Haven’t a clue of what I mean by the Bota fiasco?
Does the name Nasarudin Hashim ring a bell?
No?
How soon we forget!
On 25th January, 2009, the Malaysianinsider reported that Nasarudin Hashim, the UMNO state assemblyman for Bota, Perak, had announced his decision to quit UMNO with immediate effect and cross over to PKR.
The same news report quoted Anwar as saying that Nasarudin’s decision was “critical, reflecting the sentiment of his voters, primarily the Malays in his constituency” and was “the beginning of a new wave”.
What followed was more like a tidal wave that swept Pakatan out of power in Perak!
The following day, Malaysianinsider reported that Anwar had predicted that there would be a slew of defections by BN lawmakers occurring fortnightly from February onwards.
Another Malaysianinsider report of the same day has Najib responding to Anwar’s prediction.
“These are all rumours … I don’t think so”, Najib is reported to have rebutted.
Knowing what we know now, we can well imagine now that Najib must have been tickled pink by Anwar’s prediction, given what was then in the pipeline.
10 days after announcing he was ditching UMNO to join PKR, Nasarudin announced his return to UMNO.
This followed the announcement by Behrang Assemblymen Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi and Changkat Jering Assemblyman Mohd Osman Jailu, both of PKR, as well as Jelapang Assemblyman Hee Yit Foong of DAP, that they were quitting their respective parties to become independent BN-friendly MPs.
And the collapse of the Pakatan state government in Perak facilitated by these cross overs from PKR and DAP!
Prior to Nasarudin’s return to UMNO, a Malaysianinsider article entitled “Bota crossover looks like a Pakatan coup against itself”, in my view, pointedly summed up the disaster that Pakatan had fallen into.
“Last week’s coup of getting Umno’s Bota assemblyman Datuk Nasarudin Hashim to defect could turn out to be a tactical mistake as it has ironically threatened the very survival of the Pakatan Rakyat government in Perak if this weekend’s events are anything to go by.
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s triumph in snaring Nasarudin has now made the electoral pact lose its “moral standing” and unable to complain about Umno’s move to entice Pakatan Rakyat state legislators wary of their future or disgruntled with their own leadership, critics said
“All is fair in love and war. Pakatan drew first blood with Nasarudin and Umno now seems to be getting back at them. They can’t complain. They started it first,” an Umno warlord told The Malaysian Insider”.
Yesterday, Malaysiakini reported that Anwar accepted the application forms of 300 former members of Gerakan, the Indian Progressive Front and MIC have to join PKR.
At what appears to have been a well-attended ceramah in Nibong Tebal, Anwar is also reported to have apologised for having picked Tan Tee Beng to contest the Nibong Tebal parliamentary constituency in the 2008 general election and went on to assure that this time around, Pakatan would only “choose those who are qualified, good, and are firm in defending the principles of a clean and fair government for the people”.
This assurance is timely and, I hope, can be taken to mean that even as we read reports that Anwar is in talks with MIC and Sabah BN leaders who may be contemplating crossing over to PKR, even if these leaders should ultimately crossover to PKR, they will not be fielded as Pakatan candidates in the 13th GE.
In a letter to the FMT entitled “It looks like Anwar never learns?”, P Dev Anand Pillai articulates fully my concerns.
“There has been rumours that certain MIC leaders are in talks with the PKR Supremo about a possible cross over before the impending general elections. It looks as though PKR has not learnt its lesson…When the PR coalition talks about the unworthiness of politicians who jump ship, it becomes a joke that they court possible cross overs!…The young talent in the PKR is what Anwar has to tap, if he does not understand that,then he is not ready to become the next Prime Minister of Malaysia…Untrustworthy politicians from the MIC are the last thing that must be in the mind of the PKR Supremo…Has Anwar lost it? Wouldn’t he of all know that such characters cannot be trusted? Despite knowing that he is entering into dangerous territory by courting this morons…If Anwar can’t comprehend this then he has lost the plot”.
The People's Parliament 
najib manaukau
June 26, 2012
Clearly the scumbags and parasites from Umno are unable to learn from the past mistakes and if they can Malaysia will surely be a more peaceful and better place to live under the sun. Their attitudes can only lead to one thing for sure, bankruptcy after the present turmoils and shambles just like the Arab Spring. after all these Umno morons have always try to project themselves as part of Arab world, when the truth fact is they are in south east asia.
The only common thing these morons share with them, or should I say they imported from them, is only the Islamic religion, period.
It is therefore only right Malaysia should also be the next Arab Spring, it may be slower because of the big percentage of the non muslims in this country, whereas this is not the case in the Arab nations that are now having the turmoils and shambles. There you have Mubarak and Gaddafi, just to name a few examples and in Malaysia you have the grand son of the pariah from Kerala, the shenanigan Mahathir. When the Arab Spring reaches Malaysia the Malays will then claim that the shenanigan is not a Malay but a mamak, but it will be too late then as the shenanigan has done so much harms and atrocities that are ir-reversable. So much to be a copy cat nation plus to claim a mamak to be one of their own !
bigjoe99
June 26, 2012
PKR needs more the likes Rafizi, Fuziah Salleh, the late lo lo Ghazali, Khalid Samad. Even younger ones like Adam Adlii would be better than these MIC parasites.
tok merayau
June 26, 2012
Yes he has indeed lost the plot. His desperation to take Putrajaya has led him to take risks beyond comprehension. What a pity for such a once likely candidate to be PM – but no longer. The nation now needs a man of integrity to lead the people out of the current culture of rasuah, abuse of power and financial mismanagement. Dato Nik Aziz is the only one who can save this Nation.
shovelnose11
June 26, 2012
Leaders who depended on cross overs to boost it’s numbers are nothing more then the accused. Is the opposition so lacking in fresh, new faces ready to assume the leadership mantle in a clean, efficient and equal that it has to take in jaded, rejected goods? Just have a bad feeling that even in the slimmest of hope that change will take place in 13GE, it’s a rocky and hazardous path ahead filled with heartaches if the new government counts among them these unreliable turncoats.
Jong
June 26, 2012
Not again Anwar! We expect you to learn from past blunders and like to think you are truly Pakatan and nothing up your sleeves, else how can we trust you to lead Pakatan to handle a nation?
Perhaps you and that infamous Nasharudin Mat Isa of PAS should think rejoining UMNO since you don’t seem to be able to get the umno out of you two?
sad rakyat
June 26, 2012
Yes, the rakyat learnt something, but obviously not Anwar Ibrahim! Don’t be surprise, even if PR wins, these frogs, if chosen to stand in parliamentary conts, will most likely leapfrog back. For all we know, it could be another Nasarudin-like ruse orchestrated by BN since they know where they stand! So these frogs stand on PR tickets [ like that infamous from from Kelantan] and then jump back to the arms of BN!
Another Anak Bangsa Malaysia
June 26, 2012
Anybody who wishes to leave UMNO/MCA/MIC/etc to join PR SHOULD be welcomed with open arms. I like to think that Pakatan is an inclusive, not an exclusive political party.
New members should serve a probationary period of, say, 2 or 3 years, before being eligible for candidacy for a federal/state seat. Anybody willing to put their political career on hold for a few years is probably serious about change.
New members can always serve their respective parties in many other beneficial ways WITHOUT needing to be a candidate for any parliamentary seat. There are ALWAYS roles in fund raising committees, mentoring, policy developement, etc etc. It is also a chance to see how sincere/effective these new members are.
New members who expect to get an immediate and automatic nomination for a seat are actually “kataks” and should be treated accordingly – self evident, really.
JK
June 27, 2012
Well i just hope these froggies are not selected as a candidate for the next GE.
Ling
June 27, 2012
Have never approved of frogs, and never will. Should PR come into power they should enact that anyone “crossing over” will automatically lose his/her seat in the state/federal assembly and a by-election will take place. This act will be a favour to the electorate. We don’t vote for reps only to see them hop to the other side, whatever colour that may be.