To Hear and To Listen

The last ten days has been a merry go round for most of us. We are unable to come to terms with the 12th electoral results and we grapple with the news and analysis. There have been some good comments and analysis and others just for the sake of making them.

Let me introduce myself. I am a new blogger but have been following the local political scene. You could say I have been the silent majority until after the last general election.

We know the various reasons for the fantastic performance of the Barisan Rakyat and the dismal showing of BN. Why was there so much anger irrespective of race, religion, creed etc. ? I believe all the parties heard the reasons be it BR or BN. So why the swing? Simply because BN heard and BR listened. Few week ago Pak Lah said he heard us loud and clear but he did not listen. The arrogance is even worst in some like the former MB of Selangor who said that the state will be without any opposition just a few days before election day.

When the results became clear on the day of election, except for a couple like Tan Sri Kho Shu Khoon most just walked out without addressing their supporters. Some like Samy Vellu did not appear until a few days later. Because they heard and did not want to listen.

So why did they hear and not listen? The answer is the title of my blog, Wag the Dog. They listened to what they wanted to hear. They listened to the Forth Floor. All BN component parties had their their own forth floor. The forth floor only told what they wanted to hear. The forth floor made their bosses feel good with fantastic news from the ground with great rhetoric.
They all had the FFS (Forth Floor Syndrome) or Shiok Sindiri Syndrome (SSS).

The thousands spent on the print and electronic media by BN and MIC just prior to the election was SSS. This is not new this has been going on for donkey years. So the leaders hear but they never listen to us Rakyat.

When the Crimea University issue came up and an MIC MP voiced his concern in parliament and he was suspended. Same case with Hindraf, an MIC MP was disciplined by the so called WHIP because they do not want to listen. Lingam case was also the same they took such a long time to create the royal commission which then had such a narrow term of reference. The list goes on and on, be it in relation to the Malays, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan, Iban or any other rakyat of Malaysia.

My main concern to Barisan Rakyat is please do not repeat what BN had done. Please listen. Please do nor use rhetorics. Think before making statement. Stop discussing NEP. Talk about abolishing corruption and cronyism and efficient implementation and equal distribution. Stay committed to the coalitions and do not give the BN opportunities to fan the race card. Humble yourselves and listen.

Barisan Rakyat you are the one who should reinvent your self now so that you do not become irrelevant by the next election. Stay true to the the spirit of "Of the People, By the People and For the People" and not for yourselves.