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Monday 23 May 2011

'Hearts And Minds' Approach

A ruling coalition that has had over 50 years of experience should know better than to flounder in the manner of this current administration.

In their greedy pursuit of wealth, they have neglected even the bare basics of winning the hearts and minds of the citizens.

That, if you ask me, is the difference between Malaysia and Singapore. The People's Action Party of Singapore tries to tap into the bare necessities - housing, transportation and a thriving economy.

For the most part, it has kept the citizens happy, and the murmurs of dissent appear to revolve around the huge incomes the politicians have allocated and approved for themselves.

Meanwhile, UMNO eyes every possibility of lining its pockets - from Petronas oil royalty to Lynas rare earth mining.

Thanks to my friend Tim, who scanned this from the Malayan section of A History of Britain, it gives me a glimpse of what the British (not a PM, mind you, just a General) did to make the citizens comply.

Click to enlarge

Those of you who live in Rawang or anywhere near would be familiar with Templer's Park. In Malaysia, that is all he is known for.

But the fact remains that it was probably Sir Gerald Templer, and not UMNO, who managed to curtail Chin Peng's troubling ways. So I really don't know why UMNO would bear a grudge against an old communist leader who wishes to die quietly in Malaysia or ban any mention of him.

Templer didn't need the ISA to keep the Communists at bay. All he did was ensure that the Malayan Chinese had roads, clean water, schools, medical centres, elected village councils etc.

In other words, he won over their hearts and minds.

UMNO wouldn't know how to begin - their culture is miles apart from the average Malaysian citizen, who is not as avaricious or greedy as them.

And that is why they have to resort to 'divide-and-conquer', a policy of racism and religionism because they really know no other way.

2 comments:

Starmandala said...

After years of personal research, I'm forced to conclude that regions of the world once misruled by the Demon Kings or Raksasas remain spiritual null fields for centuries. In effect, what is now the Malay Archipelago must have been the last stronghold of Ravanna and his descendants. That's why the natives of these areas seem to be mired in spiritual miasma - able to understand only the crudest forms of religious doctrine and primitive rituals like blood sacrifice.

Crankster said...

LOL. In any case, the Malays are essentially the product of union between Chinese and Indians. Did you really think they miraculously appeared on this part of the world and developed their culture independently? A nation that has no documented history prior to 1511?