egypt the day after mubarak overthrow women celebrating thumb 'The lessons are plenty. Yet, it's a shame that our leaders from Umno/BN are still in denial and are ignoring and defying the rakyat's call.'

Habib RAK: Having followed the people's revolution in Egypt closely since Jan 25, the vision of the jubilation of their success on Feb 11 in kicking out Hosni Mubarak and his regime has been etched permanently into my mind.

The lessons are plenty. Yet it's a shame that our leaders from Umno/BN are still in denial and are ignoring and defying the rakyat's call and plea to rein in the brutal and corrupt police force and all other institutions in Malaysia.

The politicians are still plundering and raping our nation with impunity. We, the rakyat, are being pushed to the corner and the day of reckoning will come to our shores.

Anonymous_5fb: The circumstances leading to Hosni Mubarak taking over the Egyptian presidentship was like ex-MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik taking power due to vacuum left by the arrest of Tan Koon Swan, while for Mubarak, it was the assassination of Anwar Sadat.

Both men indeed were fortunate to fill in the vacuum left by their predecessors and became powerful men overnight. But absolute power corrupts absolutely. When greed seeps in, the eventual results are what we see now in both Egypt and MCA.

The rakyat remain poor but the leaders are filthy rich. Malaysia will be next if Umno is still adamant to remain in power at all costs, without correcting all the rots that have surfaced since Dr Mahathir Mohamad stepped down.

Phra Ong Chao: Feb 11, 1979 - Shah of Iran government collapses. Feb 11, 2011 - Hosni Mubarak government collapses.

FairMind: Mubarak is not smart enough. In the end, it was the citizens who fought against the government. He should have learnt from Umno. Had he adopted Umno's racial politics, the Egyptians would have fought among themselves and he would emerge as the saviour, and rule the country for another 50 years.

Abasir: Today, we are all Egyptians! Feb 11 will become the next rallying call when people everywhere rise to remove the ‘Armani-suited' oppressors and their corruption, abuse of power, cronyism and their wholesale looting of the nation.

Onyourtoes: Malaysiakini's headline: ‘Mubarak stepped down, army takes over' was not exactly accurate. Mubarak did not step down. He was forced out of office.

This is the situation in most countries today. Where is the civility and decency that most politicians talk about but never practise? Ultimately, it is always the animal in them to fight for power, positions and enrichment for themselves.

The second part of Malaysiakini's headline worries me even more - ‘army takes over'! So is this from one tyrant to another? This is precisely what is happening in most dictatorial countries - no alternative government in place to succeed a crumbling regime.

I can roughly predict the modus operandi of the army: they will restore law and order with tanks, bullets and bayonets. They will promise a return to election and democracy within a year or so, but trust me; it is not going to happen.

Soon a strongman within the army (or anointed by the army) will emerge and rule the country for the next 30 years with the same style and pomp as Mubarak's.

Atan-Toyol: Congratulations to the ordinary citizens of Egypt on their great victory over their dictatorial leaders, notably Mubarak. Malaysian leaders take heed. The power you claim to have actually belongs to the people.

I praise the people of Egypt for their resolve and salute the military and the police for respecting the people's right to protest peacefully. This is what the BN government is afraid of. That's why any protest must get police permit, and it is not easily given, especially if it threatens BN's security.

Keturunan Malaysia: So another 24 hours had come to past in the Land of the Pharaohs. Mubarak said (I quote), "I don't care what people say about me. Right now I care about my country, I care about Egypt."

He should have said, "I care what my people said about me as I care for my people" from the day he took office and continue to say it throughout his time as president. He would have then remained president of Egypt instead of a despised toppled dictator.

Vgeorgemy: We salute those freedom-loving Malaysians who stayed behind and assist the Egyptians to achieve their freedom. You are truly the reformasi generation. Malaysia Boleh.

The wind in the 'lalang' rising again

Geronimo: Dr Mahathir Mohamad, it does not matter who lied but the fact remains that Operation Lallang happened under your watch, and you as the prime minister is to be held accountable.

When German troops went on rampage all over Europe during the Second World War, it was Hitler who was held accountable. He knew it and therefore took his life rather than facing a humiliating trial.

The same goes for the Japanese, whose atrocities were even worse. The rape of Nanking still haunts many Chinese people till today. At the end of the war, many Americans wanted to hold the Japanese emperor accountable but in order to preserve the dignity of the palace, General McArthur decided not to persecute the emperor but instead went for the generals, one of whom was General Tojo.

So, Mahathir, the police may have acted on their own or Lim Kit Siang may have lied about meeting you, but in the end you still have to answer for the mass crackdown as it happened under your watch. If it is not here, it will be in the hereafter. Take your pick.

Ghkok: The future of our country rests on the shoulders of voters - not Najib Razak, not Anwar Ibrahim, not BN and not Pakatan Rakyat. The future of our country rests on the absolute need to end 53 years of one-party rule and to move to a genuine two-party system consisting of BN and Pakatan, both competing in an oppression-free arena to offer the best solutions to our country's problems.

It rests on the need for voters to vow never again to allow one party to rule the country for 53 years. It rests on the voters to vow, henceforth, to change the federal government every two or three terms.

A two-party (coalition) system is the best way forward for our country, regardless of what Najib says. A two-party system needs to be cemented with the formation of a Pakatan federal government to break the monopoly of BN and to subdue the forces of oppression and to pry open BN's grip on government institutions.

Our country must be liberated first and foremost before we take the next step.

Cala: Hazlan Zakaria, great piece. But your urging of Umno-led BN regime to change its course will be met by deaf ears.

Why? If it takes the ruling class five decades to build the culture of plundering national resources, it will take another 50 years to dismantle a system of self-enrichment according to the equilibrium of the game approach (Platteau, 2008).

To this group of ruling elites, the accepted norm is to make hay while the sun shines.

Kit Carson: Najib, take heed of what happened in Egypt. Don't suppress the people. Instead, listen to their woes and put an end to the mega-corruption in this country.

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