Malaysiakini: Permatang Pauh: Where are we headed to?

Now, now, we are only two days away from the Permatang Pauh by-election. Election fever is at a high, emotions running high and literally, everything is at stake here.

Now, this can be perceived as Anwar vs Arif Shah. That is what it is on paper. However, the real battle is between Anwar and Badawi. Pakatan Rakyat against Barisan Nasional. PKR against UMNO. The grand prize everyone is fighting for is Malaysia itself.

However, the soalan cepumas to be asked to everyone is, regardless of the outcome, where are we heading to? If Anwar wins, are we headed to a brighter future? If Arif Shah wins, victory for BN and UMNO and Badawi, where are we headed to?

A lot of questions roll around without anyone giving any meaningful answer. Firebrand ultra Khairy speaks of 'burying' Anwar and Najib swears he doesn't know murdered Mongolian Altantuya. In Perak, Tajol Rosli swears he has no hand in the ACA arrest of the 2 Perak Exco. Of course, Saiful (Or Sai-fool as some of my friends call him) swears on Al-Quran, in mosque that he was sodomized.

What is it with everyone and swearing?

Just because you swear, does that you mean you are innocent? If swearing on a Holy Book or for that matter, swearing guarantees your innocence, then why do we have courts and police for? The law and the judiciary is there for a reason and that reason is to assess and deliberate the innocence or guilt of an accused based on evidence of crime.

I mean, let me put to you this way. I can go rob a bank and afterwards call a press conference and swear on a Holy book that I was innocent. Does this mean I did not commit the bank robbery? Does this mean I am innocent? Does this mean that just because I am swearing on a Holy book, I must be telling the truth and therefore innocent?

It is sickening to see people manipulating religion for their own cause. Here, I have to applaud Anwar because he refuses to swear on the Al-Quran. He has surrendered the case to the courts, which is what everyone must do. He refuses to defile the Al-Quran by trivializing it and swearing on it.

I was at a mamak stall when Saiful swore on the Al-Quran. Beside me, an old Malay man wearing a baju melayu and a kopiah was sipping teh tarik. He laughed when he saw the news report. He turned to me and laughingly asked, "Apa? Kalau dia sumpah bohong, Al-Quran tu nak gigit dia?"

Which does make sense.

These people have no qualms about swearing. There is an old Tamil saying, "The King punishes today and God punishes tomorrow." Sure, people talk about being struck by lightning kalau sumpah bohong or something like that. The mamak stall waiter, upon looking at Saiful's swearing said, "I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he weill get hit by a garbage truck when he exits the mosque'.

How many people actually get struck by lightning or get hit by a garbage truck for making a false oath?

Come one la, be realistic. Swearing on the Al-Quran, or swearing in a mosque or swearing during a press confenrence, it's all a ploy to sway the masses. Sure, I can swear I'm a sinless person who had never drunk a drop of alcohol or taken a puff of cigarrette or never had sex but come on la....

This is where I want to say where our nation is heading to

If we can so easily be swayed by a swearing, what does that tell us of ourselves? I'll tell you. It shows the level of stupidity and gullible-ness we have. We have minds and we have intellect, we can think and we can reason, we can compare and we can judge. So why don't we use our minds and think??

Anyone can swear on anything. That doesn't make it true.

Instead of basing our belief on some guy who swears freely, why don't we look at the hard evidence? The hard evidence of Bala's S.D, Dr.Mohd Osman's medical report, Saiful's hospital jumping trip to HKL, the timing of the accusation, the timing of the pasing of the DNA bill, the stalemate the investigation has come to now Anwar refuses to give DNA samples even though his old DNA profile is on file from the previous fiasco, Najib and Syed Hamid Albar's need to comment every three minutes on an ongoing investigation and all sorts if things. The power play involved in this case alone should raise suspicions.

I don't know what to say. Anwar has a more populist approach and open market economic intiatives, which is what we need. Our inflation is at a 26 year high and our economy is in the ICU on life support. Corruption is high and rampant. We need a new direction and only a new leader can provide a new direction. BN has had 51 years to lead the country and look at where are we now? We are in this situation because of BN leadership, not because of Anwar or PKR or Pakatan Rakyat or George Soros or a conspiracy by the Jews.

Look, all I'm saying is that we have given BN 51 years of chance to rule. Would it be so bad to give Anwar a chance of a few years to prove himself? Aren't we sick of all the same parties, politicians and racial politics? We need to realize that we can live without BN and that BN is not invincible. Absolute power for BN over 51 years has corrupted it.

Everyone wants change for the better, the question is, are you brave enough to vote for change? Our future is in our own hands and we need a bright future because our present is as dark and gloomy as night.

Again, to the Permatang Pauh voters, be smart and vote smart. Be brave and vote for a better change.