Najib-Trump: A tale of convicts

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Najib-Trump: A tale of convicts

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 29, 2024: The disgraced and shameless former Malaysian prime minister Najib “1MDB” Razak and the uncouth former US president Donald Trump have something in common.

Both have been convicted and sentenced for committing crimes.

The jailbird former Umno president caused Malaysians and Malaysia to lose billions of Ringgit from mismanaging and abusing the country’s so-called Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) - 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

The Government (read as Malaysians and Malaysia) need to settle the 1MDB debts for the next 10 years or more.

And to the racist Umno and many politicians, including Malaysia’s 10^th Prime Minister (PMX) Anwar Ibrahim, that is forgivable and that the kleptocrat deserves to be given a backdoor freedom known as house arrest but more appropriate as bungalow arrest, so that he can enjoy his ill-gotten wealth.

This is what Umno and politicians call loyalty to the country and a "political hero"- to steal from the rakyat dan negara (people and country). - Facebook images

No News Is Bad News reproduces below what is being shared on Facebook - a tale of convicts: 

Buckley Bold 

Between Najib and Trump, they share something in common. They have been convicted and sentenced.

The difference is that one had his appeal rejected and he is serving time (halved by the former King) and Trump is appealing against the 34 counts of felony. He is also facing charges of attempting to overrun the 2020 election results.

Another similarity is that both of them are trying to make a come back.

First, Najib is sorry. He apologised, and is asking to serve the rest of his time (less than 6 years) in home detention. Thereafter, I trust politics is not something he will stay away from. He is still popular amongst a few segments of the Malay Muslim majority and the business class. They say power is an irresistible aphrodisiac.

As for Trump, well, he has already claimed victory for his second coming. He is close to securing it, it seems. Trump’s supporters worldwide will be cheering for him, since his is a fabled tale. Some may even call it an orange phoenix rising from the ashes after martyrdom.

His track record is telling. It’s out there. He talked freely about grabbing p****s. He got away with saying even if he shoots somebody in downtown NYC, he would not lose any votes.

And need anyone be reminded about his plans to inject bleach to treat the “China virus” and being the first president since Thomas Jefferson to resist the peaceful transfer of power in 2020. He is still at it. And standing on the pedestal of power, truth has a way of bowing down to it. At least the version that people want to hear.

And to cap it all up, he is convicted of the dozens of charges and now appealed against, and the (attempted) insurrection charges pending.

Returning to Najib, he was convicted for stealing billions from the people. His apology notwithstanding, there was a time he never accepted responsibility at all. On his FB post, he once wrote:-

I’m not responsible for sacking my deputy PM to cover up 1MDB.

I’m not responsible for sacking the attorney-general to cover up 1MDB.

I’m not responsible for sacking the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) chief and special branch chief to cover up 1MDB.

I’m not responsible for the US$27 million 22-carat pink diamond my beautiful wife purchased. Where is it hidden by the way?

And I’m not responsible for going after and persecuting 1MDB whistleblowers to cover up 1MDB.

I suppose Trump is not taking any responsibility too. - whether it is for lying, insulting, belittling, cheating, bribing, sacking, and the list goes on and on. Anyway, nobody is perfect, right?

And his fervent supporters will contend that they are all politically motivated. I am sure Najib’s supporters will echo the same sentiment. “Don’t touch God’s anointed. You will never understand!”

Lesson?

Most times, we are defined by the one thing and it rules us all. And that one thing is captured in this quote: “Those who do not learn from history are doomed (or condemned) to repeat it.” For have we not seen or read the likes of Najibs and Trumps in the different pasts our ancestors have lived in?

This applies on a micro-scale too. History of what our fathers did. History of our past mistakes. Even history of what we are told about sowing and reaping.

Recall this: “For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.” We repeatedly do what we know we should not do or is wrong to do.

Politicians have more on their plate, and the toxic seduction of power, wealth and fame on a national, or international level, often oppress and derail them. We sow what we reap. At times, at that level, they sow, we reap.

Each generation will have their Najibs and Trumps. And like a goldfish in a bowl, the ones inside it usually are not aware that they are repeating the wrongs of what their ancestors have done. The conditioned water in the fishbowl insulates against the wisdom needed for us to declare: “It stops with us!”

Of course, each generation will have their Washingtons, Lincolns, Gandhis, MLKs, and Mandelas, to name just a few. That is heartening. It is the seed that is planted in silence and they do bloom at the right time, when the blood of the people fertilises the soil. They are not perfect but the one thing that defines them is the courage to do what is right.

So, don’t be naive about it. Have no illusion or vain ideals. Isn’t it forewarned, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves”? Familiar?

Each season calls for us to do our part. We will fail some seasons and rise up for others. Don’t be too hard on yourself. As long as you suffer the remorse of it, you can still be the seed the bloodied soil cries out for. Always lean towards hope, because people who look to you for it, is empowered by it.

Aren’t we constantly reminded that “the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time”?

Our part?

Feed them, one mouth at a time. Amidst the chaos, do what you can to fill one stomach at a time. Do it not expecting anything in return. Do it as if they are your child. Do it even if you perceive no hope. Because, if you don’t, they have no hope.