Where hope and integrity once ruledCERITALAH By KARIM RASLAN (The Star)
In the era of the ‘cikgu’ activist, Umno leaders recognised that great power meant an even heavier sense of duty, but times have changed.
As Umno division meetings start up this week, I would like to remind the party’s activists and provincial leaders of the gap between themselves and the people they’re supposed to be representing.
After five decades in power Umno has lost touch. Moreover, there is no sense of urgency.
When people write or even talk about Umno nowadays they tend to use words like “balance”, “relevance”, “responsibility”, “integrity” and “honesty”, and in virtually every example it’s the lack of these qualities that observers criticise.
In the past, Umno (whatever critics may say now), possessed an inalienable connection with its core voter base, the Malay community. There was trust. There was respect and there was competence. Indeed the party in the era of the "cikgu" activist was one with its members and the people; they lived together, they ate together and they woked together.
Pada masa lalu, UMNO (apa pun yang dikatakan pengkritik sekarang), mempunyai hubungan seimbang dengan pengundi-pengundi asas nereka, iaitu masyarakat Melayu. Ada kepercayaan. ada rasa hormat dan ada kecekapan. Pendek kata parti pada era penggiat 'cikgu' adalah 'satu' dengan ahli-ahli dan rakyat; mereka hidup bersama, makan bersama dan kerja bersama.
At the same time the party’s leaders always understood the importance of being both Malay and Malaysian. They recognised that they carried a responsibility of leadership “ that great power meant an even heavier sense of duty, witness Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman.
Of course, times change. Economic growth and prosperity has altered the Malay community dramatically “ there are clear winners and losers, with the “cikgu” unfortunately among the “losers”. Still the party’s response to these shifts in prosperity has been neither effective nor productive.
The influx of rent-seekers and businessmen has turned Umno into a clearing house for government contracts. Self-interest has prevailed and the poor (and not-so-poor) of all races have been forgotten.
Memanglah, masa berubah. Pertumbuhan ekonomi dan kekayaan telah menyedarkan masyarakat Melayu secara mendadak - boleh dilihat dengan jelas siapa yang untung dan siapa yang rugi, dengan 'cikgu' adalah antara yang rugi. Namun tindakan parti terhadap perubahan dalam kekayaan tidak berkesan dan tidak produktif. Kebanjiran usahawan dan ahli perniagaan telah menukar Umno menjadi pusat agihan kontrak-kontrak kerajaan. Maka wujudlah kepentingan peribadi, da mereka yang miskin (juga yang tidak berapa miskin) dan berbagai-bagai kaum telah dilupakan.
In Port Klang there is an extremely potent symbol of this disconnect between the party and the Malays (let’s not even mention how the non-Malays feel).
There is a house "more like a mansion or palace" that epitomises this terrible breakdown between the party and the people. Indeed, it is the ultimate symbol of all that’s gone wrong with the great party of Merdeka.
Sebagai contoh, di Pelabuhan Klang terdapat satu simbol yang agak menjolok mata untuk menggambarkan betapa tiada hubungan antara parti dengan orang Melayu (lebih-lebih lagi dengan orang bukan Melayu). Ada sebuah rumah - lebih sebagai mahligai atau istana - yang jelas menunjukkan ketidakseimbangan (harga) antara parti dan rakyat. Sebenarnya, simbol-simbol seperti itu yang merosakkan parti zaman Merdeka, sebuah parti yang telah ditubuhkan oleh golongan rendah.
I should add that I come across brilliant, committed and professional Malay men and women regularly. When I ask them about Umno, they grimace. Some, because they’re so frustrated with the party can get quite angry (the anger in part comes from their disappointment with the party’s present predicament).
Whatever the case, very few people talk nowadays of wanting to join Umno and “working from within” to affect change, though I must say there are one or two idealistic fellows, and I wish them well.
Instead, I meet countless people who have chosen to serve the nation by working with PAS, PKR or DAP (such as Transparency International’s Tunku Abdul Aziz , now a vice-chairman of the DAP).
But first let me tell you about this house.
Imagine driving through the port town’s traffic-clogged streets. You turn off the main road and enter a humble working-class neighbourhood, a warren of modest single-storey terrace houses.
You notice that many of the houses don’t even have fences or a front gate.
Suddenly, from a distance, you see what appears to be a tower looming above the terrace houses. It is an elegant two possibly three-storey structure, something akin to a lighthouse. The tower is gorgeous. It is beautifully built, white-clad and exquisite. You ask yourself: Is this a dream?
Turning the corner you come face-to-face with a set of lavish wrought-iron gates, the design for which is highly stylised and flamboyant. Stepping out of your car, you gaze through the gates into a world that is quite separate from the simple homes all around.
On the left, there is a large, beautifully-tended lawn, and on the right, a covered car park for countless luxury vehicles. Directly ahead of you is the house itself. It is like a vision transported from the pages of Architectural Digest or Vogue Living.
There are two capacious porte-cocheres with outside chandeliers, picture windows and fine detailing. You pause and think. This is “Damai Abadi”, the residence of the late Datuk Zakaria Mat Deros, a former Umno division chief.
You’ve read the stories posted on the Internet. You’ve seen the pictures but somehow the reality is all the more astounding because most of the time it’s hard to believe what you see and read on the Internet.
If like me, you’ve been an Umno supporter (albeit qualified) all your life, you’ll step back into your car and drive off, knowing that you have witnessed something profoundly tragic and sad: a betrayal of hope and integrity.
Tetapi pertamanya biar saya jelaskan mengenai rumah di Pelabuhan Klang tadi. Bayangkan anda sedang memandu di bandar pelabuhan yang sentiasa sesak drengan lampu isyarat. anda meninggalkan jalan besar dan memasuki kawasan kediaman golongan pekerja - sederet rumah setingkat yang amat sederhana. Anda nampak sesetengah rumah tidak ada pagar.
Tiba-tiba di kejauhan anda nampak seolah-olah ada menra tinggi di celah-celah rumah teres yang serba kekurangan itu. Itu adalah struktur serba mewah - dua atau tiga tingkat- yang seakan-akan rumah api. Menaranya kelihatan hebat sekali. ia dibina dengan indah, kelihatan amat eksklusif. Pasti anda akan bertanya : adakah ini satu mimpi?
Melihatnya dari dekat, anda akan nampak rumah besar ini yang serba mewah, reka bentuk yang luar biasa dan penuh gaya. Apabila anda keluar dari kereta dan meneliti rumah ini dengan lebih dekat, anda dapati ini adalah dunia yang berbeza dengan rumah-rumah murah di sekelilingnya.
Di sebelah kiri ada laman luas yang indah, dan di sebelah kanan ada tempat letak kereta berbumbung dan terdapat beberapa buah kereta mewah. Dan rumah yang anda sedang lihat itu sama seperti yang ditunjukkan di halaman-halaman majalah 'Architectural Digest' atau 'Vogue Living'. Segala-galanya serba mewah dan luar biasa.
Anda menelan air liur dan berfikir - inilah Damai Abadi, kediaman arwah Datuk Zakaria Mat Deros, seorang bekas Ketua Bahagian Umno. Anda telahpun membaca kisahnya di internet. Anda telah melihat gambarnya di internet, tetapi keadaan sebenarnya lebih menakjubkan kerana kadangkala sukar untuk mempercayai apa yang anda lihat dan baca di internet.
Jika anda seperti saya, yang menyokong Umno (dengan bersyarat) seumur hidup ini, pasti anda akan masuk semula ke adalam kereta dan meninggalkan tempat itu, sebab anda telah melihat sesuatu yang tragik dan menyedihkan; satu kemungkaran terhadap harapan dan integriti - kematian sebuah parti besar dan berakhirnya satu era dalam kehidupan rakyat Malaysia.
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