THE MALAYSIAN REVOLUTION OF 2008

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Revolution of the mind
By Dr Azly Rahman



“If we've lost, we've lost" - Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, at post-election press conference, March 9 2008

Kesilapan besar Abdullah antaranya walaupun beliau mempunyai anggota Majlis Tertinggi Umno dan Kabinet sebagai penasihat utamanya, namun beliau tidak mengambil pandangan mereka kerana dilaporkan beliau pernah berkata ‘I trust the young one’. - Harakah Daily.Net, March 9, 2008

(To the question: Has Umno become irrelevant?) For the moment, yes. It's not always so. If Umno serves the country well, and looks after all the different races, then Umno will be relevant again. - Dr Mahathir Mohamad, March 9, 2008

Malaysia's 12th general election must now be a possible topic of a hundred PhD dissertations. It is about a revolution in a country trapped in the excesses of hypermodernity. The revolution was aided by the power of cybernetics and the daulat of the rakyat.

It was fuelled by the ruling regime's abuse of the ideological state apparatuses. It was also a rude awakening for a leader snoozing in Sleepy Hollow. While he slept, the rakyat engineered a usurpation - a quiet and unique revolution.

This was the ethnogenesis (birth of a new culture) of hopefully a more sober and sensible Malaysia ready to work together regardless of race, colour, creed, national origin.

There is a lot of work to be done in the area of social justice, education for multi-culturalism, and development for the people, by the people, for the people.

A lot of people must also be brought to justice - those who have been for decades protected by a corrupt regime. We have seen much violation of human rights. We have seen many who voiced their opinion on matters of social justice and freedom thrown into jail and detained without trial.

We have seen, especially during the Abdullah administration, the rise of Malay politicians whose leit motif has been arrogance and perpetuation of dangerous divisive politics.

Back to the Malaysian Revolution of 2008. It was like the storming of the Bastille in France. Malaysians saw the fall of the four states and the rise of a new 'cybernetic' fourth estate. The broadcast media of the old regime gave way to the new, subaltern media of the revolutionary forces. There was no need to storm and take over Angkasapuri.

Revolutionary ideals and notions of social justice were disseminated far fast, far, and wide through the Internet. Bloggers, columnists, members of MUD (Multiuser Domains), street artists, intellectuals, social activists, and the man and woman on the street were the revolutionary soldiers.

The hegemony of the ruling party has made many skeptical of the same miraculous win as in 2004. ‘Materials, machinery, and media’, as the eminent anthropologist turned politician Syed Husin Ali would say, 'are the foundation of authoritarianism and hegemony'.

I would add that the mind of Malaysians has quietly processed what constitutes truth and justice. Silently the revolution got underway; a revolution of the mind aided by digital communication technologies spearheaded by bloggers who evolved into ‘blogo-ticians’.

Newer paradigm

Any progressive change is exciting, as long as the revolution is a peaceful one that works towards eradication of poverty, improving the intellectual climate of universities, and true religious and racial harmony.

The people of Penang, Kedah, Perak, and Selangor will now shift to a new paradigm. Tanjung II is now a reality, and DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang's dream has come true.

Universiti Utara Malaysia in Kedah will need to be in smart partnership and make intellectual adjustments to a new paradigm. The university faculty will need to read The Blue Ocean Strategy to exist in harmony with the new ruling party. Any effort to free universities from the shackles of political domination is good.

Selangor, the advanced state, will move a new level of sophistication but one founded upon sustainable development that meets the needs of people. The same goes for the paradigm of development in Perak.

Kelantan's prayers against a takeover by Barisan Nasional (BN) was answered. Some say that truth and justice will always be allies of the righteous.

Full credit goes to Malaysians from all walks of life. They are the real winners and they are not to be betrayed. Their children need a better life, through education as a means for social, economic, moral, ethical, and intellectual progress. They are much more intelligent now, after 50 years of independence.

Why did the BN fail? Take your pick:

• Massive corruption
• Rampant abuse of power
• Rise of arrogant leaders
• Lies and deceit by the Election Commission
• Racism
• Inability to engineer equitable
and sustainable development programmes
• Cronyism and nepotism
• Creation of an alienated generation
• Conspicuous consumption
• Failure to control rising prices
• Rampant abuse of the Ideological State apparatus
• Inefficient management of resources
• Blatant disregard of human rights
• Suppression of the rights of the individual
• Exploitation of the dangerous concept of
ketuanan Melayu
• Protection of corrupt leaders

The next step for the four new states is to phase out the vestiges of the old regime and to document what did not work. How did the process of underdevelopment of the rakyat happen in those decades? Documents need to be secured and analysed to prove what went wrong and how we must move forward based on the principles of total accountability.

Each state run by the new order of governance must showcase what an ethical system looks like and how the creativity and problem-solving skills of the rakyat ought to be developed. This will teach us what development based on needs means, instead of one based on greed and conspicuous consumption. The latter has destroyed this nation.

The new regime needs to bring abusers of power to justice. The universities need to be freed, the education system need to be radically improved, good healthcare plans made affordable, the Mat Rempit and Along stopped, cultural pride restored through schooling that improves higher-order thinking skills, poverty eliminated, and the independence of the judiciary restored.

The party's over but the revolution continues. Malaysians must make Malaysian Malaysia a reality.

This revolution is made possible by the daulat of the rakyat - the Makkal Sakti of Malaysia's Radical Marhaenism, conceived by many Shao Lin masters and one whose zeal was transmitted through cyberspace!

By DR. AZLY RAHMAN