The Arrogance of Power

By Hussein Hamid

When you are in power for over fifty years, every now and then there is that temptation to bend the rules and sometimes even the truth to suit the political needs of the moment. You can be forgiven if this inclination does come up once in a blue moon – though the colour of the moon can be said to be blue every month if you are powerful enough to want it to be so. So here lies the problem. When this inclination becomes the norm where does that put good governance?

Almost daily now we are subject to the painful and most uncomfortable sensation of having our leaders take us for fools. They boldly stand in front of us through the medium of their Television Stations, their Media or even at times in person and proceed to tell us what they want us to know – not what we should know. Is there nobody amongst them that can tell them that what they are doing is like peeing into the wind?

Have the educated, intelligent and rational generation of Malays all left UMNO leaving our nation without some of its best people in government even when we need them most? Najib is in a world of his own. He lacks the ability to make sense of what is happening around the country. Surviving day to day is hard enough for him. UMNO has sworn blood oaths that they will defend themselves from PAS, from DAP from Keadilan from everybody – no matter what. In desperation they have ventured into territory where they violate all democratic conventions almost on a daily basis. When we question the legality of their actions their answer is that ‘might is right’.
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Cow-head protest sacrilege – Hishammuddin just does not get it

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein protests too much. He said he has evidence that the cow-head protesters involved both members of the Barisan Nasional (BN) and the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) parties of PKR and PAS.

Hishammuddin just does not get it – that he is accused of double police standards illustrated by the instant police arrest of 16 persons for peaceful candlelight protest at Dataran Merdeka in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday night while cow-head protestors are still scot-free 10 days after the Shah Alam sacrilege.

Hishammuddin’s latest claim that the cow-head protestors come from both Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat parties, which is not proven, does not answer the charge that the Home Minister and the Police had failed their most elementary duty of being independent, impartial and professional in discharge policing duties which is not influenced by any personal, party or political bias.

Why is the Police still tip-toeing over the cow-head protest in Shah Alam on August 28, which not only put Malaysia in the dock of world opinion with adverse international media reports scaring off intending investors with the spectre that Malaysia is on the verge of greater racial and religious polarisation and intolerance, but spoilt the national mood for the 52nd National Day celebrations three days later.

Is this because of Hishammuddin’s earlier defence and justification for the cow-head protestors?
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