Big Bully?
Bully politics drives discontent, ignores the needs of the people, using fear in place of responsibility.
What does bullying have to do with politics? Far too much, sadly.
Bully politics adopts a "for-me-or-against-me" posture, led by one who prefers to crush their enemies rather than allow them a voice.
It's an abuse of a position to secure and maintain power.
It's a contrived, manipulative political agenda, where voters become spectators and those who try to speak up and become engaged are quickly quieted by political handlers.
A well-used tool of political bullying is the fanatical control of all communications, a management style embraced by our ruling power.
The UMNO-owned Malay daily Utusan Malaysia has come under fire numerous times for carrying articles with a racial slant.
Ethnic Malays comprise about 60 percent of Malaysia's 27 million people.
Minorities include large ethnic Chinese and Indian communities, who are mainly Buddhists, Christians and Hindus.
In Malaysia, UMNO has over-dominated the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition at the expense of other component parties.
In September 2009 Penang UMNO division chief Datuk Ahmad Ismail exhibited supreme arrogance when he showed no remorse for calling Malaysian Chinese" immigrants " ("pendatangs) at a rally in the run-up to the Permatang Pauh by-election.
And when Gerakan stood up to him, he behaved just like a schoolyard bully.
He asked for Gerakan to be kicked out of the BN.
The then chairman of BN and president of UMNO, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and the party's supreme council members only took disciplinary action against the Bukit Bendera politician after being pushed into a corner.
Even then, it was half-hearted attempt to apply balm on the raw feelings of the non-Malays.
Ethnic Malays comprise about 60 percent of Malaysia's 27 million people.
Minorities include large ethnic Chinese and Indian communities, who are mainly Buddhists, Christians and Hindus.
A poll by the Merdeka Centre in July 2009 showed that 66% of Chinese and 60.
1% of Indians agree that the BN does not represent the voice of all communities.
A Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) division leader has described Umno at the federal level and Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu (PBB) in Sarawak as 'too dominant' and indeed are 'bullies' in their dealings with smaller component parties in the Barisan Nasional.
In Sarawak, PRS, a component party inside the state and federal Barisan Nasional has been bullied by what could collectively be called the 'BN leadership'.
The BN system has generated a state-level entity where there has been one dominant party - the PBB which is leading the state BN government.
There were two instances of UMNO and PBB bullying PRS.
The first was during the 2006 state election when a component BN party was 'allowed' to steal a PRS seat.
Neither the state nor federal BN intervened effectively to stop a component party from interfering in the affairs of another.
Where was BN when effective action was needed? It was as if the BN was shutting its proverbial 'eye' to the intra-BN infighting in Sarawak.
By letting the problem fester, it was acting as a bully, not a problem solver.
The second incident was during the March general election when two of the party's candidates were rejected without any reason.
Why was PBB allowed to choose its candidates to contest on PRS seats? "Where is the principle that component parties ought to be free to conduct their own affairs and make the selection of candidates themselves? Is this not a case of dominance and bullying?" As a result, PRS was caught in a dilemma.
PRS could have rejected the suggested replacements or it could have accepted them.
A refusal to accept the replacement candidates could have left the party open to accusations of being disloyal to BN, a grave enough political sin.
Such a move would have put PRS leadership in hot soup and perhaps alienate the party from BN.
The impact on PRS was that it was a tremendous 'let down'.
The perception was that a partner in Sarawak BN - the PBB - was being 'too dominant'.
The BN top leadership should realize that the coalition must wake up to current political realities and stop being in a state of denial.
The National Front suffered a stinging blow in March general elections when a multiracial opposition alliance made unprecedented gains, winning 82 seats in the 222-member Parliament by promising to treat all ethnic communities equally.
Before, there was only BN which could provide the national leadership.
After March 2008, PRS has realize that they have perhaps other better options.
We shall see the test of time.
Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng recently in March 2010 blasted Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah for his racial slur during the Penang Malay Chamber of Commerce dinner.
Ahmad Husni was reported saying that if the Chinese in Penang bully the Malays, the Malays would bully the Chinese.
Lim Guan Eng cited Ahmad Husni's statement as being appalling, inciting racial sentiments and seditious.
"It is not the Chinese bullying the Malays or vice versa, neither is there any form of bullying in Penang, but it has been the Barisan Nasional and UMNO which has been bullying Penangnites over the past 52 years," he added.
Lim said being the second finance minister, Ahmad Husni should have based his allegations on facts and figures instead of trying to incite hatred and making emotional and baseless statements.
Lim quoted figures from the Public Works Department-funded projects in Penang which showed the number of contracts awarded to bumiputra contractors in the state.
In 2009, all 125 projects worth RM4.
4 million (under RM200,000) and tender above RM200,000, 24 projects worth RM4.
01 million were all given to bumiputras while in 2008, 158 projects worth RM9.
25 million (under RM200,000) and nine projects above RM200,000 worth RM5.
52 million were all awarded to bumiputra contractors.
Our former Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad took a leap forward recently to undermine further his legacy by launching the PERKASA's inaugural congress.
PERKASA is the radical side of UMNO.
Dr Mahathir told the congress that PERKASA's existence was due to a weak UMNO and that the government should listen to the Malays, not just the non-Malays.
Now, we know that Vision 2020 is piece of useless policy paper and a public relations spin.
PERKASA is undermining Najb's 1Malaysia initiative.
Other race based parties in Barisan such as MIC and MCA are suffering a loss of popularity and political relevance because they never insisted that UMNO listen also to the non-Malays who are legitimate Malaysians.
Two ethnic Chinese Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders have openly snubbed Perkasa Youth's demand for an apology, continuing instead to criticise the Malay rights group by saying that its struggles were not in line with the prime minister's 1 Malaysia concept.
The Malaysian political landscape is set for more turmoil in the days to come right up to the next GE.
BN & UMNO's nightmare scenario is for the urban, educated Malays together with Indian and Chinese minorities and together with people from the rebellious Sabah and Sarawak provinces, uniting to form a parliamentary majority.
What does bullying have to do with politics? Far too much, sadly.
Bully politics adopts a "for-me-or-against-me" posture, led by one who prefers to crush their enemies rather than allow them a voice.
It's an abuse of a position to secure and maintain power.
It's a contrived, manipulative political agenda, where voters become spectators and those who try to speak up and become engaged are quickly quieted by political handlers.
A well-used tool of political bullying is the fanatical control of all communications, a management style embraced by our ruling power.
The UMNO-owned Malay daily Utusan Malaysia has come under fire numerous times for carrying articles with a racial slant.
Ethnic Malays comprise about 60 percent of Malaysia's 27 million people.
Minorities include large ethnic Chinese and Indian communities, who are mainly Buddhists, Christians and Hindus.
In Malaysia, UMNO has over-dominated the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition at the expense of other component parties.
In September 2009 Penang UMNO division chief Datuk Ahmad Ismail exhibited supreme arrogance when he showed no remorse for calling Malaysian Chinese" immigrants " ("pendatangs) at a rally in the run-up to the Permatang Pauh by-election.
And when Gerakan stood up to him, he behaved just like a schoolyard bully.
He asked for Gerakan to be kicked out of the BN.
The then chairman of BN and president of UMNO, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and the party's supreme council members only took disciplinary action against the Bukit Bendera politician after being pushed into a corner.
Even then, it was half-hearted attempt to apply balm on the raw feelings of the non-Malays.
Ethnic Malays comprise about 60 percent of Malaysia's 27 million people.
Minorities include large ethnic Chinese and Indian communities, who are mainly Buddhists, Christians and Hindus.
A poll by the Merdeka Centre in July 2009 showed that 66% of Chinese and 60.
1% of Indians agree that the BN does not represent the voice of all communities.
A Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) division leader has described Umno at the federal level and Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu (PBB) in Sarawak as 'too dominant' and indeed are 'bullies' in their dealings with smaller component parties in the Barisan Nasional.
In Sarawak, PRS, a component party inside the state and federal Barisan Nasional has been bullied by what could collectively be called the 'BN leadership'.
The BN system has generated a state-level entity where there has been one dominant party - the PBB which is leading the state BN government.
There were two instances of UMNO and PBB bullying PRS.
The first was during the 2006 state election when a component BN party was 'allowed' to steal a PRS seat.
Neither the state nor federal BN intervened effectively to stop a component party from interfering in the affairs of another.
Where was BN when effective action was needed? It was as if the BN was shutting its proverbial 'eye' to the intra-BN infighting in Sarawak.
By letting the problem fester, it was acting as a bully, not a problem solver.
The second incident was during the March general election when two of the party's candidates were rejected without any reason.
Why was PBB allowed to choose its candidates to contest on PRS seats? "Where is the principle that component parties ought to be free to conduct their own affairs and make the selection of candidates themselves? Is this not a case of dominance and bullying?" As a result, PRS was caught in a dilemma.
PRS could have rejected the suggested replacements or it could have accepted them.
A refusal to accept the replacement candidates could have left the party open to accusations of being disloyal to BN, a grave enough political sin.
Such a move would have put PRS leadership in hot soup and perhaps alienate the party from BN.
The impact on PRS was that it was a tremendous 'let down'.
The perception was that a partner in Sarawak BN - the PBB - was being 'too dominant'.
The BN top leadership should realize that the coalition must wake up to current political realities and stop being in a state of denial.
The National Front suffered a stinging blow in March general elections when a multiracial opposition alliance made unprecedented gains, winning 82 seats in the 222-member Parliament by promising to treat all ethnic communities equally.
Before, there was only BN which could provide the national leadership.
After March 2008, PRS has realize that they have perhaps other better options.
We shall see the test of time.
Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng recently in March 2010 blasted Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah for his racial slur during the Penang Malay Chamber of Commerce dinner.
Ahmad Husni was reported saying that if the Chinese in Penang bully the Malays, the Malays would bully the Chinese.
Lim Guan Eng cited Ahmad Husni's statement as being appalling, inciting racial sentiments and seditious.
"It is not the Chinese bullying the Malays or vice versa, neither is there any form of bullying in Penang, but it has been the Barisan Nasional and UMNO which has been bullying Penangnites over the past 52 years," he added.
Lim said being the second finance minister, Ahmad Husni should have based his allegations on facts and figures instead of trying to incite hatred and making emotional and baseless statements.
Lim quoted figures from the Public Works Department-funded projects in Penang which showed the number of contracts awarded to bumiputra contractors in the state.
In 2009, all 125 projects worth RM4.
4 million (under RM200,000) and tender above RM200,000, 24 projects worth RM4.
01 million were all given to bumiputras while in 2008, 158 projects worth RM9.
25 million (under RM200,000) and nine projects above RM200,000 worth RM5.
52 million were all awarded to bumiputra contractors.
Our former Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad took a leap forward recently to undermine further his legacy by launching the PERKASA's inaugural congress.
PERKASA is the radical side of UMNO.
Dr Mahathir told the congress that PERKASA's existence was due to a weak UMNO and that the government should listen to the Malays, not just the non-Malays.
Now, we know that Vision 2020 is piece of useless policy paper and a public relations spin.
PERKASA is undermining Najb's 1Malaysia initiative.
Other race based parties in Barisan such as MIC and MCA are suffering a loss of popularity and political relevance because they never insisted that UMNO listen also to the non-Malays who are legitimate Malaysians.
Two ethnic Chinese Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders have openly snubbed Perkasa Youth's demand for an apology, continuing instead to criticise the Malay rights group by saying that its struggles were not in line with the prime minister's 1 Malaysia concept.
The Malaysian political landscape is set for more turmoil in the days to come right up to the next GE.
BN & UMNO's nightmare scenario is for the urban, educated Malays together with Indian and Chinese minorities and together with people from the rebellious Sabah and Sarawak provinces, uniting to form a parliamentary majority.
Source...