Changing of the Guards, Party Direction and Future.

Party direction and future.

As soon as Dato Najib got his conclusive nomination which makes nomination for others academic, that elicited some interesting remarks.

The race has already started to see who’s tripping over the other to pay homage to Najib. It will be interesting to see the people lining up to kiss the new “Don’s” hand. That will make Sivaji the boss green with envy.

The fist came from his cousin, the present ketua pemuda and a leading contender for the VP post. Hishamudin said, the party must not be split and UMNO must retain its family spirit. Key words there- ‘split’ and ‘family spirit’. One cant help but notice, that Hishamudin’s timely remarks bore a sense of elation. For his cousin and his own political fortunes. Of course, family spirit for Hishamudin is literal- Najib;s is his first cousin, their mothers being sisters.

But these remarks seemed very hollow, if one follows the acrimonious and vituperative salvos and exchanges taking place in the youth race. We have yet to see the vehemence in the scramble for party positions. They will surely come.

There are a few things to analyse from Hishamudin’s remarks. He says, for those of us who has to contest, it is ‘unfortunate’. Does this term belie the business as usual culture in UMNO? And more important, does the use of the term unfortunate, belie the true nature of Hishamudin and his ilk? Which is, being fortunate is identified with being able to get things free without the attendant work, struggle and use of the mass of matter between the ears?

Extend Hisham’s predilection with this term- we assume it is the expression of his subconscious true feeling. Will it mean, that the recipe for progress of the Malays mean nothing else, but rule by fiat? That includes among others, continued reliance on pieces of legislation and decrees that confer and transfer progress onto us. That being products of legal enforcement require nothing from Malays( work and use of brain) except exhibiting those characteristics that conform to the legal definition of what is a Malay. That the person who talks Bahasa Melayu, lives like a Melayu and professes Islam, is entitled as of right, to all that come to other people as a product of deliberate exertions?.

Then, sakmongkol is afraid, with Najib up there even if he as recognises the need for revolutionary changes in the UMNO mindset, he will likely be sabotaged by people, used to having things handed to them on silver platters or by people whose major portion of credibility rests on the fact they are biologically linked to previous leaders. Hishamudin fits the bill nicely, thank you.

Then my friends, all the talk of changing directions and future is just all that.

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On Using Advisers.

Using advisers is nothing new in the practice of leadership. Advisers are used as a counter balance to modify our subjective assessments. Although proclaimed as objective, in the end our thoughts on something, are subjective. They are invariably coloured by our personal nuances and prejudices.

So we need a view from a second party- to provide a second opinion. Hence using advisers is not bad idea. Provided of course, we are not overwhelmed by the advice given by advisers. Some leaders like the Pahang MB has a natural and almost instinctive aversion to advisors. Advisors always give the wrong advise, he would protest.

When Tun Razak started the operations room to monitor economic progress of each district in Malaysia, he modelled it after the military operations centre. He was an admirer of Sir Gerald Templer, who contained the communist threat in Malaya. He has an English advisor who had joined the Malaysian Civil Service. The chap’s name was C.G Furguson. But Tun Razak was never overwhelmed by Furguson, and Furguson too played his role as – adviser and did not harbour any imperial motives.

Tun Mahathir had his advisors on many aspects of economic development. He consulted Ken Ohmae, a leading theorist on Strategy and Economics. Sakmongkol is sure Tun Mahathir availed himself to many more consultants and advisors. But Tun was never overwhelmed and the advisors knew their place.

Pak Lah, in principle was correct in having his panel of advisers. The bunch of highly intelligent young chikus who are well textbookread. Being young and brash, they probably lacked the finesse in dealing with the real world. Tasting unbridled power for the first time, or a sense of being all powerful, they made the mistake of assuming imperial postures. Second mistake- Pak Lah was overwhelmed.

You see, having advisors is nothing wrong provided you have the smarts not to e overwhelmed. Meaning, you yourself have to be of some grey matter material.

Now, our incoming PM has been warned on the perils of having his own 4^th floor intellectual ogres. Does Najib have the intellectual firewall not be overwhelmed?

Sakmongkol has been very critical of the incoming PM. Even when sakmongkol was impaled by his own blackdog days, he has stopped short of saying Najib is a thicky. Sakmongkol believes that the incoming PM has the wherewithal to hold the lapdogs at bay. Allow sakmongkol to illustrate.

Many years ago, once in the incoming PM’s house at Jalan Duta, sakmongkol stumbled upon a partly read book by Francis Fukuyama on a sofa in the house. The incoming PM was reading the thoughts of Fukuyama which is one of his(Najib’s) favourite authors. He is also at home with current thinkers on management. We would be hard-pressed to locate any of the people within the current leadership who can talk and discuss blue ocean strategy. Once at his office in MINDEF, the incoming PM spoke to Sakmongkol about a management book he was reading. Sakmogkol had to hide his sheepish uneasiness for being one step behind our incoming PM.

So what can we make of the incoming PM? With a reading repertoire ranging from Fukuyama to Blue ocean Strategy, Sakmongkol believes he has the intellectual fortitude to ward of the intellectual lapdogs. Just like Tun M.

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Kt's name is sacred?

When KT was the MB of Selangor he had to fend off allegations of corruption here, there and everywhere. The one time dentist is reputed to have become the richest MB around, not including the taikor in the Land of the Hornbill of course. Sakmongkol remembers that he has to rough it out warding off onslaughts from Lutfi Othman the writer and Selangor Pas leaders notably the easily agitated Hassan Ali.

The pace of development in Selangor is superseded perhaps only by the pace by which KT gives out prime lands and contracts to his friends and cronies.

This was what sakmongkol wrote in a previous blog. Just preceding this. They key words here should be.. allegations,, reputed to be. Allegations remain assertions without proof, until they can be proved. Reputed to be, would suggest repetition of allegations by others.

The above article has a pointed reference of Khir Toyo, one of the leading contenders in the present UMNO youth contest. That article has evinced an animated response from an anonymous fellow reminding Sakmongkol that his article( sak’s) can be classified as an offence that can invite the wrath of the ACA.

Sakmongkol’s above short explanation would suffice. But what’s more pertinent is to see this emotive response. Mere mention of Khir Toyo has generated a righteous indignation. How strange, when the same were thrown as KJ, they are accepted as a matter of truth.

See? That’s why sakmongkol says, let’s have a sense of fairplay. Makes the contest more interesting.

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A Malaysian Marcus Licinus Crassus.

In the byzantine and serpentine(sic) world of politics, anything is possible. KJ has become a character ‘ from hero to zero’. From the crowd favourite he is now trailing the other in Pemuda nominations. The latest figures show Muhkrz having 72, KT having 56 and KJ with 52. with around 11 more pemuda meetings, KJ will probably bag a few more leaving the distribution among them basically unchanged.

Supposed this theory is true; that the number of nominations reflect the mount of money received by each pemuda bahagian. Word in the street ( UMNO Street that is) is that each Pemuda Bahagian gets anything between RM50k to RM100k. Suppose its true, what can we infer from the latest developments?

1. First we would have thought that the person most identified as the Pemuda ATM machine( KJ) would have pulverise all the others right? Since this does not happen, then it would be reasonable to conclude that the identification is not tenable. Would it?
2. Second, it would support the suspicions that the person having the fastest rate in increase in nominations, is the real culprit and by association, can be identified as the real living ATM. Wis mangan wak?

The first inference would have eliminated KJ as the principal culprit. Reasonable? Most of us find KJ revolting and repulsive because of our image of him. Perhaps some of them are justified and most of them maybe embellishments of our collective envy. But we must also subscribe to a sense of fairplay. In the case of Khairy, the sense of fairplay demands that we look at KJ in an objective manner.

Sakmongkol finds it unconscionable to see KJ being treated once as a hero to now as potential political pariah. Sakmongkol has once written on the reason why Dato Najib sent smses to a leading criminal lawyer, averring to the concept of loyalty to a friend in need. Sakmongkol has also proposed that the principal reason why Dato Fauzi Rahman stuck to Anwar is because of the concept of loyalty. Sakmongkol sees the same principle need to apply in the case of KJ.

Where are the buffoons who once grovel at KJ’s feet? Where are those young punks who perhaps have gotten filthy rich by riding on KJ’s coattails or gravy train? Those who stood phalanx-like when KJ delivered his speech at one Perhimpunan Agung UMNO. ( yes in that year, Sakmongkol delivered a speech on a resolution on economics and was able to see KJ’s operatives behaving like guards belonging to the Nation of Islam. ( the Black Muslim movement in America led by Louis Farrakhan).

We can only conclude that if they have now deserted the HMS KJ, then it s because their motivation has never been loyalty but money and greed. Perhaps KJ’s slogan of esprit de corps( setiakawan) is a cry for help? Perhaps our distinguished Freudians can help out?

The second inference would lead us to the diminutive Javanese, wong jowo. KT.

When KT was the MB of Selangor he had to fend off allegations of corruption here, there and everywhere. The one time dentist is reputed to have become the richest MB around, not including the taikor in the Land of the Hornbill of course. Sakmongkol remembers that he has to rough it out warding off onslaughts from Lutfi Othman the writer and Selangor Pas leaders notably the easily agitated Hassan Ali.

The pace of development in Selangor is superseded perhaps only by the pace by which KT gives out prime lands and contracts to his friends and cronies. In that process, he has become a Malaysian Marcus Licinus Crassus. Who the hell is this man? maybe the following will reveal some parallels. .

Marcus Licinus Crassus, born into a wealthy Roman family around the year 115 B.C., acquired enormous wealth through (in the words of Plutarch) "fire and rapine." One of his most lucrative schemes took advantage of the fact that Rome had no fire department. Crassus filled this void by creating his own brigade--500 men strong--which rushed to burning buildings at the first cry of alarm. Upon arriving at the scene, however, the fire fighters did nothing while their employer bargained over the price of their services with the distressed property owner. If Crassus could not negotiate a satisfactory price, his men simply let the structure burn to the ground. Another of his profitable ventures was a school for slaves; Crassus purchased unskilled bondsmen, had them trained, and then sold them for handsome profits.

The bulk of Crassus's enormous wealth, however, consisted of his vast landholdings, acquired while he was a lieutenant to Lucius Cornelius Sulla during the civil war of 88-82 B.C. Sulla allowed Crassus to buy captured enemy property at bargain prices, but the acquisitive Roman was not satisfied with this and proceeded to seize the estates of magnates not on the proscribed list, often killing the innocent owners. When his greed surpassed every civilized limit, Crassus lost Sulla's support.

Nevertheless, through loans to nearly every Roman senator and lavish entertainments for the populace, Crassus succeeded in acquiring what he wanted most--political power. During the last years of the Roman republic, he formed the First Triumvirate with Julius Caesar and Gnaeus Pompey. Still unsatisfied, he sought military glory in Syria, but he was defeated and killed at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 B.C. According to a deliciously ironic legend, the Syrians cut off his head and filled it with molten gold.

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Envelope Politics and Journalism

Shabery cheek can continue living in his own warped world when he says there’s no envelope or red enveloped journalism. This is a practice employed by many politicians bribing journalists to write good stories on them.

The most important asset for a politician is publicity. They must be in the news all the time to stay relevant. Sometimes, even the most mundane things done by the politicians received extensive coverage.

If journalists were to report on politicians based on merits alone, they wouldn’t have anything to report on. Politicians know this and the only way to remain in the limelight is to pay journalists. The practice of cavorting with journalists, giving money, paying for trips, keeping them on retainer, are widely practiced. They are not reported yes, but that does not mean, they do not take place.

In the absence of official and formal reports against backshish, mordida, tumbuk rusuk, rasuah, one relies on anecdotal information. Sakmongkol knows of a well known journalist who was paid RM1 million to defend a leading TELCO's competence as a broadband player. Sakmongkol also knows of a certain female journalist almost on retainer by a spouse of a leading politician. Her principal job is as an apple polisher. Otherwise also known as a spin meister. Also known as putar alam. Sakmongkol prefers to call them prostitute journalists..

Meanwhile, shabery cheek as the misinformed information minster can go on believing there’s no envelope journalism. Its like asking us to believe that in the current UMNO elections, there’s no envelope delegates. Perhaps, a more suited term for the money politics in UMNO to buy delegates, is angpow politics. We live in a world of red envelope politics.

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Training Wheels and Article 153

Training Wheels.

Article 153 and all the provisions contained therein were intended to help out the underprivileged. As Sakmongkol was writing this, his formidable thoughts stimulator, Walla described the underprivileged, the policy meant to help. He said thus: The people the policy was originally conceived to help were the millions who congregated in the RM1 sector, not the dozens who congregate in the RM1 Billion sector. Sakmongkol could not have described the group more graphically than Walla..

The really need help group. Little education, training, skills, social networking capital and so forth. In the 1960’s Tun Razak and his friend Taib Andak developed FELDA. 100 thousand of the lumpen-proletariat were given 10 acres each to cultivate with palm oil or rubbe. (see the comments of my intellectual soulmate, de minimis on this.

Sakmongkol remembers reading a Far Eastern Economic Review on Tun Razak in 1974 where Tun said, he wanted to give the Malays a fishing rod each so that they learn to fish. His intention was to create an independent minded malay man.

By creating these feldaniks( felda settlers) Tun Razak created what? To Sakmongkol, the intention was to create an independent minded Malayman who depended on his efforts and wits battling with the elements. Toughened him and making him more rugged. Imbued with the pioneer spirit. The early FELDA settler’s homes were nothing more than hovels. Very basic and rudimentary.

Two, and an aspect which Sakmongkol thinks more important, was the purposeful decoupling of the Malay lumpen-proletariat from his previous cultural milieu. A cultural setting hitherto steeped in mythologies, ancient customs, excessively conservative and so on.

Unfortunately, a permanent revolution was never carried out. Left to their own devices, the Malays easily regressed to their indolent ways- you know the salad days of whiling away time at warungs and cock fightings, bull fights, playing Malay chess and so on.

By the way, to sakmomngkol’s mind, the Malays with their cultural conditioning require a decisive and, for want of a better term, authoritative leadership. No flip flops, tweedle dee-tweedle dum kind of leadership.

Because of the absence of continuous permanent revolution in the form of cultural conditioning and firm leadership, Malays are sucked back into a cesspool of dignity robbing dependence.

One of the manifestation of this affliction is the training wheel syndrome. Sakmongkol is borrowing this term from the comments of an astute observer looking from outside the box. The rapier mind of a Mek Yam. The malady is further compounded by the fact, that even among Malays who have managed to liberate themselves or even they who had not depended on the training wheels continue to support an unquestioning application of article 153. Sakmongkol is not certain whether unquestioning support is a reflection of a filial duty or the only form of mengenang budi.

Training wheels (also known as stabilizers) are an additional wheel or wheels mounted parallel to the rear wheel of a bicycle that assist learners until they have developed a usable sense of balance on the bicycle. Typically they are used in teaching very young children to ride a bike. The term "training wheels" is commonly used in the United States and Australia to describe the stabilizers' role in helping young children learn to ride bicycles.

The spirit of article 153 is to help the under privileged. The reality is, its being exploited by a powerful elite for their own benefits. With article 153, the Malays are still behind in many ways. Without article 153, the non Malays are still able to hold out on their own.

Therefore, the Malay is not defined by article 153 nor are the Chinese constrained by it.

But while we debate on article 153, it is also worth noting of the bad side effects of the training wheel syndrome.

According to the motorcycle safety article, training wheels can be counterproductive. Once removed, a bicycle without training wheels will require counter steering ("steer left to turn right") to operate, whereas training wheels develop reflexes that are opposite of what is required or counter steering. So perhaps, it is worth looking at one alternative to using training wheels- the use of a balance bicycle. That’s for another time.

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Some Thoughts on Article 153

Has article 153 and other provisions of such nature, solved many of the problems facing the Malays?

1. Economics- share in country’s wealth
2. Increase productivity of Malays upon which wealth must be predicated?
3. Education- produced the numbers required

If the overall answer is an overwhelming NO, then it is reasonable to state, that article 153 is not the BIG issue. You have article 153, yet the Malays have not achieved what the article is meant to do. You have article 153, yet it has not stopped the non Malays from getting what they want. In business. Who has enjoyed more benefits? By and large, non Malays in particular, the Chinese have dominated business as a result of industriousness and abilities. Hello people! The LOATHING on people who get ahead by capitalising on some legislative factors, is NOT the monopoly of non Malays. The majority of Malays are also angry at these parasitic elite.

Article 153 stopped the Chinese from doing businesses? Housing? In spite of the discount giveable, in private housings, are the Malays within the legal quota? In many cases, the requirement for a certain quota is made valid for a certain finite period, say 12 months. After the period is breached, the available unsellable houses are sold to non Malays. Despite the quota on housing, non Malays still get to buy houses. Meaning article 153 has not stopped them from owing houses. The Malays because of financial limitation, in spite of the enabling article 153, have not been able to enjoy better housing facilities. No money no talk- nor article 153.

It would be a mistake to assume that only Chinese and other non Malays are the only ones opposed to Article 153. In so far, as the article has made it possible for the well connected elite to skim of the fat in the name of the Malays which the article was originally meant to assist, the majority of Malays have found it to be objectionable. It is also looked on as unconscionable that only a privileged few, benefiting from the status of Bumiputera, despite having a derisive attitude on the majority of Malays appear to have benefited more.

So you have struck a common ground. There are those non Malays who find article 153 repulsive and a majority of Malays who also find article 153 objectionable. Only the reasons differ. Lets see.

What’s the bone of contention as regards article 153? Sad but true, because its seen primarily from the angle of race. It’s the Malay article. Its objected because its Malay. Then non Malays’ objection is premised on their deep-seated contempt on Malays. As a result, a more objective rejection on article 153 BECAUSE in reality, it’s an exploitative legal device when put into PRACTICE that has injured ALL, fails to be fully appreciated.

So ask ourselves, the renewed vigour which has induced recent MCA leaders to become more vociferous and loud, was it prompted by this second reasoning? Or simply because its perceived to a Malay article? The MCA has suddenly found a embolden voice and has begun to question article 153. Of course, the DAP has made it a lifelong vocation and habit to call for the dismantling of article 153.

The MCA seem to think its one-upmanship and grandstanding by using article 153 will win it brownie points to fortify its own political fortunes. It must champion an issue to stay relevant.

Sakmongkol suggests that a better way to stay relevant is t offer a blueprint to help the Malays progress.

That was the principal reason for creating this article. To provide a living reminder that a large section of the people, must never be left behind in terms of progress. What is the use of say, having an article 152 ( Malaysia has 153) in our constitution recognising the special position of Malays but no policies to put that into effect? Yet we decry when such a position is duly recognised and we HAVE designed policies to put that position into effect. No Article without practice is better that an Article with practice? Yet in everyday life, we accept as a guiding principle that to make a decision which turns our faulty is better than making NO decision at all. How can a situation with an article WITH policies be worse off than a situation with an Article but WITHOUT the policies to put them into effect?

It’s the implementation folks, not the Article.

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