Is Daim actually attacking Mahathir?
Daim ni mabuk ketum ke? Cakap apa ni? Is he attacking Umno-PAS or is he attacking Mahathir? What Daim said applies to Mahathir, not to Umno-PAS. What else is Daim going to say, that what happened in New Zealand is because of the Umno-PAS cooperation?
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Is this a veiled attack on Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad? What Tun Daim Zainuddin said, as reported (BELOW) by the Malay Mail Online, is as if Daim was trying to send Mahathir a message.
When Mahathir launched his attack on Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (Pak Lah) in June 2006, he used the race card to convince the Malays as to why Pak Lah must be ousted. Mahathir used the example of how the Melaka Empire fell to the foreign powers because the Malays were divided.
When Mahathir started his first attack on Najib Tun Razak soon after GE13 in 2013, he also used the race card. Mahathir accused Najib of wasting his time with the Chinese who will never vote Umno-BN anyway while neglecting the Malays who are the ones keeping Umno-BN in power.
The same happened in 1969 when Mahathir wanted to oust Tunku Abdul Rahman. Mahathir accused the Tunku of being a Chinese stooge and said ‘May 13’ erupted because the Malays were very angry as to how biadap (insolent) the Chinese had become.
In November 1999, Mahathir went live on TV to warn the Chinese if they did not vote for BN and if BN failed to win two-thirds majority in Parliament, then the government will be too weak to guarantee the security of the nation and the safety of its citizens. Mahathir then sent army trucks to ‘patrol’ the Chinese areas to demonstrate what will happen post-GE10 if BN wins but fails to win two-thirds.
Daim ni mabuk ketum ke? Cakap apa ni? Is he attacking Umno-PAS or is he attacking Mahathir? What Daim said applies to Mahathir, not to Umno-PAS. What else is Daim going to say, that what happened in New Zealand is because of the Umno-PAS cooperation?
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Think with your head, not your heart, Daim tells Malays
(Malay Mail Online) – Tun Daim Zainuddin advised Malays not to fall for fear mongering tactics by politicians claiming that they were being threatened by non-Malays.
The former finance minister said that instead of depending on logic and facts, Malays preferred to buy into the racist rhetoric of politicians with irrational narratives, such as threats against Islam and Malay rights.
“We have allowed our emotions to run wild and influence the way we see others,” Daim told a room full of academics during a talk at the “Naratif Malaysia: Melayu dalam Persoalan National” at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia in Skudai, Johor Baru yesterday.
“Instead of depending on logic and facts, we prefer to buy in to the racist rhetoric of politicians with dubious reputations.
“Religion cannot be insulted, only people can be. If our faith is strong, we do not get insulted. In fact, we laugh at such ignorance and our behaviour should reflect the best of our religions so that we and our religion earn the respect of others,” he added.
A recent change in the political landscape has seen rivals Umno and PAS form a fruitful alliance that saw Barisan Nasional (BN) win the Cameron Highlands and Semenyih by-elections back-to-back.
Their tactic was to champion Malay-Muslim rights, claiming the new Pakatan Harapan (PH) government does not care about the interests of the Malays.
This move has created a fear among some Bumiputera and Malays that they no longer hold a special position in the country as accorded to them in the Constitution.
Many were also purportedly displeased with the number of non-Malay ministers in Cabinet, something Umno and PAS leaders have repeatedly brought up as a threat to Malays.
“There is so much anger and indignation when non-Malays were appointed to high posts in the government, as if this is something new,” added Daim.
The PH government has non-Malay ministers like Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, Minister of Primary Industries Teresa Kok, Minister of Water, Land and Natural Resources Dr Xavier Jeyakumar, Minister of Human Resources M. Kulasegaran and many more.
“Why is there not the same anger when we are confronted with facts of corruption and kleptocracy of the highest order among our Malay leaders?” Daim asked.
“We don’t feel offended when it was prime news all over the world. Instead, we respond with ‘Malu apa’. ‘Kalau “tak malu”, apa jadi kepada iman kita?’ (If we’re not embarrassed then what’s happened to our faith?),” added Daim, referring to former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s social media persona “Malu apa Bossku”.
Daim felt it was high time the Malays be open to change and be a part of that change instead of just focusing on themselves.
“Do we change and become a force to reckon within the context of the national agenda, Malaysia Baru, or do we go down the path we are currently treading and proclaim a narrative that is narrow, focused only on ourselves?” asked Daim.
“The Malays can continue down this emotional and irrational path at our own peril or we can stop, think, reflect and call for change.”
