Remember National Laureate Prof. Shahnon Ahmad’s SHIT? Probably the same group of people defending the good ol Prof’s work then is now hurling grouses and curses to the UMNO men who sent the shit-like cakes. In both cases, they are essentially “shitty” so why the double standard? In this holds-no-barred pre election run up, you can expect more of these kinds of political stunts. In a nutshell, it will be fun! It should be.
By now hundreds of blogs, tweets and fb messages are already up there in the cloud, commenting on the parallels of this incident and when Rasullulah SAW was spit at and splashed with filth. Perhaps soon, some people (very much learned but yet wise?) begin to rationalize Syed Ramadhan al-Buti’s Fiqh Sirah and start producing edicts of condemnation! Who am I to contradict such wisdom but I fear that we respond with such hate and anger because perhaps that is the easiest thing to do to be seen as heroic.
I was reminded of a story - former Obama’s chief of staff Rahm Emmanuel, then a Clinton’s pol aide sending a dead fish to a certain Republican senator – stuff of legend! Too far fetched? Lest we forget TG Nik Abdul Aziz 1990’s election battle cry; bagi duit ambil, bagi gula kacau, bagi kain pakai…bila mengundi pangkoh Bulan. Such simplicity! Mere words were enough to neutralize the BN goodies juggernaut that was impossible to be matched by PAS. In fact, coming from a respected spiritual guide, those words (they actually rhymed rather nicely too) provided comfort to people being unsure about actually using the free gifts for fear of corruption sin. They are gifts for God’s sake! Just take it! But then remember; don’t let it buy your choice.
Seriously, in today’s politics, I no longer see such clever responses. Everybody wants to become Umar al Khattab r.a.– tough, ferocious and super confident. And people forget about the diplomatic Abu Bakr r.a, the enterprising Othman Affan, the intellectual Ali k.w, and the beautiful words of Zaid Tsabit r.a. Instead of sword, we wield our Blackberrys and iPhones to launch our over-stimulated attacks. And those words can actually become much sharper than swords that the injury it caused is more difficult to heal. We may have been so ingrained into our political ideals and partisanship that it becomes almost impossible to share a good laugh with someone from the other side of the fence. The picture of LGE laughing with Mindef's Dato' Zahid at the LIMA 2011 event despite all the ho hum of political mudslinging and critical opinions is refreshing and perhaps confusing to some. It is refreshing that our pol leaders are actually good natured humans after all and it brought us to some level of realization that political fights should not hinder personal relationship. And if you are confused why they are patting each other's back instead of the expected sour face, you should not. Political differences must never stop us from reaching to the other side. To my Muslim friends, we must not forget the theological schism between Sunni and Syiah which brought hundred of years of fighting and killing actually started due to some political differences. Its a path we can't afford to take once again.
It's the way we respond that will determine whether our conscience statement and sense of humor indeed have etched a special place in our country’s political stories and folklore that will be told and retold long into the future. Kudos to the Anti-Lynas group for their creative and resourceful approach to civil opposition. I may not entirely agree on their interpretation of the facts but their strategies and activities are refreshing, a far cry from the same old, same old shouting demonstrations that may have become an overused tool. So for the cakes, be certain there will be no M&M treatment. It will not going to melt in LGE’s hands what’s more his mouth! So instead of the so-serious, 'ol school' condemnations and letting the cakes go to waste as they are already subjects of publicity, why not feed it to the cows - a reminder to the public that the whole NFC thing is actually the REAL shit. Call the press and make sure The Malaysian Insider, The Rocket, Harakah, Suara Keadilan etc etc. are there as well to cover the event in case it will not go into the mainstream. More importantly, do it with a jest.
Amacam, ada berani?
As to Prof. Shahnon, I pray for your good health and abundance of energy. SHIT II perhaps?
No comments:
Post a Comment