Zaid Ibrahim's 3 steps to redemption

Malaysiakini - Zaid: I regret challenging Azmin for PKR deputy

Once reviled as an apostate (though not of Islam but) of ‘man man lai-ism’, Zaid was the very epitome of a syaitan-ish frog which came from the UMNO pits of hell to challenge the PKR consecrated Messiah and his Chosen One.

That he resigned from his position as Law Minister on principles, in a protest against UMNO minister allowing the misuse of ISA against a Chinese news media reporter and a DAP politician, didn’t mitigate for him at all since he had committed a far greater sin, in brazenly and sinfully challenging anointed Azmin Ali, Anwar's heir apparent and destined by Providence to ascend and ascend and ascend (at least guaranteed within PKR).

To anwaristas, Zaid was also a man driven to bitterness by his loss in the Hulu Selangor by-election to a tambi novice (can’t remember his name - was it Kamal, Nathan or Hands-kissy-one?), but they fail to take into account who had contributed to his loss, such as providing UMNO with photographs of him in the Muslim indiscretion of yamseng-ing. According to RPK, the backstabber was not an UMNO or pro UMNO person but … gulp .. gasp .. no, surely not, it can't be .. alamak … a PKR man – one who saw Zaid as a most imminent potential threat and wanted him to lose.

And they still can’t tell why Zaid has the right to be bitter, when he was sabotaged kau kau from behind by his (then) own party member.

But from the majority of the comments in the MKINI article, those who had previously reviled, condemned and excoriated him, are now effusive in their praise of him as a good repentant man, repentant in his blasphemy against the Messiah and His Chosen One. Examples of some wonderful heartfelt touchy feely comments are as follows:

For Malaysian political leader can admit own mistake is rare! It is not easy! Zaid had gain a little bit of my confidence on him! Well done! He can learn from his mistakes! A person who can admit making own mistakes will have room to improve! You know what, when I am doing my meditation, I am searching mistakes that I had made and finding a solution for it!

Bless you, inner soul searcher, though the next is probably the best:

Let's be gracious and accept Zaid's admission of error at face value. For all his strategic mistakes, Zaid still comes across as a reasonable man with his heart in the right place. I detect that Zaid is intelligent enough to know he has no other recourse but honesty and candour - and a willingness to apologize for his mistakes. That already places him many levels above the typical Umno leader.

... many levels above the typical UMNO leader ... UMNO leader only? But wait, that may well be right after all, wakakaka!

But we mustn’t neglect the superiority of science (maths) over legal gymnastics, as in:

Zaid, I am glad u pull down your face and admit your mistakes, you are lawyer, azmin is mathematician, he carefully calculated risk, so you fail in your calculations, being a newbie in pkr, learn from jui meng, he reject challenge for election, again you fail in learning, both of u are old timer lawyers, and you also fail in those new opportunist surrounding u when u form kita party, either frogs from Umno or PR, now u made a right choice close shop, and move on, waste no time, come out and fight BN, be sincere and honest gentlemen ok, u still young to be a good leader, our next pm will be anwar ok, wind of change is so strong now.

… either frogs from Umno or ... Now, wait a minute! Surely you don't mean to insult people like Anwar Ibrahim, Azmin Ali and inner coterie who like Zaid were from UMNO?

Anyway, dear readers, what do you make of the MKINI headlines of Zaid: I regret challenging Azmin for PKR deputy, bearing in mind of course that news headlines are determined not by the characters making the news but rather by editors of the news media. Okay, perhaps let’s ignore the headlines and continue with the content.

In an interview with MKINI, Zaid said it was a mistake to have challenged Azmin Ali for the number two post during the last PKR party election.

Mistake eh?

Before we guess/speculate/agak/conjecture or wish wakakaka, let’s read what Zaid was reported as having said.

"The regret I think was ... challenging Azmin for the deputy post in PKR, because I didn't know the party.”

What does ‘regret’ in Zaid’s statement mean within the context of ‘not knowing the party’?

Was his 'regret' about feeling sorrow or remorse for his act?

Thus, should we take it as Zaid's remorse for challenging Azmin Ali who was a far better candidate for the party deputy presidential position?

Or, was it because he (Zaid) f* it up by challenging Azmin "because [he] didn't know the party.” ?

Thus, was it his disappointment for (two possibilities here):

(a) standing against a superior candidate leading needlessly to the acrimonious aftermath coming from finding out the party polling process was not kosher as he expected, but in practical terms a standard (or lack of) totally acceptable in PKR since neither the people oversighting the process said a word on the numerous reports of alleged dodgyness other than to look like a deer caught in a car’s headlights ...

... nor the party complaints bureau explained away many discrepancies brought out by independent personalities such as Haris Ibrahim and Jonson Chong, and which eventually led to his (and many others') exit from PKR?

Or,

(b) standing against an entrenched interest, who controlled which people runs the party, when he (Zaid) was still too new to appreciate the ins & outs of a cozy chummy coterie to fight against them, as evidenced by the marginalization of far far more experienced party members like Nallakaruppan and Gobala and Chegubard and Mustaffa Kamil and Jenapala and ...?

Then, what about “The party was not ready for direct elections; it was a mess... looking back, it was not the right decision (to challenge Azmin).”

Did Zaid mean, the designated member to win the deputy presidential post was already decided on, but the party was not really for direct elections to bring that about without also producing the ensuing mess.

"My mistake was... I had a lot of support in the party; I thought I could do something different, to change PKR. But I overlooked this fact that (PKR supremo) Anwar Ibrahim needed somebody he could trust because of his position. (After all) he might be going in (to jail over Sodomy II). So challenging Azmin was a mistake in that sense."

Go ahead and analyse this one, wakakaka.

Anyway, the three steps for Zaid’s redemption by PKR are as follows:

(1) Apologize to Anwar – which Zaid has done on the eve of the Sodomy II judgment, though being the civil gentleman he is, I suspect he did that presumably as a gesture of goodwill and support for a besieged Anwar.

(2) Show repentance – it may be said he has done so, as witnessed by the transformation of excoriations of hatred to exclamations of hallelujah for him wakakaka.

(3) Kiss AI’s hands a la what’s his name (Kamal, Nathan or Hands-kissy-one?) - certainly a major final step which will send the anwaristas wild. Zaid may even receive a Garden of Eden garland wakakaka.

Footnote: for the mathematics of risk assessment wakakaka, read also Zaid Ibrahim suffers no fool gladly