Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Contractors dominate Umno

It sounds shocking for those who are new in politics but this has been long in Umno for decades. Contractors are dominating the entire organization in Umno from branch, division right up to the state liaison committee levels.

And that is how money politics in Umno continues and it will never be wiped out as certain leaders had claimed to. For those Umno leaders who said they could wipe out money politics in their organization, we would suggest they bang their heads on the wall first. The actual fact is it is impossible, as it has been in the roots of the party for years and rooting out these elements in one time would be miracle if it really happens.

So, can Umno be cleaned up? The answer is No as the Umno leaders already had these traditions in their roots ever since they became party members. To become an Umno member, one must obtain some contracts from the government, if not what is the use of being a member? Therefore, in order to ensure they gain these contracts, those party members will ensure the leaders of their choice be elected to office and in turn the said elected leaders will pursue for a government position where aftermath of their appointments will reward their supporters with vast numbers of contracts without going into the proper channel of tendering in public or open tender.

Such practices, if describe by a layman, it would be called corruption but in Umno such practices are sanctioned by the leadership, therefore it has been legally interpreted as “valid” in the party. The clear fact is, about 85% of the delegates in the Umno general assembly are contractors.

We got a good laugh when former Umno president Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad threatened to reveal the names of Umno leaders and members who are involved in money politics. By exposing these culprits means exposing himself as well, where during his reign in Umno too money politics are widely practiced.

So, what is the big deal then?

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