Overall, the just-over Bersih 5 protest walk event held on Nov 19, 2016 in the federal capital is a great success and most importantly, they had sent the ‘message’ across the nation as well as internationally.

As reported in Yahoo News on Nov 20, 2016, Wong Chin Huat had said during Bersih 5's press conference that he believes the presence of Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Muhyiddin Yassin had been beneficial and they had help pull in more supporters for the cause of Bersih.

Unfortunately, to the contrary, this was seen differently by Deputy Home Minister Nur Jazlan Mohamed, who is also an Umno supreme council member, as he had reportedly said that Bersih organisers had expected a big turn-up of supporters and instead it was fewer than the previous Bersih 4 event.

In fact there were contradicting reports on the actual number of Bersih supporters who were at the Bersih 5 event on Nov 19. Some say there were about 40,000 Bersih supporters and only 4,000 from the ‘red-shirts’. But, accordingly to Nur Jazlan, there were 15,500 participants at Bersih 5.

Of course, there were others who said there were more than 100,000 participants who had turned up to support Bersih 5.

So, looking from the seas of ‘Yellow T-shirts’ as seen on KiniTV, it just can’t be that few Bersih participants at the Bersih 5 event.

There you go, Nur Jazlan had failed to understand why this time around the ‘Yellow T-shirts’, or rather the Bersih 5, supporters only managed to reach KLCC and not Merdeka Square - was it Nur Jazlan’s short-sightedness?

Does he really know why?

Well, how could anyone get pass the police barricades and enter into the Merdeka Square? Furthermore, with the police cordoning off over 52 entries into roads to the Merdeka Square the day before the event, it was a complete lockout. Thus, that is the reason why Bersih supporters only managed to reach KLCC.

Yes. The police had mounted heavy patrols and put on a 24-hour surveillance to see that the Merdeka Square is 100 percent closed - let alone even when a mosquito could not make its way there, how could Bersih supporters reach the Merdeka Square? So, Nur Jazlan’s comment is ridiculous and does not hold water.

Therefore, as regards to Nur Jazlan’s claim that Bersih 5 is a failed event is somewhat a ‘sour grapes’ statement because Nur Jazlan just could not accept that it was a great success.

Exactly, despite warnings and threats of possible violence and riot from the police and people at large, Bersih 5 had no option but to go ahead, taking the next course of action.

Thank goodness the Bersih 5 event proceeded and ended rather peacefully (there was no untoward incident) and that had proven Nur Jazlan wrong that it is not a failed event but a great success.

By the way, all other Bersih 5 events held overseas were also a great success.

Now, it is time for the government to acknowledge, to take stock on the needs of the rakyat (people) and, of course to put right the wrongs or make the necessary changes to save the country’s currency and economy from falling further.

LAU BING is a community activist and writer in Subang Jaya.