By Ai
The weather in Taipei is mostly beautiful at the moment. I'm in the midst of packing my stuff. My flight home is on Monday. Will be home for almost two weeks. My flight is to Changi. Going to spend a few days in Singapore before crossing over to JB. I will be casting my votes for Pulai parliamentary and Kempas state seats. Several of my friends here are also flying home for the polls. I believe all of them are DAP supporters.
As I monitor general election news from home, I can't help feeling nostalgic about how I started the BIGCAT blog over a year ago. Now that GE13 is finally here, I recalled how lonely it was back then as there were not many English sopo blog in Johor supporting BN at that time. I was also rather ill equipped, having to mostly do my postings at cyber cafes. I only got a laptop much later after I moved to the Klang Valley in the middle of last year courtesy of a friend's generosity.
The BIGCAT blog now belongs to my friend Tinsel. I believe she is doing a rather good job. Well, I don't really like her putting too many pictures of cats in her postings, as I find them a bit irritating. But the blog is now her's and it is up to her to do whatever she likes with it.
Later in JB, I will join my friend Annie, the operator of this blog. She happens to be in Johor for the duration of the election. I'm glad that she had started this blog after I persuaded her to do so almost two months ago. I think she did an okay job so far with this blog.
I think BN will definitely win this general election. They will surely gain ground in the predominantly Malay states such as Kelantan and Kedah. They are also expected to do better elsewhere, especially in the Malay areas in Perak, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan.
Pakatan on the other hand will rely heavily on the support of the Chinese community, especially in the urban areas courtesy of DAP. This is especially so in the front line states of Johor, Sabah and Sarawak.
What I fear most will likely happened after the general election - a mostly Malay/bumiputera government on one side and a predominantly Chinese opposition on the other. A racial polarization which will take generations to rectify, if ever.
I believe PM DS Najib Razak is trying his best to prevent this from happening. But from the looks of things, I doubt he will be successful as the majority of the Chinese community seems hell bent on voting for DAP as they believe that the party represents them better than the Chinese-based BN component parties. Ask a Chinese about it and I bet nine out of ten that he/she will say that he/she will support the DAP.
As our society seems to be heading towards this racial abyss, Najib is trying one last card - fielding a Malay Umno candidate in a Chinese majority area in the hope that he will win and prove that all are not lost and that there is still a chance for us not to forever be politically divided along racial lines.
It's almost an impossible mission....maybe even a political suicide mission.
Yup, that person who was tasked with it is outgoing Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman.
He is contesting in Gelang Patah which voters are about 53 per cent Chinese. On top of that, he is up against the DAP patriarch Lim Kit Siang.
If Ghani wins, he will represents a hope that Malaysians will one day see beyond their ethnicity when deciding who are the better persons among us.
Going by his comparatively immaculate track record as Johor MB of 18 years, Ghani is definitely better than Kit Siang who is only coming to Gelang Patah with the sole purpose of piercing the BN stronghold of Johor.
I had written in the past about Ghani and how I admire him for his clean and efficient ways of running Johor. Many, including fellow pro-BN bloggers questioned my support for Ghani. Some even accused me of being on Ghani's payroll.
But my conscience is clear. I never receive a single cent from him in exchange for my support. Ghani is indeed a good man. I believe every sensible Johoreans, irrespective of race agrees with me.
I am praying from the bottom of my heart that he will succeed in his probable last mission - winning in Gelang Patah with the support of Chinese, Malays, Indians and other races.
Even if every Chinese majority constituencies in this country fell to DAP, if Ghani wins, we can still turn around and point at Gelang Patah to say that our Chinese brothers and sisters are not all blinded by their ethnicity and that there is still hope for our multi-racial Malaysia.
I admire you for your optimism. However, I have some reservations about it. Chinese frieds I have talked to are obviously for DAP, and Malays are also for the opposition despite many arguments that the DAP and other opposition parties are just not workable alternatives to the present government.
ReplyDeleteThere will of course be euphoria id PR win big or if they can form the next government. But when the excitement dies down, you will have scenarios like what you are witnessing in Penang and Selangor. Kelantan will forever remain backward if PAS wins.
I will vote BN no matter what (except the last PRU) and I have not been ashamded to say this publicly in my own community where the sentiment is pro-opposition. We will all have to wait and see. But BN will prevail, I hope.
Good luck Ai.
Confucius says:
Delete"When we perceive men of a character contrary to our own, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves."
"Hold faithfulness (amanah) and sincerity (ikhlas) as your first principles"
"By nature men are all alike but by their habits and actions they become wide apart."
all the best Ai and Annie. My prayers for the best possible outcome too.
ReplyDeleteMe too whatever happens too much emphasis going on in johor. Bn slowly getting perak back
ReplyDeleteIf Gani win in Gelang Patah I hope he will win, it's will be a case to study ,to show that Malaysian are color blinds ,and we can show to the whole world that race was never in issue in Malaysia.
ReplyDeleteTracking back all the past GE and by election that Malaysian has gone through ,a non Malay candidate could sweep a majority high in Malay majority constituency ,infect its become favourite demands among the top party leaders of BN component as safe seat ,that thus really show race was never an issue to the Malay voters in the spirits living in peace and harmony.
Gelang Patah will be a place to watch at, what ever the outcome will be and I believe this is a first time that a Malay candidate is placed in a Chinese majority area ,though I believe that Gani could pushed through with the full support of the Malay voters ,but the margin would be small .
......it should be last hope for Rakyat to get rid of corrupt regime UMNO/BN before the country goes kaput !!
ReplyDeleteKedah will.go big way to bn. Bn.perak grip.will.sttengthen.postbpru 13.sabah and serawak will.continue as bn hardline states. Johor will lost few parliamneta seats but still the dun 2/3 under bn. Najib need to study taib mahmud action following sarawak state election. Drmuzi
ReplyDeleteThe Chinese should seriously consider what has DAP to offer them. Just look at Penang, DAP does not help the middle class Chinese at all. A few already rich developers were offered prime land with widely-knowned kickbacks. The Chinese hawkers were not persecuted at all when they do their business right in the middle of the roads, but the malay and mamak hawkers were hounded disriminately out of Penang. The houses built are so expensive that only Singapore Chinese can afford them. The local ordinary Chinese?
ReplyDeleteVote for someone from a minority background in the electoral seat to show racial unity. It's a great idea which I wholly support. Mind you, MIC will be smiling from ear to ear.
ReplyDeleteRacial unity aside, I desperately want Johor to be won by BN because of the economical implication. Seeds have been sown there for great development, and I think the opposition have seen that it's to their advantage to take over and reap the benefit.
ReplyDeleteMy opinion is that the Chinese do not care about BN or what Najib says anymore because they are solid economically and they have more than ample resources to support their Chinese schools or colleges or everything else of their needs. What the Chinese crave now is POWER. ONLY POWER! The last frontier are Towering and Powering the rest of the non Chinese particularly the Malays. Separatist they are indeed, them Chinese.
ReplyDeletewhatever the future holds for us in this blessed country,to the Chinese I say this, 'You ask for it!'
ok kita kasi depa kasut POWER, enuff or not ?
DeleteYou mean MCA and Gerakan do not care about BN? Are you a joker?
DeleteI have never seen Selangor as ill-managed as it has been under PR. I am half Chinese and it saddens me to see that people will vote along racial lines. DAP clearly is the dominant party in PR but when it comes to the crunch,they are not able to manage Selangor well, even basic public amenities.Someone has to be blind not to see that Selangor is not as nice to live in as before.Its like, we dont care if PR can't manage the country, as long as we UBAH.Having lived in the West for decades in a more established democratic state, I fear that we are not heading in the right direction.Malaysia is such a beautiful country and indeed, very unique in its racial mix.If we are not careful,we will lose it and it will be our own doing.
ReplyDeleteYou are wrong, according to MCA, PAS is the dominant party in PR.Day in day out, hugh amount of money has been spent everyday on ad to convey this message. One vote for DAP is one vote for PAS.
DeleteSelangor cannot compare to Kelab Malam of JB.
DeleteNobody in their right mind would vote for porno actors, sex perverts, bisexuals, someone who doesn’t keep his / her promise, unashamed hypocrites and racists BUT IN MALAYSIA SOME DECEITFUL MORONS WILL!
ReplyDeleteporno actors – many politicians in Pakatoons
sex perverts – you know who!
bisexuals – The legendary B.A.B.I.
dont keep promises – N.ajis in particular, all Pakatoon leaders in general
unashamed hypocrites – Kapal Singh, Mat Syabu
racists – LKS, LGE
For those porno actors, be a GENTLEMAN and resign lah! Aiyoo muka tak malu nak menipu sampai bila?
PAKATOONS ARE LOW / NO CLASS OPPOSITION. FULLSTOP.
PAShit a.k.a. DAPshit
Peeping toms - those would take the video shots. Why not be a gentleman and resign and confess your wrong doings to almighty?
DeleteI have not seen Chinese so eager to topple BN until now. The leaders may be squabbling but the supporters are united. This is the worrying factor for BN, in my opinion. Working with the Chinese, i am obviously the "opposition" to my collegue (the only two other malays are PAS and PKR supporters) and never once they talk about Pakatan leaders' issue. Why? They do not care about Anwar, and Hudud does not matter to them. They know that DAP will be in charge and the Malays are just puppets for them to gain power. They will have money and power. The poor and the middle class? Hey, if you do not have money, that's your problem but thanks for your vote. And, Singapore is a beautiful and rich country. Yeah, right. Ask the pure Singaporean whether they agree. The Malaysians who work in Singapore or Malaysians who converted to Singaporeans will never like Malaysia anyways.
ReplyDeleteWhat about the Malays? The kampung people may still be supporting BN but the so-called more educated ones, who believe they now know how to think for themselves, are PAS supporters. So, BN should not be complacement, especially in Johor. It is no longer a fixed deposit. BN needs to work very very hard.
Is Kuok investing in Iskandar region a vote of confident to BN or could it because DAP stalwart is contesting in Gelang Patah? This is the prime area in Johor, the place where the riches are betting their money in. This is the growth area in Johor, so can we blame DAP to gain control of Gelang Patah? Johoreans, wake up.
aku tak pernah mengundi w/pun usia ku hampir 40 tahun. kali ini aku akan undi BN.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I read here, all Johoreans are the sensible blokes. My votes is for BN..
ReplyDeleteThe opposition simplify everything.. DAP..any Chinese who vote against them is a traitor.. PAS..any Malay who vote against them is a "kafir"..... BN should simplify things too. Any ideas?? Any Malaysians who vote against them is?????? Maybe we are to afraid to call spade a spade. We are MR Nice Guy. Hopefully Chinese in Gelang Patah give us some glimmer of hope that this country still has what it takes to move forward.
Anon 786
3 years in hong kong 2 years in china and now i returned to gelang patah.just to involve in one of the great battle of pru... based on my experience in china n hong kong Malaysia current gov is their great ally... ive even read a news paper in china dat state.their economic growth could.be affected.if malaysian.decide to change to pro american gov... so for me... as im working there... i.love the great relationship of our ancestor land and our beloved country... so BN get my vote!
ReplyDelete