The rakyat have spoken, do the politicians have the will?

Nov 10 was a victorious day for all Malaysians. It was a day when more than 40,000 people of all ethnic groups, all age groups and from all walks of life, took to the streets to demand for electoral reforms for fair and free elections. At a time when race relations are under tremendous strain, this was indeed a rare occasion when all races forgot their diverse ethnic origins and came together as a single Malaysian race. It was a rare opportunity for all Malaysians to share in the common brotherhood of our beloved nation.

What was more amazing was that despite their number of police officers and the obstacles, the rally was largely peaceful. People came in the thousands, marched to the palace, delivered the memorandum to the King and finally dispersed peacefully. No major untoward incidents were reported. We salute the organisers, Bersih, the coalition for clean and fair elections, for a wonderful job done. It was well-planned and executed peacefully.

On the eve of the rally, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi warned people not to challenge his authority. It is unfortunate that Pak Lah, who is known for his soft nature, has taken a confrontational attitude like his predecessor towards the people who were expressing their views on something so important - free and fair elections, the basic pre-requisites for a true democracy.

The rally was neither anti-government nor intended to topple the leadership like in other neighbouring countries. It was to express the people's disenchantment towards the way our Election Commission conducts the general elections. The EC is seen to be strongly pro-government and unfair to the opposition. There has been unfair delineation of electoral boundaries whereby opposition strongholds are unfairly represented. There is also the issue of phantom and postal voters, all reserved for the ruling party.

Furthermore, the ruling party blatantly abuses the government machinery and all available logistics to campaign for their candidates. They have monopoly over the national print and electronic media. As far as memory takes us, we have never seen opposition leaders on television. Even the major newspapers hardly carry any messages from the opposition. This is in total contrast to what we see in countries like the United States, Britain and even India where all political parties have equal access to the mass media in their campaigns to reach the masses.

Nobody is challenging the prime minister or the government. Nobody is trying to topple the government that has been duly elected. All we ask for is to ensure that the elections are conducted in a fair and free manner where the opposition are treated equal to the ruling party. Equal opportunities should be given to them to reach the rakyat. Is asking for these rights, as provided for in the constitution, an unfair demand that constitutes a challenge to the authority of the prime minister and his government?

The government dismisses without tangible reason the rally as illegal and accuses the organisers for causing a lot of hardship to the people. There were massive traffic jams that could have caused inconvenience to people. Business, too, could have been adversely affected. At the same time, no person with a sane mind would want to inconvenience himself by participating in demonstrations that could pose tremendous risks to him as well.

It must be stressed that it was the attitude of the government that made this demonstration necessary. If only the government adopted a more conciliatory approach to the problems posed by the people, then this rally would never have been necessary. If the government accepted the right to dissent and made avenues available for its expression, why should people resort to street demonstrations?

If the government can meet the people's demands in a spirit of cordial dialogue, there would be no tension whatsoever. The police, instead of ensuring that the people's gathering goes on peacefully, have unfortunately also taken a combative attitude against the very people whom they are tasked to protect.

Despite all these obstacles and risks, people came and they really came in droves. They braved the heavy downpour and intimidating tactics of the police to join in the mass expression of displeasure with the EC. For every person who turned up in front of Istana Negara, there would be scores of others who could not be present for some reason or another.

The government should be wise not ignore the massive voices of dissent against its policies especially from the younger generation. It should take this mammoth rally as a wake-up call that many things are not right. Take steps to right the wrongs. The younger generation of Malaysia is fed up of race politics and is yearning for change to make our country at par with other democracies in the world.

It is time for the government to realise that people are more literate and aware of their rights. They are aware of what people in developed nations are experiencing. It is timely for our leaders to reflect on the words of Abraham Lincoln, one of the greatest politicians of all time, "You can fool some people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time."

Through the Bersih rally, the people have spoken and they have indicated that they want a change for the better. Now it is up to the political leaders to effect those changes. Will they rise to the occasion and defend the rights of the rakyat at any cost? Can we place our trust in them? These are the questions that plague the minds of the people who have often been let down by the very politicians who have championed their causes.

It is time for the leaders of major opposition parties, PKR, PAS and DAP to demonstrate their sincerity in championing the people. They must stop their internal bickering. They should put aside religious and racial issues that divide people and unite on the numerous common grouses we face as Malaysians.

The is no shortage of such grouses today corruption, abuse of power, a disgraced judiciary, an ineffective police force, lackadaisical civil service, escalating cost of living, increasing crime rate and so on. It should unite us in our struggle to free our country from the clutches of the evils that are threatening to become our national culture.

The opposition has been given another opportunity to mount a reasonable challenge against the ruling party, to deny them a two-third majority in Parliament. They should not allow this golden opportunity to eluded by petty squabbles like in 1999. It may be timely for them to unite as an opposition coalition and contest under a common banner, led by a leader acceptable to all parties. This is the least they can do to save the nation from ruins.

The ball is at the feet of our opposition political leaders. Are they willing to rise up to the occasion and put the interests of the nation above their own? Their answer will determine the destiny of our nation.