Perhaps the cry for freedom from the shackles of 60 years of Umnoputra rule will finally be answered, writes Turtle Shell.
“You change the thinking of the people, things will never be the same again,” one of the protagonists in the struggle against apartheid told the South African liberal journalist, Donald Woods, about the refusal of black South African school children to learn Afrikaan.
As our country moves towards a general election, that sentiment seems all the more relevant in the battle for change in our country.
I make no pretense as to which side of the political divide I am rooting for, but I am not sure how much of the message for change has reached the rural hinterland.
It is good that Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the rest in Bersatu are on the same side as those rooting for change. The critical question is whether they have been able to penetrate the propaganda cocoon the Umnoputras have weaved over the folks in the rural areas.
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Are the rural folks still afraid it will be the Democratic Action Party calling the shots should the Pakatan Harapan opposition coalition come to power? Can the rural folks be convinced that a different government other than the Umnoputras will not take away their privileges and benefits?
Let’s not be sneaky about what those of us hoping for change want to see: a more just, democratic and civil society. No thinking rakyat will object to a needs-based helping hand offered by the government. Is this not basic fairness? Once this is in place, one of the basic hurdles of racial integration and harmony in our country will have been removed.
Meanwhile, Haris Ibrahim has just written an open letter saying he is unable to embrace Mahathir’s leadership of the opposition coalition until the former premier fully acknowledges responsibility for the excesses during his tenure.
I have great respect for Haris and the work he has done for the cause of change. I accept his position and that of of those behind the #UndiRosak campaign as part of the political spectrum we can expect of a free society.
These differences even in urban areas suggest that the opposition coalition could face even greater obstacles in the rural areas. If some of the informed rakyat in urban areas are so resistant to change, how about folks in the rural hinterland with less access to independent information?
It is no wonder many neutral political analysts have predicted victory for the Umnoputras in the coming general election [yes, the gerrymandering by the Electoral Commission has also been factored in].
But as they say, hope springs eternal in the human heart. Rafizi’s Invoke work in marginal constituencies; reports that Mahathir’s Bersatu has been able to reach some Felda settlements and die-hard Umno constituencies; anecdotes from acquaintances who have dealings with folks in some semi-rural areas – all these give me a glimmer of hope that a miracle can happen on election night.
Perhaps the cry for freedom from the shackles of 60 years of Umnoputras rule will finally be answered.
Turtle Shell is the pseudonym of a regular reader of Aliran.
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
Whilst it’s hard for urban-based me to predict how rural and semi-rural voters will vote, however history testifies that economic hardships have been the prime mover behind political upheavals and sea changes, and rising prices and cost of living since the last elections, due to the weak ringgit – U.S. dollar exchange rate, coupled with the effect of the introduction of GST under Najib and the legacy loyalty to Mahathir amongst of a sizeable enough proportion of UMNO voters, are likely to favour the chances of the Pakatan winning in GE14, if it promises to address these economic concerns amongst such voters right, if elected.
No amount of propaganda can convince people suffering economic burdens.
That’s just my 2 sen.
I hope PH will lose big, even Selangor. Hopefully those hypocrites in PH will learn something from it 🤣👍.
Meeran, that there are hypocrites in the PH – that’s without a doubt. Wonder what you call those umnoputras?
They can’t be more hypocritical than BN/UMNO members.
Syabas Tun and Pakatan Harapan!
Don’t be over confident… Thief is in control… He may spring a surprise…. So, work quietly .. then pull the rug off his feet… and get that Moideen fella out of sight.. He’s Bad Omen… with a stinking past.. as Johor MB ..
Cheating n creating chaos is his only way.
Do not go overboatd in blaming UMNO for everything wrong..it will hv a backlash
🤨
Maybe not but of it. If it’s an Apple we do not say oranges. It’s a fact
Of the three, faith, hope and charity, hope is the beacon of desperation. That hope will whither easily in Malaysia because we have 60% of voters who have never seen the need to politically grow up. It’s a fault by deliberate design. And that is why I have my doubts about a earth shattering change taking shape this GE14. Remember we are very different from almost all our neighbours in the region. We were never tested with a war after the second world war. Comfort is exploited to max this election. Look around. See the handouts. See the newly paved rural tarmac. The freshly painted suraus.
Yes, JD…I am on the same page with you here. I have no high expectations of a PH win. I will consider it an achievement if the PH can.again deny BN a 2/3 majority in Parliament
Issues such as the economic burden upon the shoulders of rural, semi-rural and urban lower-income voters are what opposition politicians should highlight and promise to resolve if elected, rather than try to win them over issues such as kleptocracy, 1MDB, Altantuya, corruption, Gerrymandery, liberation from 60 years of UMNOputra rule and so forth, which matter less to such voters struggling to survive in the face of such burdens.
This article and the related comments miss these key concerns of the target votes and so have opposition politicians campaigning amongst such voters until only recently, and when they lose, they blame the blame the voters, UMNO, everyone and everything else except themselves.
Politi…I am not sure of your take, but , to me, the recently revealed PH manifesto highlight and promise to resolve the economic burden upon the shoulders of rural, semi-rural and urban lower-income voters. But it is panned by economists as being unrealistic as withdrawing the GST[as an example] is deemed economically nonviable for our nation’s economy. Even so, no political analyst feel that will be an monumental election difference maker – no analyst has changed their prediction of a BN win because of that.
So looks like it becomes a question of do, you are damned; non doing you are damned as well.
Sure..
First and foremost educate people how to differentiate right from wrong. People must be open minded (the medicine for democracy) mature enough to deal with the issue not person
The problem is, voting for Malay Muslim championing an almost a corrupt version of Islam that denies any non-Muslim element, is the right thing to ‘them’. Too blinded already to the point of no return.
Mimpi itu indah…
PH will lose
You are entitled to your view.
Kokkeong Chan sorry mate i am with PH. I just dont want to rip my heart out when BN wins dirty and abolish Election once and for all. We are all insanely desperate to bring BN down
I hope so.
Can, provided we the vote them.
No! — Can, provided voters worlds apart from our small, urban, educated, English-literate, intellectual and academic echo chamber vote opposition.
Remember how Clinton called certain voters “deplorables” and Trump won.
Harapan no more hope as it will the Waterloo for DAP.
You can have your view. I don’t agree and hope most don’t agree.
Would you like to continue to keep the thieves in power? If ‘no’, vote wisely.
Agree or not agree is your choice. Unfortunately Chinese educated Penangites hate Lim Guan Eng to the core. They will punish him in the coming election. Only English educated Penangites are still in denial mode.
Are u sure, Ong? I have 3 close friends who are chinese educated in Penang. None of tbem hate LGE…no they dont fawn over him either. He is human, after all – he has made mistakes – but by and large, they are happy with the LGE led state govt.
Haha! Gelakan still wanna bluff themselves about their chances in Penang? Or lack of?
We do not need 70% Chinese votes to defeat DAP. We only need 30% Chinese votes and deny DAP Melay votes especially those from Pas to cause an upset. Lim Kit Siang won 80% Chinese votes before when he defeated Lim Chong Eu. I will personally make sure that history repeat itself.
Unlikely, rural areas will vote Umno, small towns will vote MCA, cities will vote MIC.
Not everyone think like you. Times keep changing.Even rural folks are using smartphones nowadays. My main worry is rural folks might be more corrupted than urban folks. They sell their future just for RM200 cash or in-kind.
Owning and using smartphones is one thing but whether they are able to use it to access reliable enough information about issues is another.
Some of my fellow urban, middle class, generally pro-Pakatan cohorts, go around with their faces buried in their phones’ screens on which they rely upon whatever news and opinions received via WhatsApp and other social media, but either lack the ability or are too lazy to do a search for further details to verify what they received before forwarding.
One of these smartphone wallahs, a law graduate, said that Indonesian police found US$250 million on the yacht Equanimity, which the leader of the raiding party denied finding. Well, the Equanimity is worth US$250 million.
Kokkeong Chan they are desperate
I hope PH wins, the odds are stacked against PH. It will take a miracle but politics is the art of possibility. So who knows.
Interesting theory tho
Seasonal campaigners help in the rural parts of sarawak.. this is where the obstacles for a PH win is greatest.
Definitely possible if Pakatan and Bersatu work hard to penetrate the rural heartland. It’s the rural folks who need convincing. The urbanites are well informed and ready for change.
Pakatan and Bersatu ?? Pakatan is the name of the coalition and Bersatu is one of its component parties.
Shah Shukoor thank you for the correction
Difficult, and we expect Bersatu will behave like umno hooligans after winning
Anyone in any political party will behave like hooligans until the leaders show their leadership skills in handling the incidents.