From schools to the streets: Pro-Palestinian rallies may just be springboard to topple unity gov’t

From schools to the streets: Pro-Palestinian rallies may just be springboard to topple unity gov’t

WHAT happened last Friday (Oct 27) should be an eye-opener not only to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the Madani government but the Malaysian public at large.

These incidents in schools are probably only the tip of the iceberg. At best, they are indications of the undercurrent that there are individuals – including the educators – who have extreme tendencies even within the school system.

Parents are generally only concerned about their children because they do not want schools to become the breeding ground for potential terrorists and other extreme elements or that their children are used as pawns in future to turn this nation into another Taliban state.

Instead of building the country to be reckoned as an economic powerhouse in this region, if the problem is not nipped at the bud, things may snowball to an extent that the country’s future be in the hands of extremist groups.

The incidents in schools which were carried out ahead of the Palestine Solidarity Week which officially kicks off today (Oct 29) are nothing but expressions of defiance which authorities cannot close an eye, especially since Terengganu PAS Youth had in February this year displayed tendencies to adorn war garments and paraded with fake weapons of war.

In an undated video, Permatang Pauh MP Muhammad Fawwaz Mohamad Jan had also allegedly taught that the “Malay rulers are supposed to be subjugated to the powers of the ulama”. What does this tell us about our lawmaker?

Since the demise of its spiritual leader Tok Guru Nik Aziz Nik Mat in February 2015, PAS has begun to display the more extreme side of Islam with its current president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang alongside Opposition leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin dabbling with fire by riding on the pro-Palestine march on Sunday to demonstrate against the US.

Clamp down

In his latest video clip, fugitive blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin (RPK) claimed that the PAS 10,000 Palestine Solidarity Rally held yesterday (Oct 28) afternoon has attracted “more than 10,000, 50,000 or even 100,000 participants though hard to estimate correctly”, hence more successful than the Malaysia Stands with Palestine’ rally staged by the unity government on Oct 24.

The video clearly shows RPK is hell bent attempt to overthrow the Madani government especially Anwar, the solely pro-opposition rally pale in comparison to the BERSIH rally in 2007 which enticed a multi-racial crowd of 40,000 who only wanted to seek a fair and clean election as opposed to toppling the government of the day.

Given such unruly state of affair, the unity government has no choice but to view such development very seriously if the country is to remain as a progressive nation that believes in democracy.

This is why most middle ground Malaysians – both Muslims and non-Muslims alike – have expressed concern over the latest development by urging the government to stall the Palestine Solidarity Week in schools.

There is the tendency for the issue to be exploited by the negative elements which have long been lying low away the radar.


A pure sabotage?

Although the intention of the government is quite different for the Palestine Solidarity Week where schools are supposed to carry out activities to teach children humanitarian values, it is obvious that certain school principals and teachers have gone too far displaying their extreme tendencies.

For a long time, parents have expressed the concerns over the behaviours of some of educators in the country but Education Ministry officials have taken lightly the complaints from parents.

Now, they cannot downplay what is obviously wrong even in the eyes of the law. Section 36 of the Firearms Act 1960 states that “Possession of and importation of imitation (fake) arms, by any person who shall import or have in his possession or custody an imitation arm shall, on conviction, be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to a fine not exceeding RM5,000 or both”.

This is no longer about the Palestinian struggle. It is about local politics where one party is trying to cause the collapse of the unity government set up by the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA).

It seems that the Opposition is seeking to take over the Federal government through a vote of no-confidence rather than waiting for the next general election. The government must take this seriously by investigating the possible involvement of deep state and hidden hands that have gone “silent” for the past two months.

Bear in mind that every move or action that we see being played out in the open appear to be done with one concerted effort – which is to overthrow the Madani government.

There are obviously people who are afraid that Anwar may go on the overdrive with the fight against corruption, a “cancer” of society that Emir Research has estimated Malaysia’s total economic cost of corruption to be worth by RM2.3 tril over the last 26 years. – Oct 29, 2023