Top five newsmakers of 2019

"Show me a hero, and I'll write you a tragedy.” - F Scott Fitzgerald

My top picks of the top news makers and news stories for 2019 should tell us something about the state of our country. If you expected “ubah” (change) it was a depressing year.

Those who did not support the former Umno regime, but were sceptical or cynical of the Harapan regime would have had a great year. Their suspicions have been confirmed. Their sarcasm validated.

Harapan supporters, meanwhile, were reeling from the reality that the people they hoped could “save Malaysia” were turning their backs on the base and attempting to reestablish the old order, or they were too scared to go against the dogma and machinations of the establishment power structures.

What we were left with, was an endless news cycle of backtracking, weaselly worded apologia and spin that reaffirmed nativists agendas that were easier to carry out.

Having said that, these five news makers attempted to push back on the narratives of the state, and at the very least attempted to refocus the narrative on changing the system instead of rejuvenating a decaying system. In no particular order, here are my five news makers who hopefully will continue confounding the state in the year to come.

P Ramasamy

I have often described P Ramasamy (above) as the “conscience of Harapan”. Every time Harapan backtracks or engages in Umno shenanigans, P Ramasamy will call it out for what it is.

Some people argue that he is essentially the sacrificial lamb (or mouthpiece) spouting what DAP wants to say, but cannot because this would invite “open season” on the DAP.

While in nearly every comment he has made, there is always something that I disagree with, this is not because he is insincere, but because he is part of the establishment and part of this means attempting to change the system from the inside.

I give the man credit for speaking out in a time when the big guns in Harapan are too busy justifying policy and the actions of the old maverick, instead of carrying out reforms promised to the base.

From my vantage point - "I wonder what P Ramasamy means when he says that “painful and unpopular decisions” have to be made to get the support of the rakyat.

The problem with Harapan is that they are a pack of lily-livered politicians who care more about winning over the Umno/PAS crowd than taking care of their mostly non-Malay base."

Ronnie Liu

The always combative Ronnie Liu (above) did something important this year. He reminded people that for a brief moment, the DAP had rediscovered its cajones. By pointing out that the emperor had no clothes, Ronnie Liu gave the far right, which includes elements of Harapan, the opportunity to give a good public thrashing to the DAP.

The young boy minister went so far as to declare open season on the DAP, and the DAP quickly convulsed not knowing what to do, when a senior and popular member decided to spit in the fae of the usual DAP stance of kow towing to the old maverick.

Ronnie Liu got it half-right.

From my vantage point - "Liu’s piece about the "paper tiger" has been getting a lot of play, especially from partisans who view Mahathir as the great Judas of the Harapan dream. I suppose he is, but I want people to carefully consider a few points Liu raised and consider if Mahathir is solely to blame."

Maryam Lee

Being the undirosak rebel is a hard act to follow. When Maryam Lee (above) was vilified by folks who thought that she was an agent of the Umno regime, the hits came hard and fast. I hope she is having the last laugh, but I doubt it.

While the then Harapan opposition was snuggling up to folks like the mufti of Perlis, who recently claimed that the Malays needed a “Saddam Hussein-despot” to unite them, Maryam was busy attempting to redefine the religious dialogue.

Her de-hijabing forum was condemned by Harapan’s religious czar who was busy with his syariah compliant dress code initiative, and she was called in by the state security apparatus for advocating what is supposed to be a “choice” for Muslim women.

Her views make her newsworthy and unfortunately, this invites sanction from the state.

From my vantage point - "When Mujahid was pushing the syariah-compliant dress code, he said, “We are not being controlling. If a woman refuses to follow the guideline, fine, it is their choice, but at least the guideline is in place,” which basically means he understands that wearing a hijab is a choice.

"Why then is he endorsing a state religious body for investigating a forum where women discuss their choice of not wearing the hijab?"

Siti Kasim

Trust Siti Kasim (above) to tell it like it is. Religious extremists go blind with rage whenever they read her twitter feed and articles. Her no nonsense approach to religious extremism and extremists, her willingness to slay sacred cows, but most importantly her sunny optimism even in the face of state sanctioned harassment, should be an example to anyone who really wants to save Malaysia.

From my vantage point – “You have no hope of engaging with them. These are people who are indoctrinated in radical Islamism. The teachings, the mentality of which is no different from that of Talibanism and Isis terrorists. Only Taliban and Isis terrorists will sanction others for being different from them. The only difference between them and the Taliban and Isis is that they have no power or weapons to carry out their threats. When they have those, the country will be torn asunder.”

Mohd Nasir Hashim

The grand old man of PSM, Mohd Nasir Hashim (above) recently stepped down after years of service. I say service because this is what members of PSM do. They may not win elections, but they serve the people.

While I reject the underlying ideology of PSM, what I have always admired about them, is their tenacity in the face of overwhelming odds. This could be from going into an election where mainstream voters view them with disdain, or attempting to build a bridge in some remote village.

While most Malays would probably take offense at what Mohd Nasir says, the irony is that he probably understands the underlying socialist imperatives of his religion better than any mufti.

Not many people know who Nasir is, and this is probably what the state wants. You could not imagine the kind of instability his kind of thinking would do to “ketuanism”.

From my vantage point - "If they wish to overhaul the system, they cannot do so because they don’t have the philosophical or ideological acumen to make such a move. So they procrastinate, lament and seek scapegoats. Therefore, the best way is to make cosmetic adjustments to the social, political and economic system and declare that they are different from the previous administration."

Next up, my top news stories of the year.

Merry Christmas Malaysia, whoever you are.

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S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. A retired barrister-at-law, he is one of the founding members of Persatuan Patriot Kebangsaan. - Mkini

✍ Credit given to the original owner of this post : ☕ Malaysians Must Know the TRUTH

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