Sad to note how Pak Lah labelled Malaysian bloggers as 'liars, full of slanderous and irresponsible' lots.
Such was his adverse reaction towards us. In a much cynical words, the impression given about bloggers was 'we are all criminals'.
When I hit out at Minister at PMD Datuk Zahid Hamidi for making similar statements in Jakarta last week, I thought he was the only one. Obviously, I was wrong. Zahid actually carried Pak Lah's words.
Well... I dunno about the rest of my fellow bloggers but my stance is that, apart from becoming a worldwide trend, many governments refer to bloggers for some constructive inputs. I dont deny the fact there are 'nasty' bloggers out there but most of us here speak for the rakyat.
I believe many of us are members of any political party. Somehow, we are not politicians (some bloggers are, like Khir Toyo, Khairy Jamaludin and others). So, as ordinary members, dont we deserve to pen down any comment about our leaders and country?
Of course, we love our country. 'Hujan emas di negeri orang, hujan batu di negeri sendiri, adalah lebih baik di negeri sendiri'. How could you accused us of treason?
There is no need for me to speak for the rest of the bloggers. Personally, I believe some bloggers can make good lawmakers if they are given the opportunity. Their inputs on several issues are just the chronics that most lawmakers cant even solve.
Bloggers A Kadir Jasin, Ahmad Talib, Ibrahim Yahaya and alike are just a few examples of constructive bloggers to date. Their opinion is rather sharpens towards improving the administration rather than provoking.
Yes, Pak Lah may have a pool of advisers at his waist, telling him on daily basis on what to do, what and when to decide and how to act. However, we gotta admit the fact that nobody is perfect. Some advisers may give rotten ideas and some will do it with vested interest.
Similarly, some bloggers are such too but the rest can outdo certain ministers. Many bloggers are senior journalists with vast experience in domestic politics, social and business. Talk to Ahirudin Atan, Nuraina Samad, Fauziah Ismail, Wong Chun Wai and others. Ask them how many years have they been writing and what policies are applied to various aspect of the administration.
All these while, they wrote based on facts and figures, based on actual speeches and texts. Did they have the opportunity (or were they allowed) to report 'off the record' statements by the prime minister, his deputy and others? Were they free to give personal analysis on any 'administrative error?'
The answer is NO! Why? It is the policy of leading newspapers and TV/radio stations to avoid anything that will feed our rakyat with negative picture about our leaders.
A simple motto - 'SUPPORT THE LEGITIMATE GOVERNMENT' must be observed at all times by editors and bosses of this organisations. And this editors-in-chief are normally political appointees. At anytime if they go overboard, they will be dismissed.
New Straits Times, Berita Harian, Utusan Malaysia, Nanyang Siang Pau, The Star, Harian Metro, Kosmo and their allies are politically-controlled and monitored. Some news would be applied nice blanket either for political, economic or personal reason.
Mr Prime Minister,
Our population is surpassing that of 25 million now. Over the years and as Malaysia inches towards realising its objective to emerge as a full-developed nation by the year 2020, the demands and needs of the people are multiplying. So are their expectations for better corporate-governance, stability and a harmonious environment.
As new leaders take over a government, the challenges to meet such demands get stiffer and sometimes costs a lot. It is not easy to manage a mass population of diverse ethnics, religion and race. So special our country is that it is at the envious of many.
Therefore, any new government must have the right level of maturity to tackle such needs. As we subscribe to Parliamentary-democratic ruling, any provisions of law put forward to the Dewan Negara (House of Senate) must focus down to the rakyat.
Now, not all JKKKs, state assemblyman and member of Parliament are worth-voting for. Just like teachers, some only attend to classes for the profession and the pay. Some journalists are such, too. They only love to see their bylines at every assignment-based reports without putting extra efforts to dig out stories of their own.
We, the senior journalists, have been to the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara for almost three decades, and even more. We had identified good and lazy lawmakers. Some never took part in any debate, some just doused off while a few seldom attended seatings.
Yes, we are all human. To err is human but to put the blame on others is even more human, as the saying goes.
We have noticed wrong candidates being given full minister positions while the right ones were left out. Why? Again, the answer is mismanagement of politics where favouritsm prevails.
Dear Mr Prime Minister,
How do the rakyat voice out their discontentment? To this low-performing wakil rakyats? Maybe once or twice. Then, they preferred to shut up as their words fall on deaf ears.
In this Internet era, bloggers play a pivotal role in bridging the rakyat and the government. We cant deny the fact that as life gets more sophisticated, its solution gets more difficult.
We dont have a big government like India, Indonesia, US, Japan or Russia. How do you get feedbacks from the rakyat? If you rely too much on your 'representatives', then may as well you forget about helping them out.
Everything now is about money, sir. Dont tell me that your wakil rakyat works 100 per cent for the rakyat. I believe they do but only at 30 per cent rate. The rest is money. Just like our sportsmen now as compared with those in the 70s and 80s eras, the dont get that patriotic anymore. Did you say I am wrong?
Do I have to write more? Later laaaa....