This is what I will tell my grand daughter if she ask..................

Many years from now I know I will be asked by my grand daughter what I know of the 13^th General Elections in Malaysia? How did UMNO lose their first General election ever? What happened in the days after? Were the Malays marginalized? Why did a May 13^th not happen this time? Did Malaysia become a better place after the elections?

“What happened Tok?” she will asks me… and this is what I will tell her.

Memories of times long gone by tugs at my heart- string and my heart skipped a beat when I willed myself back to those days. I remembered the words of Thomas Paine:

“If there must be trouble, let it be in my day…so that my children will have peace”

……and as I looked at her I know now why so many in Malaysia during those times were fearless in putting their lives on the line …why Azizah and her Family was there with Anwar through everything, why other PR leaders stood tall and unmoved as BN threw all they had at them, why Karpal still went to Parliament in his wheelchair, why Tok Guru took PAS into PR. Why the ISA, PDRM and every other means at the disposal used by the BN government against its own people could not beat the Rakyat into submission. So much endured by our people so that our children could have a better life…and so I sat down and told my grand daughter what I knew of those times.

It was the best of time and it was the worst of time as the 13^th General Election neared. We knew that we had our future and the future of our country in the palms of our hand. We did not want to let that chance for change disappear. We knew we had a fight in front of us if we were to be victorious against UMNO. We had to go to war against UMNO and in war God favoured those with deep pockets and large armies. UMNO had both. 

 

There was anger and frustrations simmering just below the surface amongst the Malays for the excesses of UMNO done in the name of championing the Malay cause. And most of all there was sadness that we Malays were let down by our own. Among the Malays the trust for UMNO was gone. More important the Malays, Chinese, Indians and the other races were as one in wanting change and there was an absolute belief that what atrocities we had all endured under UMNO for so long were now within our ability to overcome if we stayed united against UMNO and BN.

We knew that UMNO needed the Malays more then the Malays needed UMNO. UMNO cannot isolate the Malays. The Malays could isolate UMNO! That realization was ours not UMNO!

This was no armed rebellion. That was not the way of our people. There was no mass movement by the masses venting their anger and outrage at BN. It would have been foolhardy for us to do so because BN had control over PDRM and the Armed Forces. But across tables when people met and across age groups and ethnic divides we knew we all talked of the same thing. We talked about the ISA, custodial death, the murder of Altantuya, Anwar’s trial, corruption, nepotism, greed and massive fraud by those holding high public office for their personal gain…distant memories and names came floating back….Teoh Beng Hock, Kugan, Aminulrasyid… all those put away under ISA…. and from discussions around the dining tables, amongst friends, between strangers…these issue brought us all together because we shared the same fears, the same hope and the same aspirations - to live in a country where we could earn a decent living, feed our family and have a government we trust.

To have that we needed to vote BN out of government. On that we all in agreed.

Caught up with the excitement of the moment I told my grand daughter that I started   blogging and despite being far away in Adelaide, I too went for that wild and exhilarating ride with PR and the Rakyat towards that general election. What happened in KL I knew. What I wanted to say to those in KL I could do through the web and they to me. It was an exhilarating time for all of us –together sharing our thoughts, our fears and our hopes. Malaysia was a pressure cooker and it had to be open or we will have to watch it explode!

We all know now about how UMNO imploded as the election neared. As I said it was a war that we fought with UMNO and when defeat loomed UMNO  burned their bridges and destroyed what they could not take with them – scorch earth. In its last remaining time in power what tenders, projects, businesses they could take they did without regard for accountability or taking responsibility for the aftermath of their actions. In was in these times that the Internet came into it’s own. The chatter over the web mattered. We were told of many things that UMNO had done. The abuse of power for personal financial gain. The use and abuse of high public office for personal glory and personal egos. And each abuse by UMNO brought with it many more voters into our camp – an avalanche of voters eager to see things changed for the better.

In the end the election was merely a manifestation of the people’s will to rid themselves of an odious and diseased parasite that had bleed us all for 50 over years. Radio killed the video star… arrogance, greed and lust for power killed UMNO. Our votes was the final nail in their coffin.

“Did  Marcos and Suharto do the same thing Tok?”…. asked Izzy . “Yes. …. power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely...so we must  not allow our leaders to have too much of  power” I replied. She looked at me thoughtfully and said “ I have to listen to what my Dad says but Mum is the Boss!”…and so my friends even in our family the balance of power must prevail if we are to live the good life. We need to have trust that those in public office will have our interest at heart – but as Reagan said of the Russians “Trust but verify”.  We must do the same of those that now rule us.

I do not know if Izzy could grasp the depths of my emotions as I struggled to explain to her the struggles of Anwar, Kit Siang, Karpal Singh, Tok Guru, Zaid and the millions that quietly stood together with PR against the might of BN. But this much I know…UMNO is no longer of any consequence. We have done our best for our children. They cannot ask much more of us. We can now sleep in peace. Do not forget this. For us to sleep in peace then we must do our work now!