What? Say it again, Rosmah, the mummy of Malaysian children?

Like every other people-robbing government, Malaysia's BN regime supports its thievery with a system of corruption, repression, secrecy, lies and low cunning. And now it has been panicked by popular revolts in the Middle East to pull out all the stops in a desperate attempt to save itself from a similar fate.

First employing the power of its collusive mainstream media to suppress as much news as possible in Malaysia of the uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and elsewhere. Then, when despite the attempted downplaying of these events, some Malaysians peacefully marched in support of their fellows in Egypt, BN brought out the riot police and water cannons and completely blacked-out news of both the protest and the crackdown.

And finally, as if that wasn't sufficient skulduggery to be going on with, they staged a ludicrous stunt to try and portray themselves as caring, sharing leaders by 'rescuing' Malaysian students from Egypt.

Not only making their move days after most other countries had assisted their citizens to leave if they wished, but also in the process attempting to make Najib Abdul Razak's widely-detested wife, Rosmah Mansor, aka First Lady of Malaysia or FLOM, the heroine of the hour.

She was lovingly quoted by the grovelling mainstream media as explaining that “As a mother, how could I not act. I feel for all the mothers whose children who are studying there.”

But her attempt to pass herself off as the mother, or rather, as long as we're talking Egypt here, the mummy of all Malaysians, struck many of us as a stunningly cynical stunt, given that she's never expressed the slightest maternal concern for any other mothers we can think of.

Like the young Mongolian mother, Altantuya Shaariibuu, for example, who was murdered in highly suspicious circumstances by people with connections to the First Lady's own husband, Prime Minister Najib.

Nor has she shown any sympathy for the mother of the infant son of Teoh Beng Hock, the witness who died in highly suspicious circumstances in the custody of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, or for the mothers of the countless 'suspects' that have mysteriously died at the hands of the Malaysian police.

Or, indeed, for all the mothers whose families live in poverty as a result of her own and her husband's obscenely profligate spending of public funds.

Special relationship

But it wasn't just motherhood that Rosmah, BN and the mainstream media were so shamelessly milking. Much was also made of her ability to inspire and enable the rescue mission through her special relationship with the Saudi Arabian royal family.

Not that I'm suggesting she's not close to these personages. No doubt she frequently runs into them on her Imelda Marcos-style international shopping trips and hob-nobs with them at VVVIP functions like the recent wedding of billionaire BN crony, Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud.

But apparently she and BN's propagandists are blissfully unaware that many of us consider the Saudi royals decidedly bad company. Let's face it, they rule their kingdom with such unrelenting severity, and such contempt for democracy and human rights, as to make Malaysia look like a relatively free country.

And little more than a week ago, in the wake of Wikileaks revelations that some Saudi royals are allegedly involved in financing terrorist organisations, Malaysian Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein was accusing Anwar Ibrahim of receiving secret Saudi support.

So, in its customary false fashion, BN is trying to confuse Malaysian citizens by sending contradictory messages. On the one hand smearing Anwar and by implication the entire opposition with false claims of sinister Saudi connections, and on the other praising the so-called 'First Lady' of Malaysia for having such filthy rich and powerful friends.

Cunningly adding to all the flim-flam being created to glorify the FLOM, of course, is her proud consort Najib. Predictably enough, the self-proclaimed author of the mendacious '1Malaysia' slogan and simultaneous supporter of divisive forces like Perkasa is claiming that the Ops Piramid stunt in which his wife has been playing a prima donna part has “no political element.”

BN ventiloquist's dummy 'news' agency, Bernama, quoted Najib as explaining that “the ultimate objective was to ensure that Malaysians were safe,” and adding that there was a total breakdown of law and order in Egypt at the moment.

This latter statement is somewhat exaggerated to say the least, as Egypt's protesters have conducted themselves with considerable restraint, the army is in firm and even-handed control, and most of the surprisingly little violence in the country has been provoked or committed by the police and provocateurs in the pay of the moribund Mubarak regime.

In fact it's arguable that the students so spectacularly repatriated from Egypt by Najib, Rosmah and the gang are not much safer back in Malaysia, whose BN government has for decades been promoting a breakdown in law and order through the rampant corruption and political co-option of the police and judiciary.

Speaking the truth for once?

Surprisingly, the great corruptor and destroyer of Malaysia's civil institutions and tireless exploiter of its racial and religious divisions, former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, has spoken out in cautious favour of change, at least elsewhere.

“The revolutions and upheavals in some Arab countries,” he recently blogged, show that the people are “unhappy with the leadership of their largely authoritarian governments.”

But warning that change is not necessarily for the better, he made the pertinent point, presumably in the light of personal experience as well as proverbial wisdom, that “most leaders on achieving power would change and forget the struggles and sacrifices which enabled them to be in power. Power corrupts, as we all know.”

Could Mahathir be speaking the truth for once, and implying criticism of the Najib and Rosmah show? Or, as the supreme master of cunning stunts, is he simply playing the role of good cop for a change?

Who knows? Who cares? Just as long as, far from achieving a feel-good factor for the rotten BN regime, the whole Ops Piramid sandiwara only serves as one more demonstration of its arrogance and duplicity, and yet another nail in its sarcophagus.

[Source: Mkini]