Republic of virtue, 5/08

Our parliament: august house -- or ogre's house?

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Saturday, 03 May 2008 10:00

Many Malaysians I am sure are saddened and angered by the fact that Parliament opened with name-calling, jeering, and booing. What kind of a human being of a parliamentarian would make a remark that humiliated one on a wheelchair? Dr. Azly Rahman dr.azly.rahman@gmail.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it http://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/ Most respected folks/commentators, Thank you for your thoughtful comments on the keris and my proposal for an UMNO logo-change. As a tribute to the opening of Parliament ("Dewan Yang Mulia ini...") let's comment on the kind of parliament we deserve. But first, I came across this interesting New Straits Time newsreport of a "field trip" which sounded like a "field day" for the kids learning about Malaysian democracy" ... NST) - WHEN fifth former Dhamayanthi Nair was told that she would be joining a field trip to Parliament, she was expecting a sombre, knowledge-filled experience. Little did she know that her first trip to the House was going to leave her with a long-lasting and cynical view that members of parliament too, can misbehave. Dhamayanthi, who was with 37 schoolmates from SMK Sri Andalas, Klang, said she could not help laughing when she recalled how some Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional MPs called each other names like 'Bigfoot' and 'Big Monkey'. "It was a very interesting session. I honestly thought I might fall asleep but ended up having a good time watching the MPs fight." Her schoolmate, M. Jochim. said they were given the impression that Parliament sessions were very professional and formal. "I was shocked to see this fiasco. Imagine seeing some of the famous leaders calling each other names. I have only heard kids use such words during playtime." Teacher Mariani Zainal said she had sat in for a couple of sessions before. "MPs engaging in a shouting match is not something new but I wish my students had more time to see the actual proceedings." The House was filled with excited pupils mostly made up of fifth and sixth formers. The field trip was a study tour that would help students understand the concept of parliamentary democracy. Among other schools that sat in for a short session at Parliament yesterday were SMK Alam Megah and Kajang High School. -- Shameful Opening Many Malaysians I am sure are saddened and angered by the fact that Parliament opened with name-calling, jeering, and booing. What kind of a human being of a parliamentarian would make a remark that humiliated one on a wheelchair? We do not deserve such a representative of the rakyat. What did we vote for? Where have we gone wrong, when we allow such tasteless and insensitive remark? Our children in primary school can behave better that some of our elected representatives, I believe. What a shame! Here's my piece for this week. I wrote about this sometime ago: ... Here we go again -- name-calling in the "most-revered/august house" or dewan yang mulia ini..." Our culture of parliamentary debate has the great potential to evolve from a 'circus' and a Balinese cock-fighting arena to a problem-solving forum, if and when we begin to elect more intelligent, rational, and meaningfully-articulate politicians to represent our constituencies. Our society is becoming more intelligent and our imitation of models of development has become more sophisticated, but some of our parliamentarians need to learn how to speak in public and how to talk sense based on a data-driven style of argumentation. Must we continue to live with news reports concerning parliamentary debates that have representatives call each other "bodoh", "berok", "baboon", "binatang" and other less than human designation, instead of calling upon facts and scientific reasoning to back up national issues that need to be resolved? Must we tolerate a culture of shouting and yelling and cajoling in sessions that are supposed to be used to deliberate and mediate our most urgent and serious issues involving the social, economic, and political fate of millions of citizens who voted for those into power? Must we let the culture permeate into our universities, schools, social and cultural institutions, and homes in which this brand of feudalism and ignorance and brute force rule in a half-baked democracy? Why have parliamentarians who present well-researched issues in the most civil manner been shouted at and interrupted perpetually by those who cannot mount anything substantial other than foul language and a chorus of gangsterish rowdiness? Why are we still seeing this culture at the time when our parliamentarians are becoming more and more educated either locally or abroad? What kind of parliamentarians gets voted into power and do those with brutish public speaking skills really represent their constituencies? Or are they now becoming an embarrassment to their electorate and an insult to its intelligence? I think this name-calling sessions that waste public money and glorify brute and arrogant ways of presenting opinion need to be ended. But how? What must we do? Where do we begin? From Srivijaya to Putrajaya It will probably take a hundred years for this culture of intelligence amongst parliamentarians to evolve. It seems that to teach these people the art of listening while others are talking seem impossible. Why are these rude parliamentarians called "Yang Berhormat' when they do not even have the necessary intelligence to carry out reasoned and data-driven arguments and when they have not earned the respect of the people? But there is hope. We wrongly call brutish politicians "Yang Berhormat". They should be called "Yang Tidak Patut di Hormati". We cannot immediately change the culture of unreasoned and brutish parliamentary debates. We paid the price for voting those species of parliamentarians into power. This is the disease that this nation has contracted since feudal times; from the brutishness of those who ruled since the times of Srivijaya and Majapahit to the modern times of Putrajaya and Cyberjaya. There have been kings who tried to do their job well, using the power of statecraft-superstition of the "divine rights of kings". And there were those who plundered less and think more and speak less brutishly. But there were only a few, who underwent major transformations like Ashoka or Pericles. What has developed is the feudal culture that uses brute force when the human intellect began to be challenged in public debates. The story of the Malay mythical hero Hang Nadim tells us of the brutishness of the feudal brute who disliked intelligent suggestions. The story of Hang Jebat, the Malay anti-hero who revolted against the unintelligent, brutish, and libidinal Sultan of Melaka is another. The author of Sejarah Melayu, Tun Seri Lanang should have been put to trial today for writing a myth that glorified Hang Tuah as the first Malay laksamana who I think possessed the poorest set of thinking skills. Obviously Hang Tuah was a clever creation to legitimise the continuation of the feudal system with a complex machinery of indoctrination of symbolic and cultural capitalism. The feudal state has evolved into a post-modern state that hides its system of control into a sophisticated system of "disciplining and punishing". Be a smarter voter Rude parliamentarians with substandard intelligence need not be respected. They need to be voted out in the next election, so that the "general will" of the people can proceed with maturity, leaving these mentally decaying parliamentarians behind. Rude supporters of rude parliamentarians need not be respected en masse either. They will merely continue the intellectual destruction we the Malaysian people are trying to create as culture and as a legacy for our children who are becoming more and more intelligent and idealistic than the generation of rotting parliamentarians who get voted through unethical means. How might we recognise a Cicero, a Sheikh Kadir Jelani, a Gandhi, a Patrick Henry, a Sun Yat Sen, a Ho Chi Minh, a Che Guevara, a Sukarno, a Vaclav Havel, a John F Kennedy amongst us - leaders who can articulate sense with the power of reason and social imagination? Here's a test for our would-be parliamentarians: * Do our parliamentarians read philosophy? * Can they reason scientifically? * Can they think holistically? * Can they understand the complexities of arguments? * Can they gracefully link one idea to another and understand the deeper meaning of the themes? * Can they argue beyond the prison-house of "race and ethnicity" and bring arguments to a different and more sophisticated level? * Can they analyse past, present, and future systems of oppression? * Can they recognise ethics in decision-making and move beyond partisan politics? * Can they articulate what a utopia of a truly multicultural and ethical nation is, based on the power of scientific rationality, transcultural ethical system, and social justice that evolve out of the respect for the human intellect and the freedom to think without being punished for speaking up? * Do they read much at all to develop the power of their intellect that will be manifested through their powerful oratory skills? * Do they know how to mediate instead of merely aggravate? A hundred years is not too long for us to have our parliament evolve into a respectable and 'world-class' institution. We must begin to look at what concepts and skills we need in order to educate the younger generation with. We also need to explore what politics mean and what species of politicians we must create. The first step is to recognise the symptoms of a corrupt political system – how much is spent to put a leader into power. The higher the office, the more the money is needed, seem to be the political wisdom of the day. Therefore, we now see the total enculturalisation of corruption – from the promotion system in our universities to the presenting of politically-charged 'ang pau' and 'duit hari raya' to children. The postmodern system dictates that billions of ringgit is needed to prepare for the next general election. The network of political-economic control is getting more sophisticated and the system of manipulation of human consciousness is getting more glitzy and savvy. The wealth of our resource-rich nation is used to maintain political hegemony. The ideological state apparatus is used to shut up citizens who speak up against various forms of injustices.Political hegemony translates into the control of the educational institutions, so that we may reproduce the brand of arrogance and ignorance desired. Our public universities are used to shut people up more stylistically and sophisticatedly, using better language of mental domination, using more totalitarian system of educating, utilising authoritarian methods of teaching. Can we reboot? It is not how much one knows but how much one has that is becoming a precondition for political success these days. This is how much we have been rotting deep inside the psyche of our political consciousness. How do we dismantle the system? Is there a way to pull the plug and reboot? What anti-virus programme do we need to clean it up with and to build a firewall against the emergence of newer and more corrupted and virulent leaders who get younger by each general election? We have created Hang Tuahs and even Hang Jebats who now fly private jets, happily laughing at the nation down below. We have those "corridors" that will be of no benefit to the poor. We have the Johoreans perhaps now allowing Halliburton (Dick Cheney-linked company 'rebuilding Iraq') to set foot in the Iskandar Development Region http://www.motherjones.com/news/featurex/2003/07/we_455_01.html. What have become of us? -- we no longer have the shame of being associated with such a company that is part of the tool to "destroy-to-rebuild program" of the arrogant American empire, guised under The New Century American Project http://www.newamericancentury.org/statementofprinciples.htm. Johoreans, come back to your senses! First it was Disney, next Halliburton. An excerpt of this report can be found here: Halliburton involvement in Iskandar not an issue Posted by kasee Wednesday, 30 April 2008 By SHAHANAAZ HABIB, The Star KUWAIT: There is no ethical question involved in bringing Halliburton, the controversial US multinational, to invest in Malaysia, said the Iskandar Development Region Authority managing director Datuk Ikmal Hijaz Hashim. "Halliburton is investing in oil and gas and we have are happy to have them there (in Iskandar Malaysia)," he told local reporters here. Asked on concerns about the ethics of having a company like Halliburton in Iskandar, Ikmal said: "Whose ethics are you referring to? Which value judgement are you using? "If they bring in investment and create jobs, I don't see any ethical questions on that. I am not too sure which yardstick you are using." He said Malaysia should be open. "We should invite investment as long as it bring benefits to the country. It may not bring good taste to other countries - I am not too sure. But I would not like to be involved in that area (good taste or not)," he added. In late March, American oil and gas company Halliburton opened an RM200mil manufacturing centre in Iskandar Malaysia (formerly known as Iskandar Development Region). source: http://www.malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/6865/1/ ... We must bring back more Hang Nadims into our parliament who could tell the then Raja of Kota Singa why the swordfish/todaks even attacked the country in the first place; why the emergency-response system was not in place. Dare we create a more intelligent parliament? It's up to our parliamentarians to do their job on this. The rakyat will continue to do theirs -- to vote in or vote out the "yang berkhidmats" -- as long as we can see what's happening, live on TV! Comments (12) ... written by michael chick, May 03, 2008 10:05:15 Beautifully Said. Time to get rid of BAD RUBBISH And start anew Truly Asia, Can't take it anymore...... report abuse disagree 0 agree 6 ... written by whiteheart, May 03, 2008 10:35:33 Is it any wonder why our laws are what they are given that the lawmakers are a bunch of monkeys and mythical animals? report abuse disagree 0 agree 3 ... written by temenggong, May 03, 2008 10:41:09 Our MPs have no class. They, especially umno MPs, are an uncultured lot! In class based societies, riff raff like these wouldn't be invited to elegant parties. report abuse disagree 1 agree 8 ... written by chiongguo, May 03, 2008 11:35:29 I think the names that the parliamentarians called each other actually fit very well. The students could be forgiven if they thought that they were in a zoo. But then again the zoos I had visited had animals that looked dignified and well-behave. Are we insulting the animals by labelling our parliamentarians as animals ? ----- I no longer laugh at political jokes. I have seen too many of them elected into office --- Anonymous. report abuse disagree 0 agree 3 ... written by Jack Teh, May 03, 2008 13:39:38 The answer to you rhetorical question: "What kind of a human being of a parliamentarian would make a remark that humiliated one on a wheelchair?" is not-human. The saddest conclusion drawn from this incident is the lack of decency among BN members. The callow call is an affront to all of us and party affiliation should at least be abandoned in the name of human decency. report abuse disagree 0 agree 1 ... written by mypanida, May 03, 2008 16:13:18 HEY, DOCTOR AZLY..... you come back home lah, the country needs people like you. report abuse disagree 0 agree 3 ... written by educationist, May 03, 2008 18:43:23 A long time ago, our Parliment has lost its right to be referred to as an august house, not because of the recent ,not decorous opening. But it's good the short live telrcasts will be continued, for the time being. The rakyat will know those MP's there who do not deserve the honorary 'YB' and if they are still put in Parliment come the next elections, we have no one to blame but ourselves. report abuse disagree 0 agree 1 ... written by teo siew chin, May 03, 2008 21:05:30 HEY, DOCTOR AZLY..... you come back home lah, the country needs people like you. ----------------------------------- hahaha that just about sums it all up dont it report abuse disagree 0 agree 0 ... written by TWOG, May 05, 2008 09:41:31 written by chiongguo, May 03, 2008 | 11:35:29 I think the names that the parliamentarians called each other actually fit very well. The students could be forgiven if they thought that they were in a zoo. More like a circus ....... report abuse disagree 0 agree 0 ... written by trulyMalaysia, May 05, 2008 14:11:08 You can see many of the Parliament sessions on youtube and you will realize that its a truly waste of time. Hopefully this year it will change as the arrogant BN do not have as many seats! Check on the back ground of most BN MP's you will see that they are not highly educated!! What a shame. What can you expect from them? report abuse disagree 0 agree 1 ... written by chanatak, May 09, 2008 00:20:26 In UMNO we are looking at a bunch of inferior minded specimens, with a great sense of inferiority complex, driven by a huge and empty ego that is backed by the brute force of power abuse. The irrational and unthinking behavior of UMNO specimens are lower than the uncultured animals .... driven only by their ego and selfish desire for power .... the desire to prolong the hold onto power so that they may perpetuate their corrupt motives. It is a sad day for the Malays. report abuse disagree 0 agree 0 ... written by trimalnash, May 11, 2008 18:23:18 Hmmh simply superb and mind blowing historical comparison.... our parliamentarians need to learn a lot... hmmh uneducated fellow report abuse disagree 0 agree 0 Write comment This content has been locked. You can no longer post any comment. You must be logged in to a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.