I LOVE PM!

By : ISKANDAR DZULKARNAIN

PRIME MINISTER Najib Tun Razak’s appeal to Malaysians to give him the mandate to change and revamp Barisan Nasional is timely. How can there be change if Malaysians continue to ignore BN like the plague?

For 50 years, BN has strived to develop the country with great success and it would have achieved its goal by end-2008, if not for the rude interruption when it was uprooted by the opposition.

Since then it was a downhill battle for BN to maintain its successful development programmes as its policies were opposed at every turn by the opposition which maintained a stranglehold on everything proposed by BN, just for the sake of opposing.

The Pakatan Rakyat front constantly accused BN of runaway corruption, even though there was no concrete proof. How can the police and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) act or investigate if there is no proof to act on?

Of course, there were some black sheep in the civil service who took small bribes, but that’s about it. We cannot lump innocent BN politicians together with these black sheep.

Affirmative action has been taken to stem the corruption and today the nation stands at a prestigious ranking of 54th in a list of 176 most corrupt nations in the world. What an achievement!

Most BN politicians are corrupt-free and the odd ones involved in cattle rustling, palatial homes or PKFZ have been charged. Najib’s administration has made it very clear that corruption will never be tolerated as it will give BN a bad name.

Character assassination

Since Najib attained the premiership, there was no stop to the wild accusations levelled against him from Altantuya Shaariibuu to the Scorpene submarines scandal, but no one has any real proof to back up such wild allegations.

The relentless accusations have not stopped, but the leader of the nation has kept his cool, refraining from taking any action against such loose talk and crude accusations, as any court case would take up the precious time he needs to govern the nation.

The fact that Najib continues to be prime minister for four years is proof that the rakyat is behind him and they know that Najib is as innocent as a baby.

Failing miserably to assassinate his character, they even went after the first lady Rosmah Mansor.

Rosmah has strived so hard to be the perfect first lady, engaging in charitable causes for children and a recipient of many international awards of recognition. They went after the rings she wore, and the handbags she collected, and even commented on her hairdo. How lame is that?

Styling himself as the guardian of the rakyat, Najib’s style of politics is cool and exciting, while his ideas are ingenious and unlike his predecessors he is a decisive person and does not flip-flop like a fish gasping for air.

The wild allegations have not stopped Najib from becoming one of the most popular prime ministers in the country, judging from the thousands who continue to don the “I love PM” golf caps and banners.

Easily the best candidate within Umno and BN, it was only natural that he became the prime minister. His dedication and honesty to come clean, and his passion to change the present administration and develop the country, has made him a runaway from the rest of the Umno pack, with all the leaders breathlessly trying to catch up with him.

So while Umno and BN remain weak, Najib with his infectious smile has caught the imagination of most Malaysians.

Unlike his deputy, a Malay First and then Malaysian, Najib is “Rakyat first before the party (Umno)”. In short, he would not forsake the rakyat just to defend his party.

During his tenure, he has worked non-stop to prop up a weak BN. His transformation programmes like the GTP, ETP and PTP have borne fruit and Malaysia is now in an enviable position compared to the rest of the Asian countries.

The role of the BN coalition

Najib is confident that Umno is 100% behind him, despite all the rumours that Umno is split in between. It would continue with the Bumiputra Agenda through Teraju. If the Chinese and Indians do not want to be sidelined, they would need MCA and MIC to back them unconditionally.

Running to the opposition with their grouses and complaints would not solve anything as Pakatan is incapable of solving any issues as it keeps harping on racial unity and a Malaysia for Malaysians. Pakatan also thinks that it can discard race polemics and administer a country based on citizenship alone. How naïve of them!

The only thing Umno is sore about is that PAS – an Islamic party – decided to cooperate with Pakatan. Umno is Malay and therefore a Muslim party, therefore it is only natural for PAS to unite with Umno, and not with a non-Muslim party like DAP. When is PAS going to come to its senses?

Heavily criticised for delaying the general election, Najib only has the rakyat at heart. Knowing that BN is pretty sure to win the election, Najib is merely allowing the opposition some leeway and a more level playing field instead of snuffing them out prematurely like mosquitoes, if the election were to be held one year ago.

At least today, the opposition stands a fighting chance, compared to last year. Of course, the opposition is not going to appreciate his sacrifice or give him a word of thanks.

Najib also stresses that the Pakatan coalition lacks experience to rule a country as diverse as Malaysia, and Malaysians should not change the government unnecessarily and gamble their future away.

Even our sovereignty would be at risk after three years of opposition rule. Affirmative action for the Bumiputera would come to a halt, and national bankruptcy cannot be discounted. Malays, too, would lose political power and be oppressed while Islam would be at risk.

The Indians, too, would be unnecessarily marginalised if MIC loses power. The Chinese would lose their representation in Parliament, and the Malays would be a slave in their own land. In fact, everyone loses, while Pakatan gains.

Muslims may lose their moderate lifestyle, and the LGBT community may flourish. Liberalism and Pluralism would be a daily occurrence.

If BN retains its two-thirds majority, racial and religious strife would disappear in a flash. There would be no threat of a May 13. And PAS version of hudud would not see the light of day. Everyone would live happily ever after or at least until the 14th general election.

There would be no more land scandals like Talam, housing or unisex salon scandals like in opposition-held states, filled with reckless drivers racing at breakneck speeds due to the lack of AES enforcement.

See how peaceful BN-ruled states are compared to scandal-tainted opposition-held states? Even their chief ministers are scandal-free compared to the daily reports of chief ministers in opposition-held states mismanaging their civic duties.

1Malaysia

The ingenious 1Malaysia theme mooted by Najib is today a shadow of its former self due largely to opposition attacks and Pakatan’s divide-and-rule policies. The country has never seen such a rare breakdown of race relationships until BN lost its two-thirds majority.

Today, it still remains vague as many of the rakyat struggle to grasp its true meaning due largely to an opposition smokescreen.

Luckily, today we still have the 1Malaysia logo embedded in all our food items, and forever etched into the 1Malaysia shops that offer a cheaper alternative to consumers. If not for this, the 1Malaysia theme would have become a dinosaur and would have died without a whimper.

Today, the Chinese and Indians have forgotten the sacrifices and struggles made by MCA and MIC, while the Malays are dicing with the notion of changing the government. Many are taken in by the sweet promises of the opposition.

Malaysians must accept the fact that petrol prices would rise further. Electricity and water would go up inevitably. We cannot blame it on BN for the mismanagement of Petronas, or subsidising the independent power producers (IPPs) or for new dams that would ensure us a constant, uninterrupted water supply. Why lower car prices if everyone can afford to pay more? Imagine all the taxes that can be collected and used to develop this country further.

PTPTN loans are not free and neither should we oppose the AES system that was designed to save lives. What is a RM300 fine for the brain-sizzling adrenalin of speeding down the highway at 300kmh?

The highway and bridge tolls are for us to part with loose change, so why bother to change to toll-free highways?

The humongous Lynas Rare Earth and the Pengerang Petrochemicals plants are for the good of the country, and we should not oppose it for the sake of opposing.

Meritocracy would deny weaker students from higher education and deny below average officers from being justly promoted.

Open tenders would lead to too much competition, lesser profits and lower quality end-products.

Opening up the civil service to other races may dilute the high quality of services rendered to the rakyat.

In conclusion

We must learn to trust the BN government as it knows what’s best for us. It is fated by God that Umno and BN should rule until the end of time. So why must godly Malaysians try so hard to question BN’s divine role?

Today, Najib believes that the youth (2.9 million new voters) would be more discerning in their choice than the die-hard opposition supporters who are intellectually challenged.

Najib needs our mandate badly so that he can go about to reform Umno and BN. It would not be just a little transformation, but a massive one like “The Transformers”. He has also promised to deliver.

How can anyone in their right frame of mind not give him another chance to prove himself?

Tour consultant, sports pilot and naturalist Iskandar Dzulkarnain has been writing a few years now. He is a FMT columnist.