Does It Filter Through?

Does It Filter Through?

Does It Filter Through?

Posted: 21 Oct 2010 08:40 PM PDT

This week sees the meeting of all UMNO delegates from around the country, culminating in the 61st General Assembly of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).

I'm glad that the PM has the courage to boldly state and reiterate again the important positions of all the races and their contribution towards nation-building and that ALL must be acknowledged for their hard work.

He also had the foresight to remind us again that the way forward is to work together as One Malaysians and not as 'individualistic groupings of races'.

Kudos also goes to Sharizat and Khairy (in their speech) for their far sightedness in preparing the ground for their delegates to see the importance of working as One and not as diverse groups.

They were all saying the right things to pull UMNO forward. And they were all saying it at this most opportune time. Other issues that got to be mentioned were the social contract and the economic pie. And we were (as non-malays) given the confidence that our positions (just like the malays) were enshrined in the constitution.

Problem is … … who doesn't know this? It was all there since 1957. Nothing much of the Federal Constitution has changed except for a short period where our beloved Dr M (fourth PM) did boldly changed some of the articles (wordings) to curb the powers of the judiciary, otherwise its been edged in stone ever since.

So why is there the need to reiterate the position of the malays and the non-malays now?

I truely, sincerely and whole-heartedly believe that PM is serious in wanting to change the social landscape of the country. By means of economic architecture and social engineering. And from the close-door dialogues we had with the PM plus the opportunities I had to talk to his close-aides, I get the strong impression that he meant business.

To make the argument stronger, through our private meeting with Khairy (BN Youth Chair), we also get the same impression and feedback.

My worry is that, it all sounds well on the platform, but does all this nicely worded regurgitations and impromptu speeches filter through in the end of the day?

The first resistance that I hear is already visible in the "inner struggle" (body-language) amongst the delegates. In the DPM's speech to the Wanita, Pemuda & Puteri on Tuesday (19 Oct 2010) he inserted at least half a dozen times mentioned the word 'inclusive' in his wonderfully prepared speech. Inclusive in the sense that we must include all races in the development of the nation.

But somewhere in the middle of his speech, he touched on the need for them (I dont know if it means him or he wanted to include the party) to embrace those NGOs that also fight for the rights of the malay-people. The first thing that came to my mind was an organisation called Perkasa. Eventhough he did not specifically named Perkasa as such, the surrounding circumstances and timing of his mention can and only point to 'that' organisation.

Couple with the fact that, I still dont see any changes of how UMNO Bahagian chiefs behave and treat the common people (let alone their own members in the bahagian). The air of arrogance is evermore present and doesnt seem to diminish with the PM's call for unity and coorperation.

What I'm saying here stems from my own experience with dealing with the UMNO deadwood in my area. And I have not received any divergence of opinions from my own state liasion colleagues as far as Wilayah is concerned.

So if I, from among the middle to top levels of leadership in BN have that kind of feeling, what will the common rakyat feel if they continue to read this kind of rhetorics in the newspapers but see no changes in the behaviours and attitudes of leaders below the MT (majlis tertinggi) of UMNO. Is this a bankable perception that we can rely on?

There's is no trickle down of effect …
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