Religious duty to have unity talks? More like religious duty to dismantle anti-Islamic race-based politics

by Nathaniel Tan

Bodohla, si Najib ni. First:

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today said the Barisan Nasional government has the capacity to continue administering the country even without the formation of the proposed unity government.

According to Bernama, the prime minister said the BN government was strong and had the capability to implement its development programmes.

As such, the question of the BN government being weak so much so that there was a need for a unity government did not arise.

He said the government had merely responded positively to a proposal by PAS for a unity government.

Then, religious duty kononnya:

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said many people, especially those from the Malay NGOs, are disappointed that unity talks between Umno and PAS have failed to materialise.

“It looks like many Muslims are of the same opinion because unity and efforts to fight for Islam are an obligation,” he told reporters today.

“When we follow the obligation, we get blessings for whatever we do. If Islam promotes that, then we should follow its way. Don’t let politics (political differences) become the obstacle (against) achieving this.”

So? Which is it? You want or you dowan?

With all due respect, I do not quite concur with YB Lim’s response:

DAP’s parliamentary opposition leader Lim Kit Siang today said he did not understand how a Malay unity talk proposed between Umno and PAS was not against the concept of 1Malaysia.

Commenting on Najib’s remarks, Lim said he was caught by surprise with the prime minister’s stand that a unity government between Umno and PAS would not go against the 1Malaysia concept.

He asked if the prime minister would then approve other races from opposing political divides to hold their own unity talks.

“Is Najib saying it is alright with Chinese unity talks or Indian unity talks…Iban unity talks?” he asked at a press conference in Parliament today.

You see, these ‘unity talks’ haven’t the slightest thing to do with cross party Malayness or Islam.

It has everything to do with the political survival of Umno.

It’s very simple: non-Malay support for BN is almost as good as dead. Pakatan probably hasn’t done the best job imaginable of consolidating their gains, but if they were to *really* close ranks (and up their game a little in the governance of their 4 states), they would deal the death blow which unsustainably (especially with Pas on the other side) mono-ethnic Umno is fearing so much.

It is this worry of extinction that is making Najib dance circles around himself, at first being all sombong, and then doing a 180 to turn and say: actually yes, I still want to try and court Pas and break up Pakatan.

The right response is exactly what was said by the Pakatan leadership recently: BN, you can go fly kite.

If you ask me, consolidating and remaining consistent with that stand is the best way to dismantle racial politics - the single largest obstacle to *true* unity.

“O Mankind, We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other. Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is he who is the most righteous of you” (Quran 49:13).