There must be a severe breakdown of communication between the national BN headquarters in Kuala Lumpur and the Sarawak BN in Kuching.
Just as we have heard the assurance from the DPM Najib Abdul Rajak that BN will not be dispensing “instant mee” projects in Batang Ai, Sarawak BN ministers have begun to rain development goodies from the sky on the lucky voters of Batang Ai.
PBB deputy president Abang Johari immediately responded to the DPM’s assurance that indeed there are no such things as “instant noodle” projects in Sarawak.
Their words are still warm in my ears when I read about an announcement by the PRS president and Sarawak Minister for Land Development James Masing that the state government has agreed to spend RM12 million to tar-seal the link road at the Batang Ai Resettlement Scheme.
In fact, various government figures had a short while ago promised to develop telecommunication infrastructure at Lubok Antu to the tune of RM40 million. A sum of RM400,000 has also been promised to subsidise fuel for all those river-plying motor boats in Batang Ai. I am told that sum of cash has been dished out in the last few days.
Must a YB die first?
In his latest posting, Joseph Tawie – host of the Sarawak blog The Broken Shield - has these wry remarks to make:
“Again look at Kapit (James Masing’s own constituency). It has waited 45 years for a trunk road to be constructed linking it with other towns in the state. Until today there are only talks.
How the people of Kapit wish that a YB should die in office so that the construction of the road can be materialized. Cruel it seems to be, but that is the truth. Projects are waiting for elections. No elections, no projects.”
Was it Alfred Jabu or another minister who had earlier proclaimed that only BN government can deliver the goods to the people and opposition parties can only talk but cannot act. Opposition parties that cannot deliver instant material benefits should not exist.
With talk like that, we can expect the sprinkle of instant noodle raining down on Batang Ai to gather momentum and turn into a heavy downpour of development projects and cash from the sky, thus slapping Najib right in the face.
When I started out as a political novice in the local opposition branch in Kuching in 1978, that was the BN argument, and I was horrified to discover that this piece of twisted political sophistry worked even with the urban Chinese voters. It probably still works in smaller towns. It took me three or four years of constantly refuting this argument before its hold on Kuching voters was loosened!
Thirty years later, like a broken record, the Sarawak BN is still singing this insane tune in Batang Ai. Then again, you cannot blame them for being so boring in their ancient song; they have no other song to offer. It will probably work with a large section of Batang Ai voters, especially the village headmen and members of his village development committee, because they would be the first recipients of this windfall of goodies.
It is the first duty of the opposition campaigners on Ground Zero in Batang Ai to take this opportunity to discuss the principles of democracy in modern Sarawak.
The money for development does not come out from the personal pockets of the BN parties or their leaders. It comes from the rakyat of Sarawak in the form of taxes. It belongs to the people of Sarawak. All Sarawakians are entitled to development projects as a matter of fundamental human right, and not from charity, or as a currency to coerce support for the ruling parties.
Any political coalition in power who uses development projects as a tool in this carrot-and-stick game to garner votes hold the voters of Batang Ai in grave contempt, and should be punished with a defeat at the poll.
What politics of development?
Sarawak has joined Malaysia in 1963. In those long 45 years, many elections have been held involving the voters of Batang Ai. If the myth of the politics of development preached by BN is true, how come the people of Batang Ai are still living in such undeveloped state, without a hospital to serve her 22,000 residents, and without a bank even! How come 56 of the 123 longhouses still cannot enjoy access to the towns by land transport?
The Batang Ai Dam has been built for two decades now, and how come a large number of the Batang people are still pining for affordable electricity supply? The list goes on forever.
The answer is simple – the politics of development is a lie, a myth created to hold the people to ransom, so the ruling class can stay in power forever and become fabulously rich by feathering their nests and feasting on public resources that ought to be enjoyed first by the poor people of Batang Ai and countless other Sarawakians through this bountiful land.
In an actual ceramah, I will use far stronger polemic to illustrate my point, including the names of reptiles and animals which are familiar to the Ibans. We have to ask: who is the real Bujang Senang of Sarawak?
The deep flaw in the argument put forth by this politics of development is that it tries to identify the state government with the ruling BN coalition. This distortion of truth may be obvious to enlightened readers of Malaysiakini, but it has to be analysed for the people of Batang Ai. Why, I even read a piece parroting this distortion of truth on a Sarawak blog!
If the opposition coalition wins and forms the state government, they too can implement development projects in the interest of the rural people as a matter of their responsibility. They may do a better job without the corruption, and the rakyat and the civil societies will make sure they stay clean.
Batang Ai is the beginning of the liberation of the Sarawak people from the grip of feudalistic bondage, the first step in a 10,000 long march towards freedom from poverty and under-development, toward an equitable distribution of wealth and equitable educational facilities. Those statements above I said to the Kuching people. Thirty years later, the same message should be sent to the voters of Batang Ai.
They should be reminded of the first principles of any democracy. A democratic government is a government for the people, by the people, and of the people. A democracy is a polity in which the people are king. It is the duty of any democratically elected government to serve the people well, especially in ensuring public security, personal safety, and socio-economic development in the pursuit of happiness.
If the elected officials of the state think that they can hold the people to ransom by using development projects as a tool in this carrot-and-stick tactic, as if development projects are theirs to give, then they think they are kings of Sarawak. They think they are the Brooke Rajahs, the British colonialists, the old absolute monarchs who lord over their subjects. If so, they have usurped the sovereignty of the people! They have made slaves of the people, when the people ought to be the masters of the politicians! They must be removed at all costs.
A PKR cow will get my vote
If so, then the people of Batang Ai and everywhere throughout the Fair Land of Sarawak need to restore the sovereignty of the people by ejecting the BN candidate into the rapids of the river in Batang Ai.
The real issue is not who will be the PKR candidate. For me personally, even if the PKR sends a cow as a candidate to contest in the by-election, I will still vote for the cow - if I can vote there. The cow is a very useful animal; it is far more useful than the BN top dogs who masquerade themselves as kings and lords preaching the false doctrine of politics of development.
The real issue is also not really about whether the BN or the PKR can serve the Batang Ai voters better. There are many ways to serve the voters. You do not have to serve the people by giving them fish fry, fertilizer, zinc roof, tar, schools, fuel for the boats, like a father Christmas, or a charitable towkay giving alms to beggars. You can also serve them by empowering them, organising them for social actions, teaching them how to claim back their rights, Like Baru Bian and friends is doing.
The real war is between the deprived people of Sarawak against a small group of leaders at the top of the political food chain in Sarawak. Toppling them is the most important item on the agenda. Nothing else counts. Batang Ai is the first battle for the new beginning in Sarawak politics.
Batang Ai is the battle ground for a new brand of politics – Ketuanan Rakyat.
Malaysiakini
21/03/09
Just as we have heard the assurance from the DPM Najib Abdul Rajak that BN will not be dispensing “instant mee” projects in Batang Ai, Sarawak BN ministers have begun to rain development goodies from the sky on the lucky voters of Batang Ai.
PBB deputy president Abang Johari immediately responded to the DPM’s assurance that indeed there are no such things as “instant noodle” projects in Sarawak.
Their words are still warm in my ears when I read about an announcement by the PRS president and Sarawak Minister for Land Development James Masing that the state government has agreed to spend RM12 million to tar-seal the link road at the Batang Ai Resettlement Scheme.
In fact, various government figures had a short while ago promised to develop telecommunication infrastructure at Lubok Antu to the tune of RM40 million. A sum of RM400,000 has also been promised to subsidise fuel for all those river-plying motor boats in Batang Ai. I am told that sum of cash has been dished out in the last few days.
Must a YB die first?
In his latest posting, Joseph Tawie – host of the Sarawak blog The Broken Shield - has these wry remarks to make:
“Again look at Kapit (James Masing’s own constituency). It has waited 45 years for a trunk road to be constructed linking it with other towns in the state. Until today there are only talks.
How the people of Kapit wish that a YB should die in office so that the construction of the road can be materialized. Cruel it seems to be, but that is the truth. Projects are waiting for elections. No elections, no projects.”
Was it Alfred Jabu or another minister who had earlier proclaimed that only BN government can deliver the goods to the people and opposition parties can only talk but cannot act. Opposition parties that cannot deliver instant material benefits should not exist.
With talk like that, we can expect the sprinkle of instant noodle raining down on Batang Ai to gather momentum and turn into a heavy downpour of development projects and cash from the sky, thus slapping Najib right in the face.
When I started out as a political novice in the local opposition branch in Kuching in 1978, that was the BN argument, and I was horrified to discover that this piece of twisted political sophistry worked even with the urban Chinese voters. It probably still works in smaller towns. It took me three or four years of constantly refuting this argument before its hold on Kuching voters was loosened!
Thirty years later, like a broken record, the Sarawak BN is still singing this insane tune in Batang Ai. Then again, you cannot blame them for being so boring in their ancient song; they have no other song to offer. It will probably work with a large section of Batang Ai voters, especially the village headmen and members of his village development committee, because they would be the first recipients of this windfall of goodies.
It is the first duty of the opposition campaigners on Ground Zero in Batang Ai to take this opportunity to discuss the principles of democracy in modern Sarawak.
The money for development does not come out from the personal pockets of the BN parties or their leaders. It comes from the rakyat of Sarawak in the form of taxes. It belongs to the people of Sarawak. All Sarawakians are entitled to development projects as a matter of fundamental human right, and not from charity, or as a currency to coerce support for the ruling parties.
Any political coalition in power who uses development projects as a tool in this carrot-and-stick game to garner votes hold the voters of Batang Ai in grave contempt, and should be punished with a defeat at the poll.
What politics of development?
Sarawak has joined Malaysia in 1963. In those long 45 years, many elections have been held involving the voters of Batang Ai. If the myth of the politics of development preached by BN is true, how come the people of Batang Ai are still living in such undeveloped state, without a hospital to serve her 22,000 residents, and without a bank even! How come 56 of the 123 longhouses still cannot enjoy access to the towns by land transport?
The Batang Ai Dam has been built for two decades now, and how come a large number of the Batang people are still pining for affordable electricity supply? The list goes on forever.
The answer is simple – the politics of development is a lie, a myth created to hold the people to ransom, so the ruling class can stay in power forever and become fabulously rich by feathering their nests and feasting on public resources that ought to be enjoyed first by the poor people of Batang Ai and countless other Sarawakians through this bountiful land.
In an actual ceramah, I will use far stronger polemic to illustrate my point, including the names of reptiles and animals which are familiar to the Ibans. We have to ask: who is the real Bujang Senang of Sarawak?
The deep flaw in the argument put forth by this politics of development is that it tries to identify the state government with the ruling BN coalition. This distortion of truth may be obvious to enlightened readers of Malaysiakini, but it has to be analysed for the people of Batang Ai. Why, I even read a piece parroting this distortion of truth on a Sarawak blog!
If the opposition coalition wins and forms the state government, they too can implement development projects in the interest of the rural people as a matter of their responsibility. They may do a better job without the corruption, and the rakyat and the civil societies will make sure they stay clean.
Batang Ai is the beginning of the liberation of the Sarawak people from the grip of feudalistic bondage, the first step in a 10,000 long march towards freedom from poverty and under-development, toward an equitable distribution of wealth and equitable educational facilities. Those statements above I said to the Kuching people. Thirty years later, the same message should be sent to the voters of Batang Ai.
They should be reminded of the first principles of any democracy. A democratic government is a government for the people, by the people, and of the people. A democracy is a polity in which the people are king. It is the duty of any democratically elected government to serve the people well, especially in ensuring public security, personal safety, and socio-economic development in the pursuit of happiness.
If the elected officials of the state think that they can hold the people to ransom by using development projects as a tool in this carrot-and-stick tactic, as if development projects are theirs to give, then they think they are kings of Sarawak. They think they are the Brooke Rajahs, the British colonialists, the old absolute monarchs who lord over their subjects. If so, they have usurped the sovereignty of the people! They have made slaves of the people, when the people ought to be the masters of the politicians! They must be removed at all costs.
A PKR cow will get my vote
If so, then the people of Batang Ai and everywhere throughout the Fair Land of Sarawak need to restore the sovereignty of the people by ejecting the BN candidate into the rapids of the river in Batang Ai.
The real issue is not who will be the PKR candidate. For me personally, even if the PKR sends a cow as a candidate to contest in the by-election, I will still vote for the cow - if I can vote there. The cow is a very useful animal; it is far more useful than the BN top dogs who masquerade themselves as kings and lords preaching the false doctrine of politics of development.
The real issue is also not really about whether the BN or the PKR can serve the Batang Ai voters better. There are many ways to serve the voters. You do not have to serve the people by giving them fish fry, fertilizer, zinc roof, tar, schools, fuel for the boats, like a father Christmas, or a charitable towkay giving alms to beggars. You can also serve them by empowering them, organising them for social actions, teaching them how to claim back their rights, Like Baru Bian and friends is doing.
The real war is between the deprived people of Sarawak against a small group of leaders at the top of the political food chain in Sarawak. Toppling them is the most important item on the agenda. Nothing else counts. Batang Ai is the first battle for the new beginning in Sarawak politics.
Batang Ai is the battle ground for a new brand of politics – Ketuanan Rakyat.
Malaysiakini
21/03/09
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