Oh, Pakatan – what has become of you?

A year after 2013, the leaders who we trusted with our votes have betrayed the very essence of morality and public trust.

COMMENT

By Natesan Visnu

“The difference between a democracy and a dictatorship is that in a democracy you vote first and take orders later; in a dictatorship you don’t have to waste your time voting.”

 Charles Bukowski

The 2013 general election was a waste of people’s time.

It was a meaningless election fuelled by big words – “Reformasi”, “Ubah”, “Ini Kalilah”, and long streams of propaganda that promised to be a true revolution.

A year after 2013, the leaders who we trusted with our votes betrayed the very essence of morality and public trust.

No need to mention names but the leaders who campaigned on morality, principle, leadership, transparency and much more, turned out to be simply the nation’s finest performers.

I admire their intelligence for public manipulation. It’s like an experience of being in the movie “The Usual Suspects”.

Just like Kevin Spacey in the movie, the leaders’ act of storytelling is world-class. If you need convincing, just watch the You Tube videos.

The theatrics would give the actors on Broadway a run for their money. I think I shall take the privilege of calling them “performers”, not “leaders”.

Now we are at the crossroads of deciding if Khalid Ibrahim is a performer like the rest of them or truly a leader, an idea I’ve been toying with for some time now.

However it does not fit the equation based on current and past events.

Khalid was the rock star for Pakatan Selangor’s election campaign. They promoted Khalid to such heights, one would think that no Menteri Besar (MB) in the history of Malaysia could possibly be better.

The Kajang Move marked the beginning of the end for Pakatan.

The Kajang Move will now go down in history as the worst strategy initiated by a political party. The move exposed the true nature of Pakatan leaders.

Character assassination worked so well in the past, but when the same strategy was used on Khalid, it brought humiliation and public disgrace.

The stars from GE 2013 were made to eat humble pie and its become more of a comedy than a tragedy.

The performers were supposed to perform a serious play. In a nasty turn of events, it became a comedy and the public is having the best laugh.

It was truly entertaining.

Pakatan leaders underestimate the public’s intelligence and the effects of the ‘Kajang Move’ were so detrimental, it will take years to win back the public’s trust.

I am still undecided if Khalid should stay or go. It will be a subject that the public should debate about.

With or without Khalid, the show must go on. At least Khalid leaves behind a legacy such as “The Dawn Raid”, “CEO of the Year”, “Best Selangor MB” and many more.

To the comedians involved in the Kajang Move, I’m not sure what they will be remembered for. What is their legacy?

That is the question the leaders should ask themselves. The Selangor people are the victims of the move. For political mileage, the public’s interest was sacrificed.

For the leaders involved in the Kajang Move, it is like producing the worst daytime soap ever and everyone knows it.

At least Kajang will be remembered for two things from now on – the Kajang Move and Kajang Satay.

I choose Kajang satay anytime.

Last but not least, the power is with the people not politicians. Democracy is a strange creature. Understand it and use it to your advantage.

Natesan Visnu is a reader of FMT