Be cool or be a Fool!

Joe Cool aka Najib the Man! 

It would seem to me that Najib has well and truly embarked on his journey towards the 13^th general election while Pakatan Rakyat stands nervously debating amongst themselves to see what they are prepared to do to go head to head with Najib. The cat is already amongst the pigeons! The fox is in the chicken coop! Come on PR carpe diem – seize the day!

The critical mass required to carry the 13^th general election in favor of BN or PR is there to be taken. The 12^th general election is now just a distant memory – a blip on the horizon of the thinking public. From then till now PR has not done enough to carry the critical mass towards a hoped for tsunami to carry them towards Putrajaya …if anything the journey towards Putrajaya is still proceeding albeit at a snail pace…in danger of being derailed at any moment!

For all we know PR may be like a duck floating serenely on the face of the Tasik but paddling furiously under the water…but I think that duck has one leg tangled in weeds below the surface. Untangled that leg PR before you drown.

PR has many reservoir of support and sympathy within this critical mass of voters. Given that some will stay with PR no matter what and that some will stay with BN no matter what - the majority within this critical mass are waiting to be convinced that PR should be in Putrajaya after the 13^th general election – not BN.

All this ABU slogans (Anything but UMNO/ Asal bukan UMNO) is good for the soul and certainly gives the perception that all is well with PR. But general elections are not won on perceptions – they are won with votes.

It is not won because the chatter over the web overwhelmingly favors your party of choice because those who do not surf the web outnumbers those who do – at least in Malaysia they do!

It is won by the slow but sure process of winning voters on to your side – one by one, house by house, kawasan by kawasan and state by state! There is no other way. I know that people will only stop on my blog site when I write about things that matters to them and to me – and when we do connect on this wavelength – there is some semblance of  a meeting of minds – even if it was for a brief moment. For PR that meeting of the mind needs to be longer and translated into votes at the 13^th general election.

How does PR work against a PM that can become “cool” within a week because he has the media and television station to work on him being “cool” with ease? How do you take the spotlight away from a PM that can grandstand his way over whatever PR can throw at him by announcing the repeal of the ISA and the PPPA? And do not forget the need of a great army and deep pockets to win any conflict…what more a general election?

I have no answers to all that. But this I know. The 12^th  general election was won by the people for PR.

BY THE PEOPLE FOR PAKATAN RAKYAT.     

Somewhere between that time when the people handed over Kedah, Perak, Selangor, Penang and Kelantan to PR and today – September 2011 – PR lost the plot. In Perak PR failed us. PR took their eye off the ball and forgot that what matters is the people. Not the troubles of DSAI, not the tussle for seats as the general elections nears and certainly not the relentless prosecution by the BN government of PR leaders. We know all this. We see it happen before our very eyes.

But this is what matters. If, in spite of all that is  happening PR can focus on the aspirations of the people who demand an open government then I think the pendulum may swing once again in favor of PR.

We are very critical and unforgiving of any lapse by PR and BN leaders in the pursuit of these ideals for we know how flawed our politicians are from all side of the divide and we will be quick to wreck havoc upon any one we think incapable of being accountable and responsible to the people when in government. Ignore this maxim at your peril. For now we wait for PR to seize the day and walk the talk about Malaysia needing change. Start from within PR before Najib starts to really be “cool!”.