It must be the Malaysian still ambering away somewhere within my relatively new legal status as an Australian citizen. I continue to be deeply annoyed with the stupidity which defines the dominant ruling party of Malaysian politics.

Strictly speaking, the government is a coalition of parties. In behaviour however, it isn’t. The dominant party is an unruly mob of buffoons and oafs who demand its coalition partners do as they say. 

A clichéd response would be to attribute this behaviour to the feudal mentality of the Malays. I no longer believe this explains the totally unacceptable behaviour. The Chinese and Indian are also feudal communities, if you choose to look at it that way. They don’t however misbehave that way, in general. In any event, feudalism works as an explanation only in terms of behaviour towards their  own not inter-racial relations.

I often think there is a much simpler and more down-to-earth explanation. It is that they are a spoilt bunch. Their behaviour is consistent with that of a very spoilt child. A spoilt child demands its own ways at all times. It is prone to irresponsible behaviour (telling lies or making wrong statements and thereafter flatly deny ever saying such things). When it doesn’t get its own ways or when someone demonstrates just how unreliable or what a liar it has been, it lashes out recklessly, akin to throwing a tantrum.

Such behaviour would have been laughable had the stakes been anything less than the future of a once prosperous and respected country.

It will be a long and painful process before the spoilt child that is UMNO attains maturity and start learning how to behave and be responsible. If at all, that is. It would be very nice if one thinks someone like Hishamuddin Tun Hussein or Khairy Jamaluddin can grow up, step out of the privileged cocoon which they have been sleeping in all their lives and see that the real world does not owe them a living, that the real world gives and demands in equal measures. There is nothing now to suggest these idiotic louts are capable of breaking out to do the right thing.

Last night a mate was in our house with his family. While chatting we mentioned the councillor in Klang, my hometown, who was widely believed to have been absolutely corrupt. Zakaria was known as the guy who lapped everything in sight (“Chia Kar Liao” – hokkien for “ate everything”, or 100% corrupt). His palatial mansion in Klang was a testament not just of his bribe taking, but also of his total contempt for the law. While the council he runs goes around tearing down illegal buildings, he built this obscene monstrosity without a building permit. He also has 2 family members sitting as councillors, so effectively he runs the local council like his private mahjong club.

Klang is a town of stark contrasts, as many towns in Malaysia probably are. In our chat last night, my mate’s wife told us living in “gated communities” is now a common thing. An occupant in one of these communities pay up to 200 bucks a month just for security services. So while unsafe, it is a town with many rich people.  At the same time however, there are great numbers who struggle to make ends meet.

I remember tutoring a schoolmate. Unfortunately I only remember him as Paul. I forget his last name. He was an Indian boy. It may have been Nathan. I used to give him some help with his English after school hours. Sometimes I’d grab a quick lunch before starting. That’s when I realised Paul hadn’t had anything to eat all day. I asked him about it and he said he ate when he got home. His one meal a day was going to be some rice, onion curry and kangkong. His father was a labourer with the local council. He had a sister and 2 brothers in school and they simply couldn’t afford 3 meals a day.

With the likes of Paul in the community, it is outrageous that we have councillors like Zakaria. Yet the ruling party refused to act against him. He has remained untouched by the bad presses he was receiving at the end of 2006 and continues to run the roost in Klang. People like Zakaria completely ignore the poor and the law, and thinks only with his wallet.

Malaysians in general, particularly those living in those gated communities, don’t care. I’m sorry if I offend some of those who pay me the honour of reading this site every now and then. These are people who live in these gated communities, or better.

I’m sorry if I generalise and say people like you don’t care, but you don’t. You may feel it, but you don’t care. Not really. Not as long as you don’t speak up, consistently if need be, against such wrongs. If you sound like a broken record and no one seems to be listening anymore, you should still speak up. Why? Everyone should speak up every time he or she sees something wrong, that’s why. The saying “all it takes for evil to prevail is for good people to do nothing” strikes a chord with many because it is true.

I’m afraid I’m one of those who’d put journalists like Nadeswaran from The Sun on a pedestal for his persistent attitude. We need to put away people like Zakaria. Zakaria must be removed from office, charged for his sins and go to jail because if you don’t, you will breed more like him. If you don’t, you are telling your children it is okay to break the law as long as you reap the benefits and get away from it by being “in the right camp”.

Nothing may happen to the likes of Zakaria when you talk about it, write about it or go to a street rally to protest about it. But something will happen to you and those around you. You and those around you would be less inclined to accept what is not acceptable. You and especially your children will remain sensitive to wrongdoings.

Some have written to me in the past to say it is easy for me to say what I like because the threat of ISA doesn’t affect me anymore. I don’t care what you think of me. The danger is staring at you in the face. Your government is using fear to shut you up. If you shut up, you have reacted exactly the way your corrupt and imbecile government wanted you to react. Maybe they are not so stupid after all, if they succeeded in making you behave in the way they want you to.

How many people can the government throw in Kamunting before the tide turns completely against them? The Hindraf leadership has copped it under the ISA. If the movement continues notwithstanding this, they would have succeeded where the supposedly more sophisticated section of the community has failed. It failed because it didn’t really care. If it did it would have given Nadeswaran a bigger platform and promoted the likes of him. If it did it would have acted more than it did and be prepared to change this totally unacceptable UMNO mob that seeks to run the country into the ground while enriching themselves.