YOURSAY | ‘I couldn't agree with you more, Mariam. We bring our problems upon ourselves.’

Love God n Do Gd: Well written, Mariam Mokhtar. We all know, even those outside the country.

The sodomy allegations were made to get Anwar Ibrahim out of the way, from the time of former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad to PM Najib Razak, who feared his ability to galvanise the opposition.

Anwar should be released as soon as possible. No one should be jailed for being wrongly accused. If the judges should pass such an unlawful judgment, it is better to close the courts and the judges removed.

Second, Anwar is ill. It shows how wicked, heartless and selfish our leaders are. It looks like they want him to rot and die in prison.

What about us, the rakyat? Are we also heartless? Are we to just leave him to suffer and die? If not, then do something. Fight for his release and ensure he has proper medical treatment.

If we do nothing about him, we too are answerable to God.

JMC: Unfortunately, Malaysians are too eager to forget the past. They are driven by greed and willing to settle for short-term gains.

Anwar was our hope for a better Malaysia just two years ago; now that his life is in danger, we are too busy to care.

While we are sorry for Anwar and want him released, we stand helpless not knowing what to do as every institution seems to have fallen.

Unless the people get rid of their greed, we are in for very hard times for many years to come.

Negarawan: Mariam wrote, "The truth is, Malaysians are selfish."

Not just selfish, but also ignorant and coward. These are the behavioural traits that prevent strong nation-building.

Foreign countries with long history of revolutions have asked why Malaysians are such a complacent and indifferent lot, surrendering their future to the corrupt and unjust.

The truth is that we still depend on foreign help to do what we should do ourselves.

True: Dear Mariam, all our efforts were blunted by the BN or screwed up by Pakatan Rakyat itself.

Even the opposition leaders are not concerned about the fate of Anwar, so what can else the supporters do?

Sarawakian: I couldn't agree with you more, Mariam. We bring our problems upon ourselves.

The kampung folks are clueless about the 1MDB scandal, having been fed Umno propaganda for three generations.

The intelligentsia like us are only content to be armchair critics. All Najib has to do is to ensure economic conditions don't deteriorate to the extent as to create a grassroots revolt, and he can get away with practically anything.

Note how fast DPM Ahmad Zahid Hamidi backtracked on the issue of the 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers when the unions protested.

I predict true democratic change will not come till the comfortable, middle-class take it upon ourselves to make the necessary sacrifice to change the system, through street protests if necessary.

Thanks to Mahathir's mistakes, and a rogue PM, the window for democratic change of government has passed. Those who blame the opposition's weakness for being unable to affect change of government are being delusional.

Proarte: Anwar only discovered 'Reformasi' when he was sacked by Mahathir during the financial crisis. Prior to this, he was a Mahathir poodle whom he regarded as his 'bapak'.

When Muslim turned Christian convert Lina Joy was denied her right to be recognised as a Christian, Anwar praised the chief justice Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim for coming up with "a fair judgment" despite the fact that it was unconstitutional.

When Anwar was released from jail following his first sodomy trial, Anwar shockingly said he endorsed the country's sodomy laws. What a display of moral cowardice, and it seems like poetic justice that he was convicted for the second time by the unjust colonial laws which he himself endorsed.

Anwar has also characteristically been dumbstruck over infringement of human and religious rights of non-Muslims.

Recently, DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang was lamenting the fact that DAP was described as kafir harbi by the Pahang mufti and that Umno did not repudiate those comments, which amount to blatant incitement to violence and murder.

Instead, Kit Siang should have 'shed tears' that Anwar and the self-righteous Muslim politicians in PKR did not immediately and unequivocally condemn such a diabolical categorisation of non-Muslims.

So, dear Mariam, do not blame the rakyat for Anwar's apparent lack of support. The above examples are enough reason to explain this.

In other mature democracies, an 'Anwar Ibrahim' would have been put to pasture long time ago. It is a measure of the rakyat's hope for real ' reformasi' which made them stick with him for so long. They have come to realise it is a cruel hoax.

Cogito Ergo Sum: We suffer from a severe case of apathy. No one cares or bothers if it does not affect us or our families directly.

Anwar's fight before his jailing means nothing to most. It's now up to the people, all Malaysians, to pick up the gauntlet and carry on. Fat chance!

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