Before the landmark 12th general election, the Barisan Nasional government was already in shambles. Blatant wastage of public funds, wanton inefficient and inept handling of public affairs, rampant perceived corruption, unrestrained racially sensitive acts and utterances, the sheer arrogance of the powers-that-be were laid bare for all to see.

There was little or no attempt by the powerful to enlarge our economic cake for all to enjoy. On the contrary, very unpopular and investor-unfriendly decisions were made. Foreign investors who dared to question their terms and conditions were unceremoniously shown the exit.

As a result and though being among the more vibrant developing economies, we were consistently and understandably the last few ones to be considered for FDIs (foreign direct investments).

Inexpressibly, few other poorer countries, in fact, beat us to the wooden spoon as far as attracting FDIs was concerned. So, the general Malaysian populace has to slog for a living to make ends meet while the so called leaders of our country wallow in luxury with their wealth that comes together with the power and authority they possess.

Aware that the general elections were imminent, many activists, NGOs and political parties formed the Bersih movement to demand for free and fair elections. Tens of thousands of the rakyat thronged the streets in support of Bersih’s demands.

This was preceded by the Bar Council’s walk for justice. Notwithstanding, they were treated all the same. Participants were roughed up, harassed and intimidated and many leaders of the organisations and the Bersih movement were persecuted and prosecuted.

Taking the cue, Hindraf, a group of disgruntled Indian Malaysians seeking equal rights from the government, brought thousands and thousands of their members onto the streets of the capital city of KL. This angered the paranoid ruling BN politicians and as a result the Hindraf protesters were manhandled, prosecuted and their leaders incarcerated under the draconian ISA.

Before D-Day (March 8, 2008) our country had gotten worse socially, politically and economically. With more and more disclosures and exposes of governmental excesses, corruption, incompetence, arrogance and what not, the general public’s opinion was skewed towards being more pro-opposition.

On D-Day, five states including the Federal Territory of KL fell to the opposition alliance, Pakatan Rakyat. The BN - for the first time in history - lost its two-thirds grip on parliament. Opposition supporters and leaders alike celebrated. Some were cautiously optimistic, some jubilant and some were outright euphoric.

However, the ineffable joy soon turned to despair and an anticlimax. The fervent hope of the electorate for the emergence of a two-party system and for pressure to be brought upon BN to force them to change their ways did not materialise.

There was a short period of an uneasy lull after which the ‘empire’ began to strike back. The first salvo was fired by the minister for tourism who announced that no more tourism-related funds would be given to the Pakatan held states directly. While Pakatan tried their best to govern, BN was always there to throw spanners into the works. From there, the situation deteriorated.

While Pakatan failed to govern effectively, BN seems not to be interested in governing. The whole mechanism of running the country had been switched to auto-pilot mode. Trading of barbs and accusations between BN and Pakatan were the order of the day. Crossing over of MPs, lies, betrayal, sex and even abetment to murder were hot topics among the ordinary people.

Statutory declarations by the maverick blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin, private investigator P Balasubramaniam and Dr Osman from Hospital Pusrawi dropped like atomic bombs. But as usual, only whistle-blowers get into trouble with our law.

RPK is being charged for criminal defamation while, in acts that magician David Blaine would have paid to learn, Dr Osman and PI Bala just disappeared into thin air. Incredibly, de facto opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim is being charged for sodomy, an episode dubbed ‘Sodomy II’.

The hope that racism could be kept in check suffered a setback too. Parties within Pakatan were jostling for state positions along racial lines. At the recent Bar Council forum, protesters gate-crashed the meeting and forced it to a premature end. Racially-sensitive statements were uttered along the way.

In the meantime, the general populace watches helplessly as all these disgusting events unfold. So, while the nation is burning, BN is guilty of indifference, Pakatan is unable to make a difference and the rakyat have to suffer in silence.