Monday, February 25, 2008
Barisan Rakyat. a typical Ceramah
No fancy food.
No fancy anything, just your basic. This is what a typical ceramah is like from any opposition outreach to the public. All the Community halls had already been booked by the BN machinery, leaving playground and suraus for the opposition. The fact of the matter is that those members of the community who came here were those who really desired change. Look at their faces and you won't see lobbyist, you won't see people who were there to be seen!
Last night at Danau Kota, Wangsa Maju Parliamentary hopeful Wee Choo Keong's ceramah, I saw the real desire for those who want change. The faces I met were not fancy businessman flaunting their support, coming in their fancy cars. They were plain Abdul, Raju, and Lees who had placed their hope in the government before, only to see 50 years go by without improvement. Nationality improvement. Unity. Harmony and the likes.
And one can feel the humility of those around. Its that humbling. Midway through Wee's speech (in his flawless Kelantanese and Malay) I could hear a ruckus in the background, coming from a few vehicles blaring their horns and jeering, waving Barisan flags. One can argue that it could be a sandiwara, or plain BN hooliganism, but whichever way, Wee's trumpeting of Barisan Rakyat, the Peoples's declaration struck the chord of those who were there. He said, now is the time to wake up, no more lies, we must correct, correct, correct the system by voting for change! To thunderous applause. The arrival of Azmin Ali, PKR's stalwart was a cheer to those wanting to hear PKR's stand. A stand that we are all too familiar about, the fairness and justice must prevail. And to do that, the rakyat must be brave enough to start at the ballot box.