Best job of Madani era

 I'm going to get my PSV licence next week so I can drive for Grab.

It's not going to earn me much but should be enough to pay my bills and a bit of groceries.

I don't need much anyway at this stage of my life.

Peace of mind is the most important thing for me now and I think driving people around  to earn a living can give me that.

No bosses ordering me around to do stupid things.

Actually, I wish I could drive a truck and deliver goods instead of people but that would be too physically hard for me.

I'm not planning to go crazy and drive 10 hours per day to earn a lot of money. 

Instead, I'll just take it easy and do what I can to earn enough not to go hungry.

What ever it is, I don't have anymore bank loan to pay, so that's one worry out of my head already.

My plan is to park myself at the Kuantan bus terminal, which is near my house and wait for clients there.

If I'm tired or my back hurts, I'll just go home and sleep.

Why not do other things?

Well, I don't have any other skill other than the one that earned me my livelihood over the years.

That skill is now more or less unwanted.

That leaves driving as the only other skill that I have. 

I believe I'm quite a good driver. Very patient and polite too....I think.

Yeah, I believe I can make this works.

It has to be, as this is a hard time for me.

I don't want to complain too much though as I know a lot of people are suffering worse than me.

After all, this is the Madani era. It's normal for people to suffer now.

Kedah people said "Mahai dah le ni."

Yup, everything pricey these days.

Really shitty but we have to accept it as that's what Malaysians voted for in the last general election.

All talks and nothing else. Janji macam-macam, tipu saja.

That's what Madani is all about.

"Hari ini saya jadi PM, esok harga minyak turuuunnnn!!!!"

Yeah, right.

Sanusi the macho kampung funny guy

 I have not been bothered to properly listen to Pas leaders' speeches for quite a long time.

That was until Sanusi's arrest the other day.

I started to check on YouTube videos of his speeches to understand better what actually went wrong with the guy.

I was actually quite entertained by the videos.

Firstly, I found Sanusi to be actually quite a smart MB.

I particularly like his plan to bring more development to the Kedah hinterland.

Sanusi is truly the tough kampung guy type and that probably explains his passion to develop the much neglected rural area of Kedah.

And the guy is brash and very funny at the same time. 

A bit like Mat Sabu but not too irritating and clownish like the Amanah president.

I failed to find the video of his speech, which got him in trouble but based on the videos that I watched, I can guess what had happened.

I doubt that he actually intended to insult Sultan of Selangor as alleged. He was probably his usual recklessly funny self while whacking his political opponents when he uttered the allegedly offending words.

The guy is after all too smart to intentionally go around insulting the royalty. 

But never mind lah. I rather not talk too much about that as it may land me in jail.

As I previously wrote, in this Madani era, you can easily get in trouble for what you said about the 3R.

You may intend to say something but it could be interpreted or intentionally misinterpreted as saying something else.

As it is, just saying that the prime minister is a liar risks being accused of insulting the Agong who appointed the PM.

So, let's not get into that and go back to Sanusi.

Here's the guy explaining more or less his macho Kedah kampung style:

Zaid is right, I better shut up

This Madani era is indeed a dangerous time for people to talk too much.

This is a NST headline today;

Zaid Ibrahim courts controversy by taking veiled swipe at Malay Rulers

What Zaid actually said now that NST suggested that he' may get in trouble?

excerpts 1;

"My advice to the common people : Do not say anything that may be construed as insulting Malay Rulers; even if unintentional.

"Do not say an MB (Menteri Besar) is a clown; as that will be insulting the Ruler for appointing a clown. Do not say Malay Rulers are wealthy ; as that could imply the wealth is improperly obtained.

"Do not say Malay Rulers are involved in timber or durian business ; or internet business. That would be demeaning .You can only praise them. Better still say nothing at all," he tweeted.

excerpts 2

"The most significant achievement of the Madani govt is using Sedition Act against its political opponent. When this opponent said sorry, the Madani Minister replied, 'That's not enough'.

"When this seditious leader said sorry to the Palace, the response was, 'matter not settled'.

"Now that Sanusi will be charged, everyone is happy. No more pressure on the AG (Attorney-General). The Bar Council, the great defender of the rule of law, must be satisfied too," he tweeted.

Wah, give advice like that also can get in trouble....sigh.

Hopefully I wouldn't get in trouble for reproducing those excerpts.

Well, I took those from the NST article, so if I kena, NST should kena also. 

Never mind, I'll just follow Zaid's advice. 

It's not worth it to risk being jailed.

Cannot talk about 3R, so no more talk about agama Islam, bangsa Melayu or raja-raja for me. 

Got it.  

So much for all those talks about freedom of speech and expression.

This is Najib's fault because he only abolished the ISA and not the others, which Pakatan people used to describe as "draconian laws".

Maybe Pakatan people don't think those laws are draconian anymore.

Yup, Pakatan people change their mind all the time one.

Be more specific about the 3R

They keep repeating it ; Don't touch on the 3R (race, religion, royalty), which are considered as sensitive issues.

Today, I saw a story about the IGP once again warning everyone not to touch on the 3R while campaigning  for the coming six state elections.

But what exactly that can't be said about the 3R?

I think they need to be more specific about it as I have a lot of questions on the matter.

Can we say Malays and Muslims should be united so that they would not dilute their majority as what they had done in previous elections? Will we get arrested if we say that?

How about saying non-Bumiputera should vote for DAP so that they would not be second, third, fourth or even fifth class citizens? I remember Guan Eng said that during a rally in the run up to GE13.

How about defending Chinese schools? Is that also taboo now? I did that quite a lot. You can check this blog's archive to read what I wrote about those schools.

Chinese schools is a sensitive issue after all. Their opponents argued that Chinese schools are one of the reasons Malaysians are not united. Most of the schools' supporters think that's just being racist. 

Can I write about Adib again? There's a lot of racial and religious issues surrounding the deadly beating of the fireman. Or have you all forgot Adib?

How about all those efforts to reconvert kids? Can we talk about that or should we just stay quiet as people flaunt their "victories" over such things?

Can Umno and the other Malay-based parties talk about menyatupadukan orang Melayu? 

Can Pas people talk about memperkasakan Islam in Malaysia?

Will they get arrested if they do that?

Will the government eventually ban all those race and religion based parties?

Umno, what would be your new name if that happens? United Malaysian Nationalist Organisation? How about changing it now so that you will be better aligned with your new Pakatan Harapan friends? Maybe then they will accept you as being incorruptible.

Anyway, PKR, DAP and Amanah never talked about the 3R, aren't they...yeah, sure. 

Sorry. I tend to remember when people said that Malay is not even a race, Islam should be equal as other religions in this country and royalty is a waste of public money. 

Eh, enough lah. Don't want to be accused of trying to cause trouble by touching on the 3R. Nanti kena tangkap pulak.

Stop criticising Tan Sri Lim Kit Siang

 Okay, I better not criticise Lim Kit Siang anymore now that he is a Tan Sri.

Yesterday there was a story about a six-month pregnant woman being arrested for doing that.

Apparently, the woman was said to be insulting Yang DiPertuan Agong for criticising Kit Siang's title.

Sigh.

I hope Lim Guan Eng will not get a Tan Sri title too as that means I wouldn't be able to criticise him like before.

No fun la like that.

Yesterday there was also a story about Anwar denying that he ordered a crackdown on opposition leaders and that he was in the dark about actions being  taken by police, MACC and IRB against them.

His sidekick, the home minister Saifuddin also claimed the same.

Hmmmm....Dr Mahathir used to say the same thing too when police arrested Anwar back in the late 1990s for sodomy, abuse of power etc.

It's the police who did it, not him.

He said the same about Operasi Lalang.

Somehow no one really believes in Dr Mahathir when he said that.

Now Anwar is saying the same thing too. 

You all believe Anwar?

Maybe he's telling the truth, okay.

Maybe he learnt a lesson from spending years in jail for ordering the police to "gempaq" people who accused him of sodomy back when he was Dr Mahathir's deputy in the late 90s.

Well, before the election, there were a lot of noises about abolishing remnants of the "draconian laws" such as Sedition Act, and SOSMA.

What happens now?

Now those very laws were being thrown left, right and centre to cut down dissent against the Madani government and its personalities.

Fortunately Najib, who would now probably die in jail, managed to initiated the abolishment of the ISA.

Otherwise ISA would be used too. So many would be in jail for being Islamic or Malay extremists.

But of course those arrests are based on police and agencies' investigations. 

The PM and his ministers know nothing about it, okay.

Yup, they are completely in the dark.

And all those human rights activists who previously made so much noise are now quiet.

They will say it like Anwar, "We will flip flop if it's good for the people".

Yup, they need those "draconian laws" now to stop those nasty Perikatan people from coming to power.

Really cakap tak serupa bikin.

Anyway, how's life under the Madani rule?

Is it improving for you all?

Better salary? 

Cheaper prices at the shops?

If we can't have freedom, at least can we have cheaper food?

Well, I may likely lose my job next month.

Preparing myself for the B40 lifestyle.

Menu Rahmah....urghhh.

Ciao.

Muslims must not let the word "Allah" be misused

Let me start this one by repeating what I had written before - that I don't consider myself to be a really good Muslim.

That is so because I have been struggling all my life to observe even the most basic rituals of my religion.

I would nonetheless stress though that I have never deny any of the teachings of Islam, as I was taught of them since I was a little child.

For instance, I will never dispute the five pillars of the religion, which are the syahadah, five daily prayers, fasting during Ramadhan, payment of tithe, and performing the Haj pilgrimage for those who could afford it.

Nor do I disbelieve any of the six main components of the faith, that are believing in the existence of Allah, the prophets, the holy books, the angels, the afterlife, and the fate as set by Allah.

My questions are confined to certain interpretations in matters such as hijab for women, age of consent and other teachings, which are not so clear cut in the Quran.

What's clearly stated in the Quran are indisputable for a Muslim but the ulama interpretations, I believe, are not beyond being debated.

Having said all that, I would like to point out yesterday's news about a motion filed to parliament by Pas to amend the law, which effectively requires the word "Allah" to be defined as according to its definition in the Quran.

The definition as according to Surah Al-Ikhlas, reads "Say, He is Allah, [who is] One, Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, Nor is there to Him any equivalent."

As a child, I was thought that the surah was inspired by Allah upon Prophet Muhammad when he was asked by a Christian delegation about what kind of god that Muslims believe in, bearing in mind that in Christianity, God the Father begets Jesus and that Jesus is part of the godly trinity with the other entity being the Holy Spirit.

In Islam, Jesus is not a god or son of god and instead just a prophet like Muhammad.

The PAS' motion was intended to settle the dispute over the use of the word "Allah" among the non-Muslims,  effectively confining them to be allowed to use it only if they believe that Allah, as they are referring to, is the one true god that has no equivalent as dictated by the Quran.

The motion was rejected from being tabled in parliament and now Pas and its Perikatan allies will appeal the matter to the Rulers, whose role, among others, is to protect the sanctity of Islam.

I don't know who were specifically responsible behind the rejection of the motion, but I sure hope they are not Muslims.

Bear in mind that Islam is the official religion of Malaysia as you read this.

Now, as a Muslim, I have to support the Pas' motion as failing to do so will put my faith in question.

Well, maybe the proposed law on the word "Allah" should have specific qualifications for Christians in Sabah and Sarawak, whose community had been thought by their priests for generations that their god should be called by that name.

Yet again, I must stress that Muslims cannot deny what are clearly stated in the Quran.

It is their religious duty to ensure that the word "Allah" should not be allowed to be used by just anyone, who may do so willy nilly.

Failing to do so, I believe, we will have one day someone saying Allah has a son or equivalent to other gods and that would just cause trouble.

As it is, we nowadays have stupid stand up comedians who resort to insult others just to get a laugh from the audience.

And they are not even the most insidious individuals who may want to misuse the word "Allah" to confuse or rile up the Muslims.

Freedom of speech and expression should not lead to causing troubles.

DAP is the winner

Today marks a major milestone in Malaysian politics.

DAP's "former" supremo Lim Kit Siang has been conferred  a Tan Sri title by Yang DiPertuan Agong.

Kit Siang looking like a statesman in his songkok a day before becoming a Tan Sri.

It's the crowning of DAP's victory in its struggle to end the Malay nationalists' dominance of the country.

Now even the palace recognises DAP as a true good force.

All those allegations of DAP being a traitorous pro-communist Chinese chauvinistic organisation has been proven to be false.

No way those allegations thrown by the Malay nationalists at the party over the years were true now that the Agong has recognised Kit Siang as a leader who had done good for the country.

The grand DAP old man, despite his retired status, is still active making statements reflective of the party's stand almost on a daily basis.

Once he is truly retired, I believe he will be conferred the Tun title.

Honestly, Kit Siang deserves such an honour.

He guided his party over the decades to what it is now - the single most powerful political block in the country that commands almost absolute support of the non-Bumiputera votes.

Under his stewardship, DAP vanquished the all powerful Umno, which now is just a shell of its former self.

Umno members have to accept the reality that they were defeated and now have to regard DAP as a friend that can keep their party alive with extra votes from the non-Malays.

Kit Siang's old nemesis Dr Mahathir has also been reduced to being a non-entity after even losing his deposit in Langkawi in the last general election.

He is now awaiting possible prosecution for his Malay Proclamation which the authorities believe is a threat to the country's democratic system.

DAP, through the Anwar's administration, is cracking down on "corrupt" and "racialist tactics" of its main opponents, particularly those of Perikatan Nasional .

Muhyiddin is already in court and Hadi may likely be next.

It's all for the good of the country, so it was said.

Well, Pas' late spiritual leader Nik Aziz was also posthumously conferred the Tan Sri title while Hadi had received his quite a while ago.

If Pas can be considered a good force, so should DAP, right?

Anyway, all indications pointed to the Malays now being mostly resigned to the fact that they need to adapt to the current political equation.

They are too exhausted to resist after being repeatedly betrayed by their own corrupt and selfish leaders.

Maybe life akin to that of the Malays in Singapore is better.

At least the PAP gave them nice HDB flats. Maybe DAP, which is a PAP's splinter party will help the Malays to get such good homes too.

HDB flats are better than those many dilapidated wooden houses of the Malays living under Pas' rule in Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah.

Well, Malays will be okay as they are good at adapting to changes.

Their ancestors back then adapted well when the British took over the country.

They will be fine as long as no one disturb their religion and position of their raja-raja like back then.