giggles and seductive attire. But the betrayal could run deeper.
There is an obvious pathological pattern in the current madness. Many of the present actors were nurtured during the dark days of 1987 and have not weaned themselves from that treacherous formula. The inventor and architect of that formula is still alive and kicking.
How does one discard something that has fed the political beast for 33 years?
AGENDA RAKYAT - Lima perkara utama
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
