For thinking the unthinkable and daring to achieve it, Malaysiakini proudly declares that its Newsmaker of the Year is…

THE RAKYAT

BARISAN RAKYAT

They found unity in the diversity - everyone was pissed off but for different reasons, and there was no dearth of deep-seated, festering complaints:

• the spike in fuel prices and knock-on effects on the cost of living, while ministers continued to enjoy all-expenses paid holidays;

• the perceived unfairness to non-Muslims caught up in cases of conversion to Islam;

• the recurring episodes of crass, even crude, remarks in Parliament by those elected to represent the people;

• the perceived persecution of the Catholic community over the use of ‘Allah’ to mean ‘God’ in the Bahasa Malaysia version of their newsletter, which almost lost its publishing licence, and the confiscation of Bibles;

• the continuing fallout from rhetoric over ‘Malay supremacy’, bumiputera rights, racist remarks and racially-divisive politics;

• the litany of grievances in Sabah, where locals alleged they were in danger of becoming strangers in their own land because of ‘favoured’ immigrants; and

• the constant leakages from the national coffer, from the disappearance of savings in reduced fuel subsidies to the unholy haste to invest in indelible ink that could not be used.

The hammer-blows fell with telling accuracy on a ‘selfish, heartless, arrogant, ineffective, greedy and inconsiderate’ BN government led by the sleep-deprived Abdullah.

In January, a group of disgruntled young Malaysians even handed him a pillow and bolster, in recognition of his all-too-frequent ability to catch 40 winks in the middle of official business.

And still Abdullah was oblivious to the shift in sentiments - perhaps he believed a little too much in his pantang dicabar brand of governance and politics.

The final nail was supplied by Barisan Nasional component parties themselves, which imploded over a squabble for plum seats ahead of the general election on March 8.

All this while, the opposition front avoided pitfalls of the past and presented the public with a plausible alternative. Their veterans and newbies drew mammoth crowds to their ceramah nationwide, coaxing voters to shed inhibitions and embrace a ‘new dawn’.

The Year of the Rakyat

As with the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) and the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) in 2007, the general election of March 8, 2008 stamped the arrival of a new force in Malaysia.

In this, the Year of the Rakyat, Malaysians were shaken awake from deep slumber and kicked out of their comfort zone to make a conscious choice that, in turn, has shaken up the status quo.

YOU, the defiant, threw out the rotten, the corrupt and the inept in an election that was nothing short of inspiring.

YOU, the fearless, continued to press for reform and speak up against discrimination and injustice.

YOU, the marginalised, showed up with a six-year-old’s handwritten letters, teddy bears and roses to appeal to the better nature of those who have locked up husbands and fathers. When outlawed, you have refused to disappear.

YOU, the outraged, have turned up - some with young children - at weekly protests and candlelight vigils against the Internal Security Act, risking arrest in the process.

YOU, the supportive, wore T-shirts declaring ‘I’m with RPK’, paraded these before watchful eyes, and stood with blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin in his darkest moments of captivity.

YOU, the imaginative, gate-crashed the biggest party of the year - the UMNO ministers’ Hari Raya ‘open house’ - to take your message to the highest leaders of the land.

YOU, the fed-up, protested the hike in fuel prices in your thousands and later, the fatwa against tomboys, albeit in a smaller number.

YOU, the brave, stood against bulldozers and barricades for days on end, resisting the demand to pay toll charges.

YOU, the indefatigable, cycled for 16 days from north and south to Kuala Lumpur, campaigning for attention to unresolved issues and impending concerns, in the face of police harassment to the last

(Allow me here to take the liberty to quote a comment I made at the end of my posting of Monday November 26 2007. This was how I ended my posting, angry of course):

YOU GASSED US, YOU BATHED US IN CHEMICALLY-LACED JETS OF WATER, YOU MAN-HANDLED AND ARRESTED OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS.
IF YOU WON YESTERDAY, JUST REMEMBER OUR DAY WILL COME, COME THE GENERAL ELECTIONS.
THAT WILL BE OUR DAY!

YOU have all sent out the unequivocal message that you are no longer spectators, but movers and shakers of the nation.

YES!

YOU ARE INDEED

WORTHY RECEIPIENTS

OF THE

NEWSMAKER OF THE YEAR AWARD

WISHING ALL YOU PEOPLE WHO MADE THIS HAPPEN
A SUCCESSFUL 2009!

GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU.

MY FRIEND SK IS INCENSED.........

This 25 year old blogger friend of mine is an exceptionally cool guy and nothing, not even the most gorgeous SYT can ruffle or distract him into emotions extreme. It was Shanghai Fish who whispered to me that SK, not so calm today. I had to find out. I did. You do that too HERE.

TO SYDNEY-SIDERS JOHN & JIM kHOO, THANKS FOR STANDING WITH US.

FOUR KHOOS: JIM, JOHN, KELLY, ME

TO BROTHERS JIM & JOHN KHOO, THIS POST IS FONDLY DEDICATED.

John Khoo (Sydney) enroute to the US stopped over in KL to make it for last week's vigil. He came with chocolates for this little angel (below). However this little angel must be on holiday, so the chocs were distributed to the other kids and other not so little kids. I forced my share onto an SB guy who sat beside me. He was shy at first, but eventually relented after my friendly persuasion. These guys are ok....just doing their job, yes?

John stayed back for the 12th vigil and Jim also from Sydney joined us.

YES, that's how it was at the 12th NO-TO-ISA vigil....WE HAD NO PERMISSION TO SPEAK! Yessiree, you heard it right. We NEED permission to speak. Period.

Earlier on the only entrance to the venue was on Jalan Yong Shook Lin, and entrance to it was blocked by police squad cars, cones, water-cannon truck, thus delaying my attendance by some 15 minutes. When I arrived I was informed that the minute silence was observed for the late Yam Tuan of NS. Then it was announced (without the mike, although it was set up) that since no permission was granted for the assembly, no speeches were allowed and those who felt unsafe could leave with our blessings. Dang, the holy rod of Moses that parted the sea for safe passage would not have helped because NOBODY WANTED TO LEAVE! (not even those who came with their kids).

So for the next half hour we grinned, exchange niceties, made artificial small talk whilst the Government Agents had a field day snapping away to fill their file of errant citizens. I took offense and registered my offence at a lady SB photographer until she obliged to take a shot of me, post my instruction that the photo should be a close-up minus by equtorial rotundity. She giggled goatishly when I asked her to take a profile shot.

The silence was deafening and I had to speak. I congratulated the people for staying put, I thanked them for keeping the faith with us and braving the road-blocks and barricades and I asked in no so polite manner WHERE-T-F were our MPs and Aduns when we needed them most.

SUCH INSENSITIVE BUTCHERY?

ME, IT IS BEST I KEEP SILENT. I CANNOT TRUST MYSELF.

MISSING FOR SIX DAYS.......not really.

Our Puans all thought that it would be a Christmassy idea to get us off our laptops and lap up some fresh island breeze. The breeze was there all right but tuans lapped up something else.

Day 1: Macallan Maul

Day 2: Margarita Hideaway

Day 3: Kamikazes Knock-outs

Day 4: Captain Morgans Glaze (coconut flavored of course and coke)

Day 5: Too many Purple Haze



and

Last Day: Tequila I think

AFTER SUCH A SPIRITUAL RETREAT,
ALL THE TUANS ASSURED
ALL THE PUANS
THAT THEY ARE READY FOR ANYTHING IN 2009!

I HAD A DREAM.....BUT NO MORE......

Like all teenagers, MALAYSIAKINI'S Rahmah Ghazali reported, S Ragaanesan harboured an ambition. To him, there was not a profession nobler than being a man in blue who battles bad hats so that people can go about their lives in peace.

The 15-year-old schoolboy, who hails from the tiny hamlet of Sungai Siput in Perak, has always dreamt of becoming a policeman.

But this dream has been reduced to tatters.

Ragaanesan's participation in the 16-day nationwide 'Ride for Change' campaign has drastically altered his perception of his heroes.

"Before this, I always wanted to be a policeman when I grow up," he said. "But when I saw how they (the police) treated us... I think I'm going to change my ambition... I don't know what to become any more."

SO CPO SURELY YOU WILL NOT PUT THE BLAME ON THE SULTAN NOW, WILL YOU?

+++++

The nationwide campaign organised by grassroots coalition, Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (Jerit), was peppered with incidents like police roadblocks and arrests, as well as several bicycles being torched by arsonists.

While the authorities accused the organiser of numerous misdeeds, including exploiting children, Jerit has claimed that the official reaction was nothing short of politically-motivated harassment by the police.

His father M Sugumaran, 52, said he is proud of his son for having joined the campaign to highlight the woes of the poor.

"I only earn RM40 a day and this is not enough to support my three children. If it rains a lot, I can only earn about RM400 a month. I'm so proud of my son for doing this for me and other people," he added.

READ MORE HERE

REMEMBERING GENTLE SHAM

As announced, yesterdays vigil was dedicated to Syukree. I don't know how to say it but the first thing I did when I got up this morning was to view again the video that Pat Lu put up. I was making my little speech and the video caught Syukree seated near my feet and I was kidding him about his mask and being a double agent.....that was the last image of Syukree alive. Then I caught the video of Sahari a/l Sunta, an Orang Asli craftsman residing in Lake Chini. I put up a post title: A Forgotten Malaysian.

At 1O:455pm, just a while ago I was going thru some business cards and a card fell on my working table: It was AINOL HISHAM MOHD YASIN's card. I KNEW (yes past tense) him as Sham, the late son of Dato Hj Mohd Yasin Hj Taib and Datin Hjh Salmiah Mohamed. Things have a way of happening. Hari Raya is always spent at the Yassins home over countless years. But I missed it this year. After Raya Sham who was already unwell was admitted to UH and slipped into a coma. When he come out of it I still did not visit him. I stubbornly held to this belief that a hospital is a place to recuperate and too many visits can tire a patient. Maybe it was to be that Sham did not want me to see him in that state. I am confused and making unforgivable and lame excuses for my negligence.

OK this is the gentle Sham, always smiling, always concerned about others - a career musician, composer remembered fondly throughout the country as an accomplished lounge pianists.

Sham first stint was at the old Merlin Hotel, Kuala Lumpur (Now Concorde Hotel) where Ogy Ahmad Daud and Royston Sta Maria (of Roy & Fran) were entertainers at the same time. He

then got discovered and went on to work in the then mainstream hotels namely,

Ming Court Kuala Lumpur, PJ Hilton, The Regent Kuala Lumpur, Crown Princess

Hotel, Carcosa Seri Negara, Equatorial Hotel, Palace of The Golden Horses, etc.

Then there were the resorts such like Pangkor Laut Resort where he was the

1st musician to perform there. Other resorts include Tanjung Rhu Beach Resort,

Langkawi where he last performed and which was supposed to be a 1 month stint

which ended up to be more than a year. He had also overlapping contracts

@Berjaya Spa & Beach Resort, Langkawi as well as teaching music @Langkawi

Army Base Camp.

He also had performed @clubs and exclusive restaurants including Bankers Club,

The Royal Lake Club and Derby Restaurant.

In between ALL his contract over the years, he had also been engaged for private

functions and festivities such as weddings, annual dinners, birthdays, Christmas,

New Year, which were countless in numbers.

Throughout his career, he had ventured into composing commercial songs,

jingles, patriotic songs, nasyid, producing, etc. He was also an active MACP

member. Among his compositions were recorded by Ogy Ahmad Daud (Pop),

Edmond Prior (Pop), Lestari (Rock), AlarmMe (Nasyid), Malaysian Girl Guide

(Patriotic).

Karen did visit him and he asked Karen to sing him his favorite song: I have a dream. Karen did but emotion got the better of her and it is not possible to sing and cry.....Sham, I am deeply and regretably sorry that I did not see you duiring those difficult days. But please accept this dedication.

FAREWELL GENTLE SHAM