sacro what?

On page 48 of The Star today, i read a letter to the Editor with the title " The New Malay Dilemma". The writer is one Halimah Mohd Said from Kuala Lumpur. Having read her letter, one came to a conclusion - she is well educated and very perspective.

The thing that really made me think is when she wrote: UMNO is not sacrosanct. Sacrosanct means very sacred or holy. So Puan Halimah is saying UMNO is not sacred. UMNO is not holy. I respect her for saying that.

The way i read her statement is:

ONE. UMNO is not perfect. UMNO is not beyond reproach. UMNO can make mistakes. and if UMNO can make mistakes, leaders of UMNO can also make mistakes. law of logic. as such, UMNO and its leaders must listen and accept criticisms. If UMNO and its leaders think that they can do no wrong, then they are living in fantasy land. definitely not in Malaysia Boleh Land. Coz today in Malaysia Boleh Land, respect for UMNO is no longer there, waning at best. Am i being too dramatic? i hope so. otherwise, that respect may never be re-claimed without a major overhaul. UMNO members talk about leadership change. yes there should be leadership change for the rejuvenation of UMNO to start. but that is only superficial. and the rakyats would know. they can smell it a mile away.

It is no longer a question of should or would. The survival and relevancy of UMNO is at stake. There must be room for debates. There must be room to accommodate multiple views and opinions. Of course some would argue that UMNO does provide that. If you want to express yourself, you can always speak up during UMNO meetings - either at branch, divisional or even national meeting. Really? Plus, all the time, leaders of UMNO would say - if you want to voice your opinions, use the proper channel. What channel?! please tell me. is UMNO annual meeting a channel?

ok let's digress a little bit. as long as you are a member of a branch, you can attend branch annual meeting. (branch is the lowest in UMNO hierarchy.) But you need to be a delegate to attend divisional annual meeting (at branch meeting, they would choose a specified number of people to attend the divisional meeting). Same goes for the national AGM. you need to be a delegate, chosen at divisional level. there would be a proper election (not just a show of hands) to choose the delegates. even Tun Mahathir, after he resigned as party president, he had to contest to be a delegate. unfortunately he lost. mind you, it is a big deal to be a delegate to attend the national AGM. Competition to be delegates could be intense - especially in the UMNO-election year, like this year. so you see. not just anybody can speak in these meetings. only the chosen few. the voice of the grassroot might not be heard at all at the national AGM.

TWO. UMNO is not so sacred that Malays will forever support it. unless it braces change, it will be part of history rather than the maker of history. The relevancy of UMNO has been questioned many times. for me, there are two ways for UMNO to be irrelevant - one, it has achieved all it set out to achieve eg education for the Malays etc etc. therefore, nothing to 'fight' for anymore. Perjuangan sudah selesai. two, when UMNO is no longer in-sync with the Malays. what the Malays want and what UMNO fights for are not in tandem. therefore, UMNO could no longer claim to be representing the Malays. as such, irrelevant. scenario one is unlikely as UMNO's agendas change with time (at least theoretically). so it would always be relevant on this note. scenario two is the most likely to happen and sentence UMNO to its grave. in fact, it is happening now. the younger generation is said to be critical and cynical of UMNO. if it is true, then UMNO must be ready to change and accept new idealism. new ways of doing things. I still believe all Malays want the best for the Malays. just a matter of how to achieve that. For a start, tonite UMNO Youth is having a discussion with a group of young Malays - to get their views and opinions. a little too late? hope not. better late than never.

All this while, maybe UMNO has taken for granted the support of the Malays. That is why some UMNO leaders behave like they are god's gift to the Malays. They forgot who is the master and who is the servant. The Malays have spoken - you ek, we act (ek=eksyen=sombong=show off).