SIDE VIEWS
Musa Hitam is one of them — Ali Kadir
APRIL 20 — Despite the occasional speeches spliced with some liberal phrases, Musa Hitam is an Umno man, someone who is part of the political party which has pillaged this country and created the poisonous environment which pits Malaysians against Malaysians.
The former deputy prime minister was reported by Bernama as voicing his concern that the greater freedom enjoyed by Malaysians since 2008 is being threatened by the tone of campaigning and no-holds-barred nature.
“All arguments are simply put in black and white... very, very, very black and white as I had never seen before,” he said.
Perhaps someone schooled in the Umno system of shadow play prefers gray but I prefer black or white, calling it like it is. Instead of money politics, just say corruption. Instead of direct cash aid, just say bribery. Instead of leakages in the system, just say outright theft. Instead of privatisation, just say cronyism.
If the tone or nature of these elections has gone up, it is because this is a very important contest which will decide the future of the country. Either we carry on the Umno way of closing an eye to the theft by the rich and connected or we shake up the system before historians remember Malaysia as a country once blessed with natural resources and wealth.
I notice that some opposition politicians are enamoured with what Musa says. Let us clear up all the fudge. The man loves the trappings of being a former DPM, a former chairman of this and that. Flying around in private jets and living in the lap of luxury.
Bernama quoted him as saying that credit should be given to Umno and BN, which was headed by Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, for “opening up” the democratic space. As usual, this is a self-serving statement by an Umno man.
Abdullah opened up the space because he knew that if he offered up the same autocratic rubbish of the Mahathir era, he would have been sent packing by the voters. So he had to something different. We the voters swallowed that ruse hook, line and sinker.
He was bashed by the voters in 2008 because we caught on to the wayang. That so-called democratic space has been closed significantly by the Najib government. The mainstream newspapers print lies, hardly give any space to the opposition and TV3 and RTM would make even state-run TV in China and Russia blush.
So, please Musa. Save your self-serving stuff for the Umno assembly. You are no different from the likes of Daim, Mahathir, Abdullah and other Umno veterans being trotted out to save the tottering regime.
* Ali Kadir reads The Malaysian Insider.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.
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