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Sunday, April 20, 2008

Let us get one thing very clear










Barisan Nasional did not lose these five states. Pakatan Rakyat did not win these five states. It was the people who decided that they wanted to get back control of these fives states.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

When the opposition went around campaigning in the run-up to the recent general election, the message that was sent to the voters was:

Let the people kick out Barisan Nasional and take back this country. Let the people sack the government and claim back this country. Let the people show Barisan Nasional the potency of People’s Power, Makhal Sakhti, Kuasa Rakyat. Let the people grab control of this country and send Barisan Nasional into retirement. It is time the people show the government who owns this country. The people are the boss, the government works for the people. The people should not be afraid of the government, the government should be afraid of the people.

Yes, that and more was the message the people wanted to send to Barisan Nasional. And the people did send Barisan Nasional this message. Today, Barisan Nasional has lost control of five states. It has also, in theory, lost control of Kuala Lumpur if not for the fact that Kuala Lumpur comes directly under the control of the Federal Government through the Federal Territory Minister. And, of course, Barisan Nasional has also lost its two-thirds majority in Parliament.

Now that new governments have been formed in these five states, Pakatan Rakyat appears to be overlooking one fundamental issue. Barisan Nasional did not lose these five states. Pakatan Rakyat did not win these five states. It was the people who decided that they wanted to get back control of these fives states. And the people did this by appointing Pakatan Rakyat as their trustee to run these fives states.

That’s right. Pakatan Rakyat is not the government in these five states. The people are. But the people can’t all be running these five states so they entrusted these states to the care of Pakatan Rakyat. So Pakatan Rakyat, the trustee, has to go back to the people to find out how they would like these states run.

Pakatan Rakyat must perish the thought that the people gave them a mandate on 8 March 2008 and now that they have that mandate they can do what they like. Pakatan Rakyat must erase from their mind that now that they are in power they need no longer talk to the people until the next election five years or so from now. Pakatan Rakyat must not harbour the fallacy that now that they are in charge they can decide how they would like to run the five states.

No, do not accuse the people of interfering in how the states are being run. Do not think that you are the government so it is your job to run the states the way you would like them run. Do not imagine that the people have done their job on 8 March 2008 so now the people should just sit back and allow Pakatan Rakyat to take over and get down to the business of running the states. The people are the stakeholders and Pakatan Rakyat is merely the manager, paid to do a job from money that comes out of the pockets of the people.

Malaysia is owned the people, the stakeholders. The five states are also owned by these stakeholders. The stakeholders sacked the old managers and employed new managers to replace them. And the stakeholders will decide how these new managers will conduct themselves.

The stakeholders have spoken. The stakeholders have made their decision. The stakeholders were not happy with the old management. The stakeholders have changed the management. The stakeholders want the new management to do better and to do things differently. But has the new management asked the stakeholders what it is about the old management that they were not happy with? Has the new management called the stakeholders for a meeting to ask the stakeholders what it is that they want?

There are thousands of people waiting; Malays, Chinese, Indians and ‘lain-lain’. They are waiting to be called to come forward to serve their country. They are waiting to be summoned for national service. They are ready to fulfil their national duty. All they need is for the word to be given. Then thousands of people, the Rakyat, the voters, the stakeholders, will come forward to provide the best brains to help run the states they grabbed back from Barisan Nasional.

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