The first thought that came to me when I saw the Kota Baru Umno division video on Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan and me was whether Umno, through its Kota Baru division, is spearheading an inter-cultural and inter-religious ‘fusion’ with the division enacting the Taoist rites of effigy-burning and setting up of an altar, complete with joss sticks and fruit offerings.

The second thought was the actual role of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak in this video episode as his former political secretary and Kota Baru Umno division chief, Fatmi Che Salleh, was the key character in this ‘inter-cultural and inter-religious fusion’.

Probably I should feel flattered as the Umno leaders and propagandists are attributing to me super-human powers, not only able to lead Umno through Kota Baru Umno division leaders to spearhead an inter-religious ‘fusion’, with Kota Baru UMNO leaders participating actively in the last day of the Month of the Hungry Ghosts, but also to ‘mastermind’ the Bersih 4 overnight rally on Aug 29 and 30 although I had nothing to do with it.

But this is not the first time I am supposed to have super-human powers, as 46 years ago, I was alleged to be capable of leading opposition processions through the streets of Kuala Lumpur hurling anti-Malay insults, causing the May 13, 1969 riots although I was never in Kuala Lumpur in the days after the May 10,1969 polling day and was in Kota Kinabalu on May 13, 1969 - and the government even spent millions of ringgit to fund a film to ‘celebrate’ my super-human powers in 1969.

The third thought that came to me was the cross purposes of the different Umno players in the post-Bersih 4 scenario.

The protest of innocence by the Umno secretary-general and Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor today that the Red Shirt Sept 16 rally in Kuala Lumpur was not on ‘Kebangkitan Maruah Melayu’ was shot down by the Kota Baru video, which clearly admitted that the red shirt Sept 11 rally was to ‘uphold the dignity of Malays’.

The prime minister yesterday announced that Putrajaya will inject RM20 billion into state equity investment firm ValueCap to shore up the stock market in a bid to boost confidence in a country reeling from a political scandal.

But the RM20 billion effort to restore confidence was destroyed in a single stroke by the announcement on the same day that the authorities have legalised the red shirt rally in Kuala Lumpur on Sept 16.

Cry, my beloved country!

LIM KIT SIANG is the DAP parliamentary leader and also MP for Gelang Patah.