THE SWORN OATH

It has been 75 days since “The Oath” was taken by the UMNO delegates led by the Deputy President Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin. Yes, one might ask why it has taken this long for me to write an article on it. I took my time, as I wanted to give a reasonable grace period to judge the impact it had on those who made the pledge.

The Pledge Of Allegiance

TRANSLATION (From The New Straits Times):

* We in UMNO pledge to close ranks, forge solidarity, rid ourselves of dispute, ill feelings and jealousy and put party interest above self.

* We in UMNO promise to be loyal to the party by giving our full confidence and support to the party President to lead us in achieving a landslide victory in the general election.

* We in UMNO swear to work tirelessly in an organised and systematic manner, to struggle and work in the path of Allah to ensure UMNO and Barisan Nasional's victory in the 13th general election.

* We in UMNO pledge to give our undivided support to candidates who will be selected by the party's leadership to contest in the election.

The Maestro, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin Leading The Oath-taking Event

Many of my fellow delegates do remember it and will certainly hold true to their pledge.

But will those in the hierarchy keep their Oath solemn and do justice to it or will they compromise and renege on what they forced upon us all, in good faith.

Of late, I heard of efforts by both Ministers and deputy Ministers to lobby the Prime Minister to remain in office.

It had become intense that even the Prime Minister had to change his own holiday plans to enable him to be away from it all. Sources said some of them had planned to travel to where the Prime Minister was to be in the hope of getting some private time with him to further lobby their positions. Others have gone to the extent of asking to contest a safer parliamentary seat for fear of losing their own constituencies.

I know most, if not all, of the UMNO delegates who attended the General Assembly will keep to the oath that they took on that day.

But I am not convinced that those in office now such as the Ministers and deputy Ministers are equally convicted to the Oath. What if their names are dropped from being candidates in this coming General Elections? Is there a different set of Rules for the incumbent Cabinet members when it comes to putting Party above self-interest?

If any, I personally think that their acts portray them for who or what they really are.

One UMNO member, who was a former Minister, spoke against the party and government as if he holds high moral grounds. Another continues to be defiant in keeping her post despite having dragged the party and the government in what can be considered her own family matters.

In the meantime, there are also outgoing and aspiring candidates who are said to be trying to get cozy with the PM’s wife in order to keep their seats or get nominated. This is a despicable act if it is true and will definitely put the Prime Minister as well as his good wife’s name in bad light, especially if the former entertains such nonsense.

At the same time, I believe these acts would make it much easier for Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Razak to identify the good, from the bad and the ugly within the Party and the Government.

However, while the final sentence from the Oath is most reasonable and generally acceptable, it needs to be reminded that if the nominated Candidate is not from the party division and is an outsider shoved down the throats of the locals who’ve served the area tirelessly and unselfishly for the last 20 years since they were young, patiently waiting for their turn to rise, there will undoubtedly be a backlash.

Since known adversaries from within the divisions are willing to accept one another in the spirit of The Oath , they cannot be accused of reneging on it if an alien is put forth to represent them unsupported.

In this respect, the decision makers who are out to save their associates or Cabinet members by switching them to a safer seat would be the ones betraying the Party and be considered Traitors.

I Suggest If The General Election Is Further Postponed To Either The End Of The First Half Or Early In The Third Quarter Of The Year, Then We Should Use The UMNO Anniversary As A Forum To Renew Our Oath And Raise Again The United Spirit To Pummel Through Our Course To Imminent Victory.