The mountain moves to Sarawak!

The battle of Nagashino.

I watch with trepidations PM Najib's decision to move the entire cabinet to Sarawak presently. But then who would want to listen to a has-been ex adun right? I am wondering whether the words spoken by a former VVIP UMNO leader to me will turn out to be prophetic.

He said, the previous PM was fond of the number 13. It brought him to a calamitous end. PM Najib's favourite number is 11. The number 11 says this VVIP ex UMNO Minister resembles also the two tombstones on a Malay-Muslim's grave. He may have said that in jest. I hope it does not turn into an ill-omened remark. I pray, it will not be so.

Many don't seem to get it. The elections in Sarawak have nothing to do with whether Anwar Ibrahim is the star in the infamous video. It isn't about how Anwar reacted. Or how the suffering wife took it.

The elections in Sarawak are about taking charge of the future- putting the trust back with the people. Not the other way around. For all the big talk by Taib, UMNO is now taking over the elections. That should be sobering awareness on the leadership of Taib. Now, it is the PM who says Taib is leaving. Taib may want to go to Beirut.

Even the BN is conceding that at the very least 13 seats will go to Pakatan. Pakatan believes it will get somewhere near 30 seats. The `market' leader it seems is the Pakatan team. BN and UMNO find themselves in a most unfamiliar station- as the chaser and the underdog.

I am repeating what this very senior ex UMNO leader said. The PM should have insisted on the exits of Taib Mahmud, Jabu and George Chan. Now BN has no choice but to use whatever it takes to defend an indefensible stand. It has to go along with Taib Mahmud.

Najib is leading the charge now. It's a different level of fight. But it is also an approach fraught with dangers and explosive landmines.

Life imitates art. One of the films that I liked to watch repeatedly is Kagemusha- the shadow warrior. Of particular interest is the scene depicting the battle of Nagashino. The dialogue line which I remembered most was- the mountain does not move. The supreme general is the unmoving mountain.

If it moves, it means his battle plans are not working and his troops are ill directed. Is Najib's decision to lead the charge equivalent to moving the mountain?

DS Najib is the supreme leader of the BN, having full control over the BN army. He is the mountain that has moved. Will this turn out to be a wrong move? Muhyidin and the scores of ministers and overwhelming ground forces cannot win Sarawak? What about the fabled development and economic plans for Sarawak coming from the local warlord by the name of Lord T. Mahmud?

In the film Kagemusha, the battle of Nagashino proved to be the turning point for the forces under the leadership of Katsuyori, Takeda Shingen's son. Not only did the battle prove to be the turning point but also the violation of a most important principle of war, which is that the mountain does not move. It resulted in the almost total annihilation of the Takeda Shingen's forces.

In full control of the Takeda army, Katsuyori leads an ill-advised attack against Oda Nobunaga, who controls Kyoto, resulting in the Battle of Nagashino. Wave after wave of cavalry and infantry are cut down by volleys of matchlock fire, effectively wiping out the Takeda.

The kagemusha, who has followed the Takeda army, witnesses the slaughter. In a final show of loyalty, he takes up a lance and makes a futile charge against Oda's fortifications, ultimately dying for the Takeda clan. The final image is of the kagemusha's bullet-riddled body being washed away down a river, next to the flag of the Takeda clan.

The battle plan of the PR people should be clear by now or would have been understood earlier by the BN strategists. Do not be boxed in by perceived superiorities. These are tales brought and chorused around to please the supreme leader.

Clearly there is division of labour within the PR. The DAP would assault the Chinese dominated areas hence the major towns in Sarawak. SUPP is largely seen at the MCA equivalent finding itself losing ground in voter's mind. The PKR and PAS will concentrate largely on the Melanau and Muslim communities while its Dayak counterpart will corner the dayak territories.

BN thinks it has confidently identified what the voters needed most- development. So it fashions itself around the offering of development. It sought out to discredit the development and the inadequacies of the opposition government. They tried to belittle Penang and other pakatan controlled states.

But the facts confound them- Penang and Selangor achieved budget surpluses and topped all the other states in inflow of investments. The deepest cut is achieved by mentioning that even in a poor state like Kelantan, the MB and his government do not take land from the people.

It's stupid for BN leaders- I mean the second echelon leaders, the eager beavers to discredit Anwar on his financial management record. Remember Margaret Thatcher? Didn't she come over to Malaysia once and proclaimed that Anwar was our best finance minister? She also mentioned that in a football team, the star player is Anwar? And everyone who's who now in the government prostrated before Anwar?

Who would even forget of the rousing reception at Subang International Airport then for Anwar? He was received by none other than Najib TUn Razak who handed to Anwar a keris, a sash to be worn over the body and the proclamation that Anwar was our hero? Now everyone is saying Anwar's Orange Book or Buku Jingga is useless without debating it? The last time, he was our best Finance Minister and now, he doesn't understand how to manage the economy?