YOURSAY 'Is the sentiment shared by the whole Umno-BN leadership? If not, what's the point? It will still be the same old story.'

Najib's mea culpa: Too little, too late

Kairos: Is PM Najib Razak's apology a desperate or a calculated attempt to win the hearts of the rakyat? The answer is both.

Desperate because Pakatan Rakyat is gaining momentum in the run-up to the GE and is even gaining ground in the Umno-BN strongholds of Felda areas, Johor and East Malaysia.

The apology is also calculated because Najib knows that forgiveness is very much a part of the Malaysian culture and would resonate well, especially with the many religious citizens of the country.

But the critical tests are these: firstly, even if Najib is sorry, is the sentiment shared by the whole corrupt Umno-BN leadership? If not, what's the point? It will still be the same old story all over again.

Secondly, if the PM is truly sorry for the mistakes made, why wait till after the elections to rectify them? To prove his sincerity, do it now.

Malaysiasakit: Would a victim accept a mere apology from the rapist? Definitely not. If you offend someone, you can apologise but you must pay the price. It's as simple as that. If you are caught speeding, what is the point of apologising when you don't pay the fine?

As I see it, the price for the past mistakes of BN would be a loss in the next two general elections at the very least.

Docs: Terence Netto's article compares Singapore's PM and Malaysia's PM, but I think they are not in the same league.

PM Lee Hsien Loong accepted the losses in their last election, and conceded his government's shortfalls and mistakes, and sincerely apologised to his fellow Singaporeans for the mistakes committed by his administration.

A few non-performing cabinet ministers were axed. He has already started implementing reforms to correct the wrongdoings.

Here is Malaysia after BN's poor show in the last election, what has PM Najib Razak done? He orchestrated the Perak state coup. Then he basked in the glory of returning Perak to BN illegally with no regard for the wishes of the voters.

Rakyat Malaysia: What, for example, will Umno do about Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud?

If Najib is really serious, Taib needs to return all the money to the people of Sarawak and Malaysia. Will Najib do that? Of course, not.

Corruption in Umno cannot be undone from within, except with the people's power from outside.

Bluemountains: Would an average citizen be able to exculpate himself for all the crimes that he had committed if he just apologises to all Malaysians? I don't think so.

If the government is really serious, it should bring all perpetrators to book in accordance to the laws of the country, irrespective of whether the culprit is the prime minister or an office boy.

Loyal Malaysian: I believe the apology is not meant for us who have access to the alternative media; it is for the consumption of the rural folks in the Malay heartland, and we will see the MSM (mainstream media) paint the town red in the coming days about how humble and noble this deceitful character is.

WanAction: Najib's apology means nothing if he continues to allow the debacle of NFC (National Feedlot Corporation) to go on without any action being taken.

He fears the backlash from his DPM, who was the then agriculture minister and instrumental in the approval of the award of the soft loan of RM250 million.

There is Tajudin Ramli's case too. Do not fail the country and the citizens with your inability to show leadership and courage.

You won't stay on as opposition leader too as your deputy and vice-presidents will clamour to dethrone you. Time is running short for Najib. He has to be ruthless and brave.

James1067: Najib still has time to make the changes to prove the sincerity of his apology. There are so many things that are not right. The question is, is the apology just another political gimmick?

The people will judge in the coming months leading to the election. Najib's reputation for doing a U-turn is a known fact as he is not in charge, as can been seen by the remark of his deputy.

Anonymous_3ef1: Najib, it's plain for the rakyat to see that you and your DPM is on a different plane. You are a lame duck PM with no support from your very own party.

Umno is split into factions and it's everyone for himself. The corruption, cronyism, nepotism, lies after lies, defiance, arrogance, deceit, all are eating you up.

The meltdown has begun and it will be your very own party that will bring the curtain down, not Pakatan Rakyat.

Chks: Seriously, I dread the day when Muhyiddin might become PM. That sounds very much like doomsday to me. Before that could ever happen, we must kick BN out; otherwise, who else can Najib offer to succeed him?

Anonymous_3fb9: If Najib is sincere, he should apologise one by one for each and every of the misdeeds and scandals that Najib/BN has done to the nation and rakyat.

But the list will probably be so long that he can't finish the apologising in one day.

Docs: After reading this article, the song ‘Too Late to Apologise' by One Republic seems to come to my mind.

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