Malam ini penyu menari… Tonight, the turtle will tango

Is Terengganu in general inching to become the sixth state of the Pakatan Rakyat, making it an accomplishment for an evolving democracy?Will more states turn "yellow" after the March 8 revolution?

A REPUBLIC OF VIRTUE

Azly Rahman
http://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/2009/01/focus-on-trengganu-victory-speech-part.html
 

The metaphor of the turtles crying seems to be a popular one in Malaysia, as it relates to the recently concluded by-election of Kuala Trengganu which granted the votes of victory to Malaysia's Islamic party PAS.

After decades of rule by Barisan Nasional the people of Kuala Terengganu are ready for change after experiencing and seeing that not only the state development projects benefiting the few in the ruling regime but seeing their demands for change met with arrogance and shows of force.Whatever the National Front has done seemingly for the betterment of the people of Kuala Terengganu and Malaysia, change is still inevitable. The Barisan Nasional's "best" is not good enough, especially in the areas of human rights, economic equality, education, and distributive justice.

Is Terengganu in general inching to become the sixth state of the Pakatan Rakyat, making it an accomplishment for an evolving democracy?Will more states turn "yellow" after the March 8 revolution?

The victory of the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) in Permatang Pauh inspired the victory in Kuala Terengganu. The precedence for victory was set by the victory of the Pakatan Rakyat in the March 8, 2008 election which shook Barisan Nasional leaders to their bones.

After the celebration, PAS Government of Kuala Terengganu will need to think the following:

– Express gratitude to voters, leaders, bloggers and honor their effort
– Forge meaningful solidarity with parties in the Pakatan Rakyat
– Create a compelling vision for change and manage perception of a party that is truly progressive
– Show how a better Malaysia for all Malaysians works
– Continue to be prepared in the ideological battlefield
– Investigate what happened to the money (from the royalty) from Trengganu oil
– Focus on economic realism, especially in times of national and global crisis
– Enhance cultural advancement and saving the youth from cultural degeneration
– Construct a meaningful developmental paradigm; one that focuses on ethics and cultural development, prioritizing basic needs versus greed
– Prioritize education for intellectual advancement, good citizenship, and intercultural and inter-religious understanding

I am sharing with you a set of almost daily notes (beginning with the two below) focusing on Kuala Terengganu I gathered since the beginning of the by-election. They appear on my blog:

http://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/2008/12/will-trengganu-turn-yellow-too.html

http://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/2008/12/cool-tamil-rappers-doing-ulek-mayang.html

LET US WISH KUALA TERENGGANU WELL. THE QUESTION IS: HOW WILL THIS SYMBOLIC VICTORY SHAPE OUR POLITICS TO COME?

[OUR USUAL REMINDER, FOLKS:
While the opinion in the article is mine,
the comments are yours;
present them rationally and ethically.
AND — FREE ALL I.S.A. DETAINEES]