I refer to the Malaysiakini report Dr M: Pakatan will win Perak snap polls .

Fielding questions on the Perak constitutional crisis, Dr Mahathir Mohamad was quoted as saying, ‘The outcome is a foregone conclusion' referring to the outcome of a state-wide election should the Perak state assembly be dissolved and elections called. He was further quoted, ‘So why should we have fresh elections ?' attributing to the high cost of conducting elections.

It is not only apparent but clearly evident that Umno is bent on denying the will of the people at all cost. Confident that Pakatan is going to make a clean sweep, perhaps even win with a two-thirds majority if an election is held in Perak, is sufficient reason to attribute financial costs not to dissolve the state assembly.

Such an argument is flawed whichever way one looks at it. Why should the government not fulfill the democratic right of the people to determine who rules their state? Cost consideration is skewed only to dollars and cents. Absolutely no consideration about other costs.

Umno is ever ready to break every rule to stay in power illegitimately. Does this act not cost the people anything? Aren't the rakyat denied their fundamental human right to choose who should form the government of the day?

Perhaps they are ready to acknowledge they made a mistake, a big mistake in choosing the three BN-friendly, selfish and unprincipled assembly persons. What is their recourse to change the situation? None, if we follow the line of thinking of Mahathir.

As the whole world witnessed in horror how BN descended into the cesspool of dirty and violent politics at the May 7 Perak assembly illegal sitting and evicting the speaker in a most despicable and uncivilised manner, we have clear evidence that BN has no respect whatsoever for the God- given dignity and fundamental rights of the human being.

The Perak debacle is clear evidence that Umno is ruthless. It is willing to violently and jealously guard its ground by abusing every institution that serves as a custodian of a democratic society. The police, courts, the palace, media, civil servants, the attorney-general are abused shamelessly to oppress ordinary folk, suppress truth and repress the rights of civil society.

The act of arresting men like Wong Chin Huat and the lawyers speaks volumes of the desperation of Umno. Umno has inadvertently made heroes out of men like Wong Chin Huat and Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin. These are men who may not be known to the ordinary man-on-the-street a few months back if not for the antics of a foolish Umno-led federal government.

However, today men of great courage to stand against the wiles of Umno are emerging rapidly. They may make good state assembly persons and parliamentarians.

It remains to be seen whether the people of Malaysia have short memories as hoped for by Mahathir. Prior to March 2008, the general public preferred not to delve too much into the antics of Umno. Not anymore as evidenced from the huge successes of the Pakatan in the recent five by elections.

Positively, Malaysians can rejoice as Umno continues to arrogate more and more segments of society. It will be safe to expect Pakatan to reap good fortunes in the elections from now till the next general elections. Then we will be able to rest from the idiotic tyranny of the minority (to borrow the phrase of Zambry Abdul Kadir).

I meant Umno as the minority now ruling the nation with autocratic tendencies only because of its almost absolute control over and the abuse of those institutions of governance.

Umno's desperation is plain because its support is diminishing, being eroded by PAS and PKR. Even within Umno and the BN, more and more voices of dissent seem to grow by the day.

Umno's status and position in the long term is untenable. It is rapidly losing its legitimacy to

rule Malaysia.

For me, this is the best thing that has emerged from the Perak fiasco.