Keep struggling until the house of card falls
And arrogantly, BN thinks it can justify this approach by pumping more money into development projects for Sarawak, using the stale reason of “you are not grateful for development” as a means to silence its critics, and “you cannot survive without BN” to shackle the public.
By Maclean Patrick, Free Malaysia Today
Sometimes, I wish we had more stories of firemen saving cats stuck in trees. Flip through any local daily in Sarawak and you are bombarded with news reports that are politically slanted.
It is tiring to wade through stories upon stories of the grandiose achievements of the government and the misdeeds of the opposition.
The focus of the news reports is more on the survival of the political entity than on the everyday lay person. A foreigner can be forgiven if he/she exclaims, “Everything here is only about politics.”
Which brings me to a question I am asked often: How can Pakatan Rakyat succeed in Sarawak?
It is an interesting question, as it highlights Pakatan’s struggle to gain a foothold and eventually to capture the state in order to have a stake in the governance of Malaysia.
In fact, I think the question is wrong. Instead, a better question is, how can Pakatan continue to strive in Sarawak? Losing the battle does not mean one has lost the war. Pakatan can still carry on the struggle, given the weaknesses of the Barisan Nasional (BN).
Sarawak has become the house of cards in the formation of a government and it would serve that role predominantly in the next general election. And it could very well be the Achilles’ heel of the BN political dream.
Here are BN’s weaknesses.
Firstly, BN is over-dependent on Sarawak for its political survival.
What can be deemed as a stronghold can also be deemed as its weakest link. And if Pakatan knows its war strategy well, it can well learn and capitalise from this weak spot.
Arrogant and pompous
Secondly, BN has grown arrogant and pompous as evident from the various speeches made during the recent Umno gathering. It believes that the world revolves around it, that life itself would be destroyed without the glue of Umno and BN to hold it together, and that we need the very air only BN can afford to give us.
Bung Mokhtar Radin (BN-Kinabatangan), in his typical vocal fashion, slammed the Pakatan representatives for opposing the RM5 billion “Warisan Merdeka” project, dishing out the ever popular, “you are not grateful for development” line that has become the BN mantra of choice.
It seems that when Malaysians are quiet and “supportive”, we are grateful for development, but when they oppose, Malaysians are “not grateful”.
It must be noted that it is not only the Pakatan representatives who are crying foul over this project but everyday Malaysians, too. And this too is BN’s Achilles’ heel.
BN may have all the resources to overwhelm Pakatan in Sarawak but resources alone cannot win over the hearts and minds of the common people.
BN has become deaf to the voices of the people of Sarawak over abuses perpetrated by the current establishment. It has shut its eyes and sanctioned the systematic exploitation of Sarawak’s resources.
And arrogantly, BN thinks it can justify this approach by pumping more money into development projects for Sarawak, using the stale reason of “you are not grateful for development” as a means to silence its critics, and “you cannot survive without BN” to shackle the public.
Pakatan can erode BN’s influence, guerilla style. Firstly, it should not take on BN pound for pound but instead aim small; don’t play the English chess but instead the Chinese game of Go.
Secondly, Pakatan should play the role of a comforting companion and confidante to the Sarawak public. It needs to assure the people that it can survive without the shadow of BN. It is a tall task but one that is not impossible.
