Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
Is Syed Saddiq really a principled person? By P Gunasegaram
Monday, September 11, 2023
Malaysiakini : One must remember that in 2019 the legislation for lowering the
voting age to 18 was passed by all 211 MPs present in Parliament,
showing that if a reform has the support of all parties, a two-thirds
majority can still be obtained.
But look at the blaze of publicity his latest stunt has brought Syed Saddiq, all that attention, especially since the Pulai parliamentary seat went to the unity government in the by-election over the weekend.
If Perikatan Nasional had taken that seat, Syed Saddiq’s power of one would have been nixed.
The crafty politician that he is, he has taken the opportunity well.
At this stage, most Malaysians are likely disgusted with Zahid’s
discharge not amounting to an acquittal but the question that is on many
minds is - how sincere is Syed Saddiq about opposing this move based on
principle?
DPM Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
If
principles are what he cares about most, then he should ask how he
became an MP in the first place - through a pact with Pakatan Harapan
whereby they did not field a candidate against him but supported him
instead. He was the only Muda candidate who won a parliamentary seat.
Under
the circumstances then, the principled man that he claims to be, Syed
Saddiq should now vacate his seat and seek a fresh mandate from the
people who voted for him on the basis that he would support Harapan.
His reply to this was rather inadequate - taking the stance
“why should I quit as MP when others have betrayed voters?” Has he not
betrayed voters too by his latest stance, taking his one-MP party out of
the government bench and making a statement?
Here’s a reminder
about that from DAP supremo Anthony Loke: “But let me remind them (Muda
and Syed Saddiq) that Syed Saddiq did not win Muar on his own merit.
“He
won because there was an electoral understanding with Harapan. We did
not put our candidate there, and DAP lent our support to him, we
campaigned for him.”
DAP sec-gen Anthony Loke
This was Syed Saddiq’s reply in response to critics during a social media livestream on Sunday.
“What
platform did we (Muda and Harapan) campaign on? Before GE15, we vowed
not to drop corruption (cases), to fight corruption, and to bring
reforms. But the difference between what was promised before the
elections and after is astronomical.”
That’s a reply that resonates with the feelings of many Malaysians
but if one chooses to leave the bloc which supported him during the
previous elections, as a principled man, he should resign his position
as MP and seek a new mandate.
Otherwise, one cannot be blamed for thinking that he is making the most political capital out of a sticky situation for Harapan.
In an article in September 2020 called ‘Sizing up Syed Saddiq’,
when he formed Muda with others I said this about him: “With his boyish
good looks, eloquence, ability to think on his feet, and his savvy
media presence and positioning, Syed Saddiq’s proposal to form a party
for youth and youthful aspirations has fired the imagination of many
justifiably tired of the old ones.
“But is it genuine and doable
or is it another one of his moves to focus the spotlight on himself and
to become at least a kingmaker in this current volatile political
environment where no single party can obtain a majority?”
‘Greatrespect’ for Dr M
That
article raised issues about Syed Saddiq, including RM250,000 in cash
found in his house. It also questioned why he wanted to form a
multi-racial party for youth after the Sheraton Move which ousted Dr
Mahathir Mohamad as PM in 2020 and along with that Syed Saddiq’s
position as sports and youth minister.
Syed Saddiq said at the
time: “I have great respect for (Mahathir). As someone young, with hope
and highly idealistic, I firmly believe that diversity in Malaysia is
our strength. While he talks about splitting the Malay votes, we (on the
other hand) have to unite all Malaysians."
Ex-PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Syed Saddiq
The
question that I posed was this: “If that was how he felt, then why did
he join Bersatu earlier and Pejuang after that? If Mahathir was still
prime minister and he was still youth minister, would he be forming this
multi-racial youth party?”
If corruption was what he was
concerned about, shouldn’t Syed Saddiq talk about Mahathir’s 22 years in
government till 2003 and a further 22 months from May 2018 and examine
the level of patronage politics which no doubt contributed to
substantial corruption in the system?
And what about the
manipulation of the court system at the time which led, among many other
things, to the incarceration of the current PM? Instead, he expresses
“great respect” for Mahathir.
It is for reasons and incidents like
this that I continue to be suspicious of Syed Saddiq. I often wonder if
he was planted to undermine Harapan after the Sheraton Move much like
his mentor Mahathir was in 2018 who refused to hand over power to Anwar
Ibrahim as agreed.
Now that he has cut links with Harapan, Syed
Saddiq is free to pursue other links and alliances for GE16 - for
himself and his infant party. Is that his plan? Unless Syed Saddiq and
Muda team up with others more powerful than them, they are nothing.
